Sautéed Greens With Pine Nuts and Raisins

Sautéed kale, mustard, turnip, beet or collard greens, tossed with toasted pine nuts, golden raisins, a little red pepper and black pepper. Sicilian-style greens.

By
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.
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Updated January 27, 2023
Elise Bauer
Sauteed Greens with pine nuts and raisins
Elise Bauer

Have you ever had this classic Sicilian side dish? It's made with leafy greens that you sauté with garlic in olive oil and toss with toasted pine nuts and raisins. It may sound like an odd combination, but it works; it's sweet, savory, salty, spicy and just a little bitter. And as my mother would say—well balanced.

We used dinosaur kale (aka Lacinato or Tuscan kale) but you could easily use collard greens, mustard or turnip greens, or spinach. Any leafy green will do. The bonus? It takes less than 10 minutes to cook.

Sauteed Greens with pine nuts and raisins
Updated from the recipe archive, first posted 2010. Elise Bauer

Updated from the recipe archive, first posted 2010

Sautéed Greens With Pine Nuts and Raisins

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Total Time 20 mins
Servings 2 servings

Collards and kale lose less of their volume when cooked than do spinach or turnip greens, so if cooking them, chop them a bit smaller than you would the spinach or turnip greens.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup pine nuts

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 1/4 cup golden raisins

  • 1 bunch kale, chard, collards, or turnip greens, etc., about 1 pound, tough stem centers removed (if any) and discarded, greens chopped

  • 1/2 to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

  • Roughly 1/4 cup dry white wine (can sub water with a splash of balsamic vinegar or lemon juice)

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method

  1. Toast the pine nuts:

    Heat a large sauté pan hot on medium-high heat and add the pine nuts. Toast them until they are fragrant and begin to brown. Pay attention as pine nuts burn easily. Stir or toss the nuts frequently. Once they are toasted, remove from pan and set aside.

  2. Sauté the garlic in olive oil:

    Add the olive oil to the pan and swirl it around. Add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds; the pan should already be hot, so it won't take long for the garlic to begin to brown.

  3. Wilt the greens:

    Add the greens and mix well. Sauté, stirring often, until the greens wilt and begin to give up some of their water, anywhere from 1 to 2 minutes for spinach to 4 to 5 minutes for collards or kale.

  4. Add the nuts, raisins, salt, and red pepper flakes:

    Stir in the nuts and raisins, and sprinkle with salt and red pepper flakes.

  5. Add the white wine:

    Use a little more wine if you are cooking collards, and less if you are cooking spinach. Toss to combine and let the liquid boil away. Once the liquid boils off, remove from heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
352 Calories
26g Fat
26g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 2
Amount per serving
Calories 352
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 26g 33%
Saturated Fat 3g 14%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 177mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 26g 9%
Dietary Fiber 4g 14%
Total Sugars 14g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 45mg 225%
Calcium 98mg 8%
Iron 3mg 14%
Potassium 536mg 11%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.