Collard Greens with Chinese Bacon

Collard greens, like kale, needs a little extra TLC. The raw leaves are tough and the stalks are even tougher. However, it's not unlike other forms of greens that require you to cook it so before it becomes edible. The key ingredient in this recipe is the Chinese bacon.

Seves 2

Ingredients

4 cups of collard greens

1/2 a small white onion (about 1/2 cup) diced

2 clove garlic 

1/4 cup diced or thinly sliced Chinese bacon (about a 5 or 6 inch portion)

1/2 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp olive oil

3- 4 oz of water

Directions

1. Wash and dry the greens thoroughly. 
2. Remove the tough stalk and "spine" from the leaves, then cut the leaves into 1 - 2 inch pieces. 
3. Heat the oil in a large pan, add garlic. 
4. Once garlic is starting to turn a light golden color, add onions. Move the contents of the pan around to keep pieces from burning. 
5. Once onions are starting to caramelize (about 5 - 7 mins), add the Chinese bacon to the pan and about 2 oz of water. The bacon with soften and render while the onions continue to caramelize. Move contents around every couple of minutes for about 5 min. 
6. Add the greens to the pan and another 1- 2 oz of water. Stir contents then cover for about 5 min. The greens will wilt down. 
7. Remove lid and toss contents around the pan. Let the liquid cook down. The greens should be a dark, vibrant green. 
8. Transfer to plates and serve. 

This was delicious with some Ginger Scallion Rockfish and rice. 

Dilly Pasta Salad

This recipe is inspired by an amazing macaroni salad I had at a work potluck. I usually don't like
macaroni salads because I'm not a fan of mayonnaise nor do I like mushy pasta... and most macaroni salads are bits of super soft elbow macaroni swimming in a mire of Best Foods or Miracle Whip. It was the first macaroni salad I liked, and one of the few dishes where I didn't mind black olives.

She couldn't share the recipe with us, as it was her mom's, but did share some of the ingredients. I've since taken it and made my own version which I take to summer potlucks.  :) It's one of my go-to potluck items as it's easy to make and I tend to have most of the ingredients in my pantry. I like to make it the night before.

Ingredients

The Pasta

• 1 box of pasta (I used the Ronzoni Garden Delight Rotini since that's what I had on hand.) 
• 3 tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp of olive oil
• 1.5 c of dill pickle spears, diced into 1/4" to 1/2" pieces
• 4 oz. can of sliced black olives.

The Dressing 

• 1 c of Light Mayonnaise
• 1/4 c of Dijon Mustard
• 3 tbsp of liquid from pickle spears
• 2.5 tbsp of Dill Weed
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• 1 tbsp of Rosemary Oil
• Salt and Pepper

Directions

• In a 6-qt pot, bring about 4 qts of water and a handful of kosher salt to a boil. 
• Add dry pasta and cook for about 6 min. The pasta should be al dente, but not yet cooked through.  
• Drain pasta in a colander and gently toss with a drizzle of olive oil. This will release some of the steam and heat, allowing the pasta to begin cooling. 

• Set aside to cool. Gently toss the pasta around occasionally or spread it out on a cookie sheet or shallow pan to help it cool faster. (Do NOT rinse with cold water)
• Tip: By not rinsing and allowing it to cool and dry a bit in this manner keeps your finished product from becoming goopy after sitting in the fridge. 

 

• In a small bowl, combine the relish, pickle juice, mayonnaise, mustard, dill weed, thyme, and rosemary oil to create the dressing
• Add a liberal amount of salt and pepper.

• In a large bowl, toss together the diced pickles and olives with about 1/3 of the dressing. 

• Add the pasta and the remaining dressing. By layering the pasta and dressing this way, it's easier to get the pasta coated with less mixing. 
• Gently toss until the pasta is evenly coated. 
• Cover or transfer into a storage container and refrigerate until ready to serve. 

The pickles, pickle juice, and relish adds acidity to cut through the richness of the mayonnaise and the dill gives it a really fresh taste. I really like this as a side to Italian cold-cut sandwiches that have a lot of rich meat (like pepperoni or salami) or a particularly juicy sausage like a Louisiana hot link, a polish sausage, or bratwurst. 

Garlic Sesame Brussels Sprouts

I love brussels sprouts. My first introduction to them was at a potluck where they were simply roasted and served with a balsamic drizzle. Since then, I've roasted the sprouts every chance I get... usually in the early spring when it's not too hot. I even found that one of the restaurants I frequent with Craig has a sprouts and kale salad that is super yum. However, the sprouts in the salad was roasted and chilled.

With summer rolling around, and 90°+ weather, it's hard for me to bring myself to fire up the oven to cook the delish green buds. In a small apartment, that stove/oven does so much to heat up the place that I avoid doing anything oven-related. So I decided to do something different with the sprouts - stir fry.

Garlic and Sesame Brussels Sprouts 

Ingredients

• 1 to 2 lbs brussels sprouts, washed, trimmed and halved or quartered
• 2 tbsp ev olive oil or canola oil 
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 - 1 tsp sesame oil (really, a drizzle)
• 1 tsp of soy sauce
• 1 to 2 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp of oyster sauce (mushroom sauce of you want to go vegetarian). 

Directions

1. In a pan, heat up oil to just the smoke point. 
2. Add minced garlic and stir. When the garlic starts turning golden, add the sprouts. 
3. Stir fry to coat the sprouts evenly with the oil. 
4. Add water, soy and oyster sauce while stirring. Continue to stir the sprouts in the pan for about 45 seconds to a minute (the sprouts should be liberally coated with the oil and seasoning sauces and they should begin to take on a brightness in color). 
5. Lower to medium heat and leave covered for 3 - 5 minutes until sprouts get tender. Most of the water should be steamed out by now. 
6. Remove from heat, finish with the sesame oil, and serve. 

Tips: 

• Top with a dash of toasted sesame seeds to add a bit of nuttiness. Use more or less soy sauce and oyster sauce to suite your tastes. 
• The cook times listed here has the sprouts al dente. I like my veggies with a bit of a crunch. If you like softer sprouts, add more water and let it steam on the medium heat a little longer, stirring to keep the sprouts from burning. 
• If you use a non-stick pan, and watching your oil intake, a liberal spray of PAM would suffice.