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[jay-ell]

So, we're getting fresh local produce from a co-op on Wednesdays, because apparently we're locavore treehugging hipsters now or something. Which is cool, a lot of the food we're getting is stuff I'd be buying at the grocery store anyway, and I'm eating the hell out of the carrots, lettuce, strawberries, and such. But occasionally I get something that I just have no idea what to do with.

There's an option to swap anything in the box for a different veggie, but I'm taking it as a challenge -- I decided at the beginning of the year I was going to put some effort into trying new foods and cooking methods this year, and what better way?

Maybe some of you are in the same boat. I thought we could use a thread where we could ask each other for advice in the best cooking methods for various ingredients, and maybe get some new recipes for when our old favorites are getting tired. So here you go.

This week's challenge: beets, bacon grease, and cabbage.

I have never eaten a beet, but I have half a dozen (with the greens attached) in this week's produce box. Mark Bittman's cookbook (with the same title as this thread) has a fascinating-looking recipe for beet patties with rosemary (which I have in my garden) that I am dying to try. But I don't want to toss the greens, which I understand can be used in any recipe that calls for chard. Who has a good chard recipe for me?

Also, I have some leftover bacon grease from the good-ass bacon-mozzerella-spinach-tomato sandwiches I made tonight. I've strained it and put it in the fridge; I am thinking of frying some chicken in it this weekend. Any tips on that?

Finally, cabbage. I have a ton of it, and I don't care for coleslaw. I used some in a stir-fry and I plan on chopping some up and making vegetable egg rolls tomorrow, but that will only take care of about half of it, at most. What can I do with half a pound of cabbage that my daughter will actually eat?

[KeithHernandez]

Beets are awful.

I do this thing with cabbage- cut it into 1/2 in (width-as long as possible) sized strips.  carmalize red onions, then stir fry the cabbage, add a shit load of garlic whenever you prefer.  after it is basically done add a ton of slic ed kalamata olives.  add it to a box of pasta that has been cooked and had oli ve oil mixed in(i like spinich fettucine)  about half a head of cabbage is a good mix.  can do a full head but a little cabbage heavy.  I think the pasta package i use is smaller than modt though?  there are four servings in package.


sorry, in incredible back pain, went to hospital yest, cant walk, stand up or capitalize/proof read

[jay-ell]

Dang, Kieth, what did you do to your back?

That sounds similar to the stir-fry I made, but without olives, and also there was tofu in it and some shredded carrots. It was good but the sauce I put with it was blander than I like; it could have used a dash of ginger I think.

[CortJstr]

I can't help specifically, but here's the recipe page from my friend's CSA. They put up recipes to help people use the stuff they don't otherwise know what to do with. http://frogbottomfarm.com/recipes/

[wombat]

I have never had those two ingredients at the same time but now that you bring it up, I would saute the cabbage in the bacon grease and eat it until I passed out or had a heart attack whichever came first. I know that's probably not the kind of suggestion you were looking for. Probably with some onions and a little paprika.

[wombat]

I once made some peanutbutter-bacon cookies for Bobby Isoceles's bacon party that used bacon grease. That's an awesome combination. Now that's more like something the kids would eat.

[AugustWest]

What I'd do with bacon grease and half a cabbage is make fried cabbage.  Brown a few onions first, maybe a little chopped celery, then just slowly saute the hell out of that cabbage till it's kind of golden brown and delicious.

Keith your thing with the olives sounds great, I hope I can remember to try that.  Hope your back feels better.

[wombat]

What I'd do with bacon grease and half a cabbage is make fried cabbage.  Brown a few onions first, maybe a little chopped celery, then just slowly saute the hell out of that cabbage till it's kind of golden brown and delicious.

GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE. Except for the celery.

[AugustWest]

GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE. Except for the celery.

The celery is kind of an afterthought.  The onion is the main thing.

[jay-ell]

Hm. I have not had sauteed cabbage since I was a kid. I remember not liking it. But I was a kid, I didn't like green beans back then, either. And my mom had (and still has) a terrible habit of overcooking vegetables, reducing them to indistinguishable limp green mush. So maybe it would be different now that I'm (ostensibly) an adult?

I dunno. I'm still kind of picky. But when you're talking bacon grease, it's really tempting.

I bet I could make an awesome lunch for me and Chaos Girl by chopping up the bacon into inch-long pieces and frying it up, then throwing in some green onions, shredded cabbage, and julienne carrots for a splash of color. Oooh! With udon noodles!

