Sauteed Collard Greens

For whatever reason, collard greens have always been my favorite vegetable. So when I saw a fresh bunch of collard greens in my produce share last week, I was pretty excited. While I have long loved eating collard greens, I've never tried my hand at cooking collard greens.

From what I remember, the collard greens I had growing up were boiled. Although I never really paid much attention so I could be wrong. I did some research and decided that sauteeing the greens in bacon grease was the way I wanted to go. The results were fantastic. I don't know if it was because it had been so long since I had collard greens or if this recipe was so much better than my grandmother's recipe but these collard greens were the best I had ever had.

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Sauteed Collard Greens


Ingredients
2 slices bacon, chopped
1 bunch collard greens

Instructions
Place the bacon in a hot skillet.

 Cook until the bacon has released most of its fat and is beginning to crisp then add the collard greens in batches, letting the leaves wilt before adding a new batch.

 Saute until the greens have wilted down to fit in the pan.

 Cover with a lid and simmer for about 10 minutes.

 Remove from the heat and serve along side your favorite protein.

Turnip and Potato Mash

I struggled with what to title this recipe. It's mashed turnips and potatoes but that didn't really roll off the tongue. So I decided to instead say Turnip and Potato mash. Not sure why I found it necessary to tell you my thought process but there you have it.

Until this week I had never tasted a turnip, nor could I tell you what they looked like. That was until I came home with my Urban Acres produce share on Saturday and found two in my crate. Often when this happens I avoid the strange new vegetable and it ultimately spoils before I figure out how to use it. This week, however, I decided to tackle the turnip head on, and by head on I mean sneaking it in with mashed potatoes.

I was really pleased with the results, although I would not say that it was love at first bite. It took several tastes before I decided that the complex flavor provided by the turnip was one I enjoyed. And then I went back for seconds, which is always a key indicator of success at my dinner table. So if you feel adventurous, but still want to keep some semblance of comfort, try this turnip and potato mash  with dinner. I think you'll be glad you did.

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Turnip and Potato Mash


Ingredients
4 tablespoons butter
1 small turnip, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch thick half moons
1 medium yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch thick half  moons
1/3 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup half and half
3 tablespoons minced chives
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over medium heat until foam bubbles disappear but before the butter browns.

 Place the turnip slices into the butter, stirring occasionally.

 You should cook the turnips until they start to brown and caramelize, about 10-12 minutes. If you need to increase the heat to speed up the process you can turn it up to medium high. (Mine took longer, I think my pan was too small)

 Place the potatoes on top of the turnips and pour in the chicken broth.

 Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low and simmer covered until the potatoes fall apart with a fork and the liquid is mostly absorbed by the potatoes. for about 20 minutes. (again mine took longer and I think it was the pan)

 Use a potato masher (or if you're me and don't have one use a pastry blender) and carefully mash the veggies. You don't want to over mash and ruin the texture!

 Pour in the half and half and stir into the potatoes and turnips.

 Stir in the chives and let sit a minute. This allows the liquid to absorb into the potatoes and turnips.

Serve with your favorite meal in place of mashed potatoes.

Source: The Way The Cookie Crumbles

Roasted Cauliflower

Up until recently, cauliflower has been one of those vegetables that I considered to be off limits for my dinner table. Sure, I love broccoli prepared in almost any way, but cauliflower just did not tickle my fancy. Then last week, I went to a local mediterranean restaurant where they served fried cauliflower. The cauliflower wasn't breaded, so it was different than many friend vegetables I've tried in the past, but the depth of flavor was so delicious it was hard to get out of my mind.

When we received a head of organic cauliflower in our produce share last week, I decided it was time to make cauliflower a side dish for dinner. I had heard that nutmeg pairs well with the cauliflower so I decided to use my birthday gift from Suzie which was a nutmeg grater with a bag of fresh nutmeg. I also decide to sprinkle some parmesan cheese towards the end of the roasting to enhance the flavor a little bit. The results were quite tasty. I don't know that I'd call it my favorite vegetable side, but it certainly has earned its place in the rotation.

