A new twist on a Southern favorite
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| Kale n' Collards |
It's been so long since I've sat down to share recipes with y'all. Not that you haven't been asking. It's just been a crazy year.
Busy taking care of my terminally ill father-in-law, who passed away a couple of months ago, I let my diet fall away, eating whatever was handy. It's been a slow trek back. Adding a bit more than 20 pounds back, I have begun to make my way back to a cleaner diet.
The other day, a visit to the market yielded some really bright fresh greens that I couldn't resist cooking up in a simple dish.
Kale and collards, two of my favorites.
Kale is a great source of all kinds of nutrients and can provide you with some special cholesterol-lowering benefits if you steam it. The fiber-related components in kale do a better job of binding together with bile acids in your digestive tract when they've been steamed. When this binding process takes place, it's easier for bile acids to be excreted, and the result is a lowering of your cholesterol levels. On top of all that it is delicious and versitile. In the old days, I would make it in a soup (inspired by a Portugese recipe) with potatoes and spicy sausage. I'm going a little simpler these days
I grew up eating collards fried with bacon or fat back. Not doing that any more. While the old Southern way seems to be the most common, it seems that a healthier alternative is just as tasty. Collards (without the fatty options) are widely considered to be a healthy food jam packed with Vitamin C, soluble fiber and loads of antioxidents like diindolylmethane and sulforphane.
What we have here is incredibly healthy options disguised as tasty greens.
Kale n' Collards
1/2 bunch of kale, ripped into 1 inch pieces
1/2 bag of chopped collard greens
2 cloves of garlic, crushed - not chopped
5 mini sweet peppers of various colors
1/4 red onion, chopped small
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1/4 cup of water
Crushed red pepper to taste
•Put the oil in a deep pot and swirl it around to cover the bottom. Ge it really hot and throw in the garlic and onions.
•Flash fry them just until they start to smell strongly - less than a minute.
•Add the water, the kale, the collards and the peppers to the pot and stir until the greens are wilted - again, less than a minute.
•Pull the pan off the heat and add the pepper to taste.
That's it. In under five minutes you have a delicious lunch. This is really good with a rustic whole grain bread.
Vegan.
