Collard Greens With Bacon Recipe

I moved to Tennessee from Missouri after college graduation.  Being new to southern style food, I was amazed at the large number of "meat and three" restaurants in the Nashville area. In some areas of town, they seem to be on just about every street corner.

I was in the Army Reserves for 12 years and had drill once a month at a facility located on White Bridge Road in West Nashville behind Nashville Tech.  A group of us often ate lunch at a nearby restaurant that served a choice of meat and a choice of three side items for something like $6.99 for lunch.  The meat was usually country ham, roast beef, and meat loaf.  The side choices were typically black eyed peas, red beans, green beans, rice, corn on the cob, and collard greens. The first time we went there everyone was ordering collards for one of their sides, so I decided to try them too.  I had never eaten them before, but after trying them that first time they became a regular favorite for my monthly lunches on drill weekends.  When in the South, do as Southerners do...or is that Rome?

In the past 20 years, I've eaten collards prepared many, many ways.  They are all basicallly the same with a twist here and there according to the particular region of the country.  My wife has been making collards with bacon pieces using the recipe below for several months. I've found it on many of the typical recipe websites, but I've recently learned that the basic recipe was originally printed in the Wall Street Journal. 

Here's the version from Simply Recipes:

• 4 strips thick-sliced bacon, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 TBSP sugar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Several dashes hot sauce (we leave this out)
• 1/4 cup apple-cider vinegar
• 2 pounds collard greens, stems removed, sliced into 3-inch-wide strips (can substitute kale or chard)
• 1 cup chicken broth (or water)*

This can be prepared easily and quickly in a skillet on the stove top.  (Remember to fry the bacon first.)  It's good!

Eggplant Recipe with Ramen Noodles

Since we joined the Gamble Creek Farm CSA two seasons ago, my wife has been preparing eggplant as a normal part of our meal planning.  Now that we're also growing Ichiban eggplant in our backyard, we eat eggplant more than ever.  Here's a recipe she found in Everyday Food Magazine, that is one of my favorite ways she prepares a simple, quick, easy, but tasty eggplant meal. She substitutes Ramen Noodles instead of lo mein noodles. (I think the Ramen noodle version is better.)

8 ounces lo mein noodles
2 T. soy sauce
1 T. toasted sesame oil
1 t. light-brown sugar
4 t. vegetable oil
1/2 lb. Japanese or other small eggplant, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4 inch thick
5 scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 c. fresh basil leaves, torn for serving

Cook noodles according to package instructions; drain noodles and rinse with cold water. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar and stir until sugar dissolves.

Heat a large skillet or wok over high until hot. Add 3 teaspoons vegetable oil and swirl to coat skillet. Add eggplant and stir until golden on both sides (4 minutes total). Push eggplant to side of skillet and add 1 teaspoon oil. Add scallion whites and garlic stir (30 seconds). Add noodles and soy mixture and toss to combine all the ingredients. Top with scallion greens and basil before serving.

What is Brassica?

According to Botany.com brassica refers to the family of vegetables including bok choy, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, colza, Hanover Salad, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, rutabaga, and turnip.   Wikipedia.com refers to the brassica family of vegetables as descendants of wild cabbage. Who knew?

Until a couple of years ago, I had never eaten bok choy, kale, or kohlrabi. Perhaps the most surprising to me is kohlrabi.  It's a funny looking vegetable also known as a German turnip, but it's tasty if prepared well.

Kohlrabi Recipe:  One of my favorite ways to eat kohlrabi is breaded and baked.  You can use seasoned bread crumbs, Shake and Bake, or even fish fry breading.  Slice the kohlrabi and dip it in an egg bath. Bake it in the oven at 400 degrees until the kohlrabi turns a golden brown. When it's cooked like that, kohlrabi actually reminds me of fish. 

With kohlrabi, I can pretend I'm eating meat when I'm actually eating vegetables! 

Roasted Radishes Fresh From the Garden

We harvested a bunch of radishes today.  They seem to be one of the veggies we can grow with nearly unlimited success. 

They're quick too.  If you plant radishes today, you'll likely be eating some of them in less than 6 weeks.

Tonight for supper we weren't in the mood for a salad.  I happen to have a recipe for roasted radishes, so guess what I prepared.  Who says fresh has to be hard?  (Not me.)

Roasted Radish Recipe

• Wash and trim the radishes. If they are big, then slice them in half.
• Place them in an oven proof dish with a rim.
• Sprinkle them with thyme.
• Add a teaspoon and a half of butter on top of the radishes.  You should use more butter if you are roasting a large bunch of them.  
• Place them in an oven that is pre-heated to 400 degrees.
• Roast them for 15-20 minutes.
• Enjoy!

What an easy side dish.

Grilling Vegetables

Like most people, I like just about any kind of meat cooked over fire on the grill.  From hamburgers and pork chops to steaks and chicken, it's all good.  I'll even settle for meat cooked on a propane grill from time to time, but traditional grilling over charcoal briquettes is pretty hard to beat. 

Most of my friends wouldn't really consider cooking vegetables on the grill, but they don't really know what they are missing.  I mean if you're going to fire up the grill, why not grill the entire meal?

Onions, green peppers, red peppers, asparagus, cabbage, corn on the cob, mushrooms, squash, zucchini, egg plant, and the list goes on....

Here's a short recipe for grilling vegetable kabobs:

Grilled Vegetables

• Chop your vegetables into halves, quarters, or eighths.
• Brush them lightly with butter or cooking oil.
• Sprinkle them with some herbs and spices, or simply use salt and pepper to taste.
• Thread them through kabobs and cook them on the grill turning to prevent excessive charring.
• Or if you prefer, you can wrap them in foil.
• You can also marinade the veggies first in salad dressing or something similar if you prefer.

I grilled these vegetables with some chicken marinated in some Lawry's.

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