Cookin’ Up Collards

Heather says:

The new year will be here before long and in the Lowcountry that means it’s time to cook up some greens. Collards are a traditional New Year’s dish eaten to bring wealth in the coming year. Their peak season is from January to April and they are packed with calcium, iron, and vitamins A and C.

Whatever you do, do not cook collards in an aluminum pot. The aluminum reacts with the collards. Finally, I should note that collards have an extremely high water content and lose a lot of volume in the cooking process. If you don’t have a huge pot, just add the collards a handful or two at a time as they begin to shrink.

If you don’t have sausage, consider using bacon. If you are vegetarian or vegan consider sauteeing some onion in several tablespoons of olive oil before adding the collards to the pot.

Be aware that collards have a somewhat funky odor. I would only buy them the day before or the day of preparation. Crumpled newspaper will absorb the funky smell.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb sausage (smoked or kielbasa) cut into coins
• 2 large bunches of collards
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Rinse the collards three times. Three shalt be the number thou shalt rinse, and the number of the rinsing shall be three. Four shalt thou not rinse, nor either rinse thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to three. Five is right out. Once the number three, being the third number, be reached, then. . .

Sorry, I got carried away. Once the collards have been rinsed tear from the main stem and into bite sized pieces. Discard the tough woody stems.

In a large, non-aluminum pot heat the sausage , covered over medium heat until browned. Add the collards. Cover, stir occasionally until they have reached their desired tenderness. Season to taste.

I like mine with hot sauce.

Enjoy.

Super Side-dish: Zucchini and Mushrooms

Heather says:

My friend has asked for more side dish recipes, so here we go.  If you’re cheap frugal like me, you wait until the vegetables you need are in the marked down produce.  I was able to get four zucchini for $0.99 and a 10oz package of  mushrooms for $0.89.  The other ingredients are what I consider pantry staples.  With this recipe the variety of mushroom is not important, button, portabella, or portabellini all work equally well and often go on sale.

Ingredients

• 4 zucchini - cut in half lengthwise and sliced into 1/4 -1/2″ chunks
• 1 10oz package of mushrooms - sliced
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 TBSP olive oil
•  1 cup chicken broth or stock
• 1 TBSP cornstarch
• salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet.  Add the sliced zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally until the zucchini begins to soften.  Add the minced garlic; stir. Scatter the sliced  mushrooms over the zucchini and cover.

Whisk the cornstarch into the chicken broth and pour over the vegetables, stir.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Cover and allow to simmer for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally.

*variation* Serve over fresh spinach with grilled chicken as a main dish.

Enjoy

Oven Fried Fish and Chips

Heather says:

While I will always prefer the beer battered and deep fried fish, this version is a close second and is much healthier. Nearly any white-fleshed fish will do: cod, walleye, or whiting for example. If you would like the chips done completely in the oven, follow the directions for these potato wedges, omitting the seasoning.

Oven Fried Fish

• Four 6oz fillets of white fleshed fish
• 1/2 cup of flour
• ~ 1/2 cup of milk
• 1/4 cup white cornmeal mixed with 3/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
• 1/2 tsp cayenne (optional)
• 1 tsp dill
• salt / pepper to taste
• ~ 1 TBSP olive or vegetable oil

In a shallow bowl add the seasonings to the cornmeal & breadcrumb mix.
Place the flour in another shallow bowl

Preheat the oven to 500°F and grease a baking sheet with the oil.

One by one dip the fish fillets into the milk, then the flour, back into the milk , and finally into the breadcrumb mixture.

Place onto the baking sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes carefully turning halfway through.

Chips

• 3 medium potatoes sliced into thin wedges
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt / pepper to taste

Soak the potato wedges in warm water for 15 minutes.  Saute over medium high heat in the olive oil for 10 minutes.  Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and broil until they reach the desired shade of brown.

Cornbread 101

Dear Home Ec 101,

Do you have a good cornbread recipe or tips on baking cornbread? I
generally use a corn meal mix and it always comes out too dry and
“crummy”. I like for the outside to be crisp but for the inside to be
soft and to stay together instead of falling apart when slicing or
buttering it.

Signed,

~Feelin’ Crummy

Heather says:

Excellent timing. I needed to bake a couple batches for my cornbread and andouille sausage dressing. This is a plain rather than a sweet cornbread and holds together nicely.

Basic Cornbread

• 1/2 TBSP Butter or bacon grease (for your 9×13 pan)
• 8 TBSP (1 stick) Butter
• 4 large eggs
• 3 cups buttermilk
• 3 cups yellow cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 TBSP + 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 TBSP sugar
• 2 tsps salt
• 1 tsp baking soda

Preheat the oven to 375 F. (I put the butter in a heatproof cup - not plastic!- and let the oven melt it while I combine the dry ingredients).

Combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and baking soda in a large mixing bowl. Stir with a fork until thoroughly mixed.

In another bowl briefly mix the eggs, buttermilk, and melted butter. Whisk to mix.

Place your 9 x 13 baking dish in the oven with the 1/2 TBSP butter or bacon grease.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined.

Remove the pan from the oven when the butter has melted and tilt the pan to coat the bottom.

Place the pan on a heatproof surface (it just came out of the oven) and pour the batter into the very center. The batter will push the grease to the edges and prevent sticking.

Bake at 375 for 30 - 40 minutes. The top will be golden and the edges will pull away from the sides of the pan. Set on a baking rack to cool for five minutes before cutting and serving.

Enjoy!

Submit your question by sending an email to helpme@home-ec101.com

Simple Side: Roasted Vegetables

Heather says:

Roasting vegetables is a simple way to bring out the flavor. I like to mix it up and use vegetables such as: turnips, carrots, parsnips, zucchini, and yellow squash. For extra flavor I’ll slice an onion into wedges and add a garlic clove or two.

Preheat the oven to 425°F, cut vegetables into chunks, toss with a small amount of olive oil, spread in a single layer on a baking sheet, and sprinkle with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Bake for 20 minutes or until tender. For variety consider sprinkling with herbs such as rosemary or thyme.

Enjoy

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