My new nutmeg grater with fresh nutmeg

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Roasted Cauliflower

Ingredients

1 head of cauliflower

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons grated parmesan

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Rinse and dry the head of cauliflower and cut the head into florets.

Place the florets on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle the salt, pepper, and nutmeg over the cauliflower florets.

Place in the oven and roast for 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle the the parmesan cheese onto the florets and return to the oven to roast for an additional 5 minutes.

Remove and serve with your favorite meal.

Garlic Rice Pilaf

My favorite meal as a child was a chicken and rice casserole that my mom made with Lipton's Onion soup mix. I actually still love this meal, but Robert feels that it's too salty so I never make it. When my mom made this meal, she mixed together water, chicken bouillon cubes, margarine, rice and the soup mix together in a pan and set chicken breasts on top and baked it. The absolute best part of that meal was the rice. I would often eat a bowl of that rice for a snack and be completely satisfied.

This garlic rice pilaf is almost as good as the rice from that beloved casserole and it's better for me without all the margarine and sodium in the chicken bouillon and soup mix. This pilaf is a great side dish to accompany any main course protein you have on your menu. Add to its great flavor the fact that its easy to put together and doesn't require a lot of hands on cooking time really make it a great choice for your next dinner party.

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Garlic Rice Pilaf


Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup long grain brown rice
3 large garlic cloves pressed
2 1/2 cups chicken broth divided
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Heat the butter over medium high heat

saute the rice and garlic until both are golden brown, about 3-4 minutes.

Stir in one cup of the chicken broth and the salt and pepper and bring the liquid to a boil.

Pour into a prepared casserole dish and bake, covered for 25 minutes.

Remove from the oven and stir in the remaining cup and a half of chicken broth and bake, covered, for 45 more minutes.

Serve with your favorite main course.

Source: Adapted slightly from Annie's Eats

Fast and Easy Green Beans

Growing up, green beans were always served out of a can, mainly because that's the way my dad liked it. The first time I had fresh green beans I enjoyed the taste, but the texture of increased crunch wasn't much to my liking. I've since discovered a few things that keep the fresh taste but improve on the crunchiness greatly. And, bonus, this side dish is the easiest and fastest recipe and I turn to it often.

The first secret for making these perfect green beans is to use haricot verts or French green beans instead of the American variety, their smaller size and sweeter flavor really makes a difference. Also, I like to let them char just a little. I think it adds great depth to the flavor and caramelizes them just a bit. Other than that just throw the beans, butter, water and a touch of salt and pepper into the skillet and you're pretty much done. I highly recommend it!

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Fast and Easy Green Beans


Ingredients
1 pound fresh haricot verts, trimmed and rinsed
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup water
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

After trimming and rinsing, place the green beans in the skillet. Add in the water, 

butter, salt and pepper.

Cover and turn the burner on high cooking for 7-8 minutes, or until tender and slightly charred.

Serve with your favorite main course dish.

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes

I grew up in a meat and potatoes family. Usually, our potatoes were either baked or mashed and rarely did my mom make roated potatoes. At least that I can remember. It has taken me about a year to finally find the perfect method for crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside roasted potatoes. In the past the potatoes would merely be cooked, but rarely develop the crisp outer layer that I desired.

The trick is to use small, fingerling yellow potatoes and plenty of oil and seasoning. The smaller potatoes mean they cook quicker and the yellow varietal have a nice, buttery flavor that really kicks it up a notch. Additionally, I've learned that to get the crispy, you cannot be afraid of the olive oil. While dieters intuition might suggest you stop at 1 tablespoon, you really need between 2-3 to really get a good coat. Finally, the blend of garlic salt, pepper, and dried rosemary I include gives each piece just enough flavor without being overkill. Serve these with burgers, chicken, or steak and you won't be disappointed.

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Rosemary Roasted Potatoes


Ingredients
1 lb bag fingerling yellow potatoes
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon dried rosemary

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Cube the potatoes and place them on a cookie sheet in a single layer.

Drizzle with the oil.

Sprinkle with the garlic salt, pepper, and rosemary and stir to coat evenly.

Place in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown.