Southern dinner

Last Night we had our friends Steve and Danielle over and I cooked a southern dinner that is traditional in our family around the start of the New Year. I cooked it not only because of the tradition, but because I had lots of sweet poatoes and collard greens to use from our winter share. :) I'm getting hungry again just thinking about it! The menu consisted of:

1. Black eyed peas (cooked with bacon, garlic, onion and tomato)
2. Collard Greens (recipe to follow!)
3. Sweet potatoes (baked and topped with cinnamon and sugar, or whatever you want)
4. Ham

Normally I would also serve corn bread with this, but I ran out of time to make it, whoops! The black eyed peas are supposed to represent good luck in the coming year, and the greens are supposed to represent prosperity. Here is the recipe I used for the collard greens. I have adapted it from how my parents have always cooked collard greens, adding a few things here and there. So I guess this is technically my very own recipe!


Collard Greens:
2 large bunches of collard greens
3 cloves of garlic smashed and sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
3 pieces of bacon
1 32 oz can of chicken broth
1 cup (or more) of water
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil (1 TBS)
2 TBS. of butter

Thoroughly clean and pat dry the greens. strip the leaves off of the tough stems and discard the stems. Tear the leaves into edible pieces.

in a small stockpot or large sauce pan, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil on medium high until onion is transparent. (You can also cook bacon in the pan instead and saute them in the bacon grease instead for even more flavor!).

Add bacon, collards, chicken broth, and butter. Cook for about 5 minutes on medium high until the liquid begins to boil and greens are cooked down into the liquid. If there is not enough liquid to cover the greens, add warm water until they are just about covered.

Simmer on medium heat for 45min. to 1 hour, until greens are tender. Taste the liquid and add salt and pepper according to your preferences. Drain, and serve with hot sauce on the side!


Now I know that this is not the, uh, healthiest of meals (lots of bacon!), but I love it every once in awhile because it reminds me of my Grandmother, and my southern roots! :)