Beautiful Beet Greens

Things are going really well in the Hoophouse; the weather is mild, the chickens are banned, and I'm remembering to water the younger plants. Over the weekend, I hope to really solidify a plan of attack for cold weather. All of my greens, etc... should do just fine as long as I'm sure to give them double coverage throughout the most frigid temperatures. In the meantime, we are definitely taking advantage of the Smorgasbord. Truth be told, I went to an authentic Amish Smorgasbord last Spring in Pennsylvania, and the greens in our Hoophouse have nothing in common with what was going there, and their customers seemed relatively happy about that fact. Plus, it was phenomenally expensive. Anyhow - here's dinner:

Barley Cakes & Beet Greens with Cider Sauce
Barley Cakes:
1 C cooked barley
3 T butter
1/2 small red onion, diced
4-5 Shitake mushrooms, sliced
1 beaten egg
apple cider (I was lucky enough to have access to ginger/echinacea/apple cider !)
dollop mayonnaise
1 T thyme
bread crumbs of your choice

Preheat oven to 350. Saute the onion and mushroom in 1 T of the butter over medium heat, until cooked through. Add to the barley. Beat the egg with the cider and add to the mixture along with the thyme and mayonnaise. Add enough bread crumbs to form cakes, and make sure to dredge more crumbs around the outside, to coat. Pan fry the cakes over medium heat in the remaining butter, and after flipping place pan in oven (or transfer to a cookie sheet if your pan doesn't have a heat proof handle.)

Sauce:
other half red onion diced
1 T whole wheat flour
1 T butter
1/2 C to 1 C apple cider
1 apple, diced
dash cream
salt

While the cakes cook through in the oven, start the sauce by sauteing the onion in the butter, and then making a simple roux by adding the flour, stirring to prevent burning. Add 1/2 cup of cider, and diced apples. Add more cider to thin, and more roux to thicken. Finish with a dash of cream and salt.  Quickly saute the greens in a few tablespoons of cider, removing from the pan before they wilt. Place the greens on a plate, making a bed for the cakes, and finish the whole dish with the cider sauce.