Hm. I will consider this and get back to you.

So what should I do with these beet greens?

[KeithHernandez]

Sciatic nerve being pinched.  Huge pain in my leg.  Been going on for like 3 months.  Didn't worry about it for a while, then one day it hurt so bad in my lower leg I wanted to go to the hospital.  So the next day I went to the chiropractor, that made one part of it feel a ton better (in my upper leg, which started feeling bad before my lower leg) so I did that for like 6 weeks or so, but my lower leg never got better at all, so I stopped.  I didn't worry about it for a while, but I was taking 16 advil a day, so eventually I went to an urgent care place.  They said sciatic nerve being pinched, either muscle or bone.  Then gave muscle relaxors and steroids that were supposed to help if the nerve was being pinched by muscle.  It didn't help.  Then, two mondays ago it got way worse, so I went back to urgent care.  They gave me vicodin and tramadol and told me how to get a low cost mri (low income, no insurance).  I got this insurance thing through the city of Denver and am on a list to see a primary physician, only they won't tell me how long I have to wait.  Monday night I stopped being able to use my left leg, so I went to the hospital tuesday.  The doctor walked in and said I can't prescribe you narcotics or schedule an MRI for you, which he agreed I needed.  Then I left?  I am almost out of vicodin but they are the only thing that give me any type of relief.  I was prescribed 1 a day but took about two a day.  Could I call the urgent care place that prescribed the pills and explain my situation?  Would they perhaps write an rx for more pills?  Just say I have been taking two a day and it is totally the only thing that makes it possible for me to not scream in pain randomly.

[jay-ell]

I dunno, dude. Depends on the laws where you live and practices of the urgent care place. One vicodin a day seems like not a lot to me -- when I get an Rx it usually says "1 or 2 every 12 hours." (That's for 500 mg). I do fine on one but Pedro is one of those people who requires twice as much pain medication as everyone else (he always has to get double shots of novocaine at the dentist) so he takes two. But it's worth a shot.

Hope you feel better soon. I have had some mild sciatica in my life and I know it can be terrible. For me, the only thing that works (besides tons of drugs) is alternating cold packs with heat. Ice it for twenty minutes, take a ten minute break, then lay on a heating pad for half an hour. It might not fix it, but maybe if you can't get more vicodin it will bring you at least a little relief.

[Carlos del Vaca]

Here is my go-to chard recipe:  http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Swiss-Chard-with-Raisins-and-Pine-Nuts-231509

WRT cole slaw, do you dislike all slaw or just certain kinds, say a mayo-based kind? I am a fan of this one here, which is vinegar-based. A bit salty, so cut back on the salt.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/5-Minute-Slaw-350407
Click on "giraffe and Chips Dinner" under "Appears in this menu" there--that whole meal is tasty good.

Cabbage is also good in a stir-fry. On a good day I don't even need a recipe for that, just use whatever veggies you have on hand, and chuck them in the wok in order based on how long they take to cook.

I recommend bacon grease for sauteing any greens you end up with--mustard, collard, kale, etc.

[jay-ell]

WRT cole slaw, do you dislike all slaw or just certain kinds, say a mayo-based kind?

Funny, I don't really know what it is about slaw I don't care for. It's just one of those foods I put on my "don't like" list years ago and try to avoid whenever possible. I did make some (from a bag of pre-shredded whatnot) for our last barbecue, and tasted some, and it was...mildly unpleasant? Everyone who likes coleslaw liked it, but I just had some kind of texture issue with it or something. I used a toasted sesame salad dressing on it instead of the traditional mayo, thinking that might be it, but it didn't help much. Maybe the issue is just that I'm not accustomed to eating it -- I have a hard time with new things; even if it's good food that I will eventually come to love, if the texture is really unusual, I can't eat more than a bite or two without gagging.

Duh, your link reminded me that I can TOTALLY use cabbage in giraffe tacos. I use that asian-style coleslaw as a topping, and it doesn't bother me when it's mixed with other things. Also, I really like this recipe, though I sub cashews for the peanuts, and I leave out the red peppers and use tricolor cabbage mix with shredded carrots, for visual appeal.

[Carlos del Vaca]

Ooh, I forgot about this one. This is from Aidells & Kelly's "Real Beer and Good Eats" and it's one of the best cole slaws ever. I don't make it often, as there's a lot of ingredients and it takes a while to make, but I've made it for potlucks and such and many people have said it's the best slaw they've ever had.
http://www.ziplist.com/recipes/360802