I dedicate this recipe to my friend Steve... otherwise known as Pman, for his love of eating greens!

Shortly after moving to Texas, I noticed an African American man down the road that had a huge garden plot with a sign saying "Greens for Sale".
Now to you Southerners, you will be aghast to know that this Yankee did not know what "greens" were.
To me... it meant lettuce. That was about the only kind of "greens" Yankees ate.

And then I found some southern recipes calling for "greens"... as in, mustard greens, collard greens, turnip greens and then I understood.
So I stopped by one day to pick up some greens. He asked me how much I wanted.
I figured a couple handfuls as it was just for my husband and myself.
With that he proceeded to fill a huge brown grocery bag with collard greens and mustard greens. All for a couple dollars.
I thought to myself... what will I do with all these greens?

Be forewarned... these things cook down to a much smaller portion than you could ever imagine.
If you've ever cooked fresh spinach, then you know what I mean.

This recipe is an adaptation of the recipe from the cookbook: Sensational Salads by Barbara Scott-Goodman.
I have used canned beans rather than the dried for simplification of the recipe.

3 cans NAVY BEANS (or any other white bean of your choosing), drained and rinsed
6 slices of thick-cut BACON, cut in squares
2 Tbsp. EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
2 cloves GARLIC, finely chopped
10 cups (about 2 1/2 pounds) A COMBINATION OF BRAISING GREENS (Collards, turnip greens, mustard greens, spinach, swiss chard, kale)
SALT and PEPPER

Vinaigrette:

1 tsp. DIJON MUSTARD
1 Tbsp. WHITE WINE VINEGAR
1 SHALLOT, finely chopped
6 Tbsp. EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

2 Tbsp. fresh FLAT-LEAF PARSLEY, chopped
A few slivers of RED ONION, for garnish

Fry the bacon in a large skillet until crisp and drain on paper towels.
Drain all but 1 Tbsp. of bacon drippings from the pan and add 2 Tbsp. olve oil.
Add the garlic and cook just until softened.
Add the greens and toss with tongs and cook until just tender and wilted.
Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.
Transfer to a platter and keep warm.

Add the beans and the reserved bacon to the pan and cook until warmed through and then remove from heat.

Put all vinaigrette ingredients in a jar and shake vigorously until combined.
Pour vinaigrette over the beans and season well with salt and pepper to taste.

Arrange the warm greens and bacon on a platter or individual plates and spoon beans over the greens.

Garnish with parsley and thinly sliced red onion and serve.
(This recipe is also good served at room temperature!)