## 1 Introduction  
In Ethiopia, cassava was introduced in the 1960s but was not considered as a food crop until 1984 [1]. It is locally known as the Yenchet Boye, Mita Boye, Mogo, and Furno tree, and has been mainly cultivated by small-scale farmers on small plots of land [2]. It serves as a food security crop and a source of household income in different parts of the country; however, it is consumed more in the southern region of the country [3, 4]. Even though the consumption of cassava leaves has been recognized in different parts of the world for many decades, it is not used as a food in Ethiopia [5]. Cassava is mainly produced in Ethiopia for its tubers, which are boiled for direct consumption or used to produce flour. The flour is used to produce composite flours for the preparation of bread and Injera [6, 7]. The use of leaves like cassava leaves as vegetable has been limited due to the high level of anti-nutritional factors (oxalates, nitrates, tannins, and phytates) and cyanide in the leaves [8]. In other countries, cassava leaves are traditionally prepared by bounding or chopping, fermentation for a day or two, or by boiling them for several hours to reduce the cyanide level [9]. Different experiments are also done to evaluate the different processing mechanisms including cooking, fermentation [10], soaking [11] the addition of 0.4% sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO\({}_{3}\)), enzymatic and ultrasonic treatments [12] and drying [13]. For varieties with a high initial cyanogen glucoside content, drying alone is not an efficient method to detoxify cassava leaves [14]. To facilitate the detoxification process, cassava leaves can be processed by drying combined with bounding [15], fermentation, blanching [16], and hot water cooking [17]. This also helps to reduce the anti-nutritional content and results in a better taste and texture of the end products. One of the most important pretreatment processes used in food preparation and preservation is blanching [18]. It is used to inactivate enzymes, increase the dehydration rate, and reduce the microbial load [19; 20]. To select a suitable blanching method, it is important to understand the different temperatures, duration times, the physical and chemical properties of the products, and the effect of different technologies, as these have a significant impact on the quality of the final products [18; 19; 21]. Due to the variations of the properties among different vegetables, no single blanching technology can be effectively applied to all products [19; 21]. Blanching leads to a better retention of protein, dietary fiber, and a higher fat content [22; 23]. Green leafy vegetables are a rich source of vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, flavonoids, and antioxidants. Pre-treatment by blanching before the drying process helps to maintain the color quality of leaves with high chlorophyll contents [24]. On the other hand, drying can cause an increase in the concentration of nutrients [25]. Having a high nutritional and mineral value, cassava leaves can be used as leafy vegetables after blanching [26]. For many leaves and vegetables, other blanching solutions besides pure water are used before drying, e.g., NaHCO\({}_{3}\)[27]. Adding NaHCO\({}_{3}\) in cassava leaf processing has been practiced in some countries [28]. This is believed to have an impact on the pH content and facilitates the spontaneous decomposition of acetone cyanohydrin [12]. The blanching and drying of cassava leaves and the effect it has on the nutritional and antinutritional content of the final product can play a role in their acceptance as a potential alternative food source. An additional study on the processing of cassava leaves can play a great role to ensure the nutritional quality and safety of the products for human consumption. With this in mind, studies targeting the reduction of cyanide and the maintenance of the nutritional content of processed cassava leaves are needed [15].