Braised Collard Greens

Collard Greens, a southern staple, are a hearty leafy green vegetable high in calcium, potassium, magnesium, folate, and vitamins A, C, E, and K. Traditionally, collards are cooked with smoked ham hocks or smoked turkey legs; ingredients which might be difficult for those outside of the southern region to find. This modern recipe calls for bacon, which is available to everyone.

The way I cook collards is similar to the way I cook kale or swiss chard, only collard greens have a much tougher texture that benefits from a longer, slower cooking time. Also, the stems don’t really soften during the cooking process so you may want to consider pickling them.

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Braised Collard Greens

makes 2-4 servings

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 bunch collar greens (about 6 large stems, 12-14 inches in length), washed

• 1/2 cup chicken stock (try my homemade)

• 2 sliced bacon, sliced

• 1/4 cup chopped onion

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

• 1-2 teaspoons red wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Wash collard greens well and remove stems (save to make pickles); chop collard leaves into 2x2-inch pieces and set aside until needed.

2. Starting with a cold, 3.5 quart or larger heavy-bottomed dutch oven (here’s the one I used), sauté bacon over medium heat until brown and crispy; remove bacon from dutch oven and set aside.

3. In the remaining bacon drippings, sauté onions until they start to caramelize, then add the minced garlic (and optional crushed red pepper flakes) and sauté, stirring continuously, for 30-60 seconds until the garlic is fragrant; add chicken stock and scrape bottom of dutch oven to dissolve browned bits from pan.

4. Add chopped collards to dutch oven and stir well; cover and lower heat to simmer for 40-50 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Add a splash of water at any time if the pot liquor evaporates and leaves the dutch oven dry.

5. Remove from heat and stir in 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar and reserved bacon; taste and add additional red wine vinegar and salt and pepper if needed.

Cold Sesame Noodles

I sampled these tasty noodles at a recent get-together and immediately asked for the recipe. Not only did I get the recipe, but the person who made it sent me home with a small plateful to enjoy later. The intoxicating scent of the noodles drove me crazy the whole way home and I ate them as soon as I walked in the door. I will most definitely be making these noodles again and again.

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Cold Sesame Noodles

makes 1 pound

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 16 ounces angle hair pasta (or thin spaghetti)

• 1/2 cup toasted sesame oil

• 1/2 cup regular soy sauce (not low sodium)

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

• 1 tablespoon hot chili oil (or sriracha)

• 1/4 cup white granulated sugar

• 1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips

• 1 scallion, chopped

• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds (toasted or not)

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions; drain - do not rinse.

2. While the pasta is cooking, whisk the sesame oil, soy, balsamic, chili oil, and sugar together in a large bowl until the sugar dissolves.

3. Add the hot pasta and bell pepper strips; stir well to coat and chill for at least 30 minutes.

4. Garnish with chopped scallions and sesame seeds just before serving.

Note

• I usually heavily salt my pasta water, but because the sauce for these noodles contains full-sodium soy sauce, I omit salting my pasta water.

adapted from allrecipes.com