Feeling a bit Royal

I am feeling a bit royal these days as we fill our fridge with purple - the color of royalty.  Our household missed last week's new veggie so we doubled up our new produce this week and happened to pick two purple veggies.  This was quite noticeable as even our cashier asked if we were on a purple food spree.  It's rare to find a truly purple food.  I guess with the two items side by side it registered a comment.  What are the two veggies?  I am sure you have tried both these veggies but possibly not the purple varieties - cauliflower and bell pepper.  Both delicious! and Attractive! 

So PRETTY!

Both of these veggies are similar to their rainbowed friends.  So if you are looking to add a splash of color in a veggie tray - these are beautiful choices.  I don't know if I should admit this but the purple cauliflower was my muse for photography as I captured thirteen pictures (I know - crazy! but kind of fun!) and those were my keeper pictures as I deleted quite a few.  The purple is kind of intense.  I did sample the cauliflower raw.  I am not a huge cauliflower fan in the raw state - steam it, mash it, melt cheese and I am a happy camper. (My mom used to make the best cheese sauce for cauliflower when I was growing up).  I sort of like the texture as the florets have a crunch with give but the aftertaste just gags me.  The purple variety has a mild flavor where you can feel the texture more than the flavor but still had that afterbite.  We did what we tend to do with a whole head of cauliflower - quick boil until tender and then a good ol' mashing.  When we boiled the cauliflower it turned the water almost an intense purple - it reminded me of an old Kool-Aid flavor I enjoyed - Purple Saurus rex I think - ah the memories :)  I wish I could have thought of a good use for the water - it seemed such a waste to toss out the prettily interesting liquid.  The mash isn't quite as pretty but my toddler son was a huge fan of the purple mash.  It made him giggle.  But then most things do :) 

Look at this regal pepper!

Unto the purple bell pepper.  I enjoy a good bell pepper.  I remember teasing a youth about her taste for red bell peppers.  I let her and her sister pick their favorite fruit or veggie.  She picked red bell peppers.  At this time the only pepper I had tried was potently bitter green peppers.  (I think peppers are special to me because I can't think of green peppers without thinking of my dad.  He would grow them in his backyard garden.  And there were few things he dislikes eating but when as a family my mom would pick a family favorite that my dad just wasn't a fan she would make him these hideous stuffed green peppers. At least that's how I felt about them growing up - now it sounds like a tasty supper option :)  Back to this youth chose the red bell pepper.  I asked her what she was going to do with the pepper.  She responded like a teenager does - eat it with that questioning duh kind of stare.  Umm thanks what I meant is HOW are you going to eat it.  Slice it up and chew.  Huh.  Really?  Because I equate peppers as adult food and something you dice up for a recipe.  But just to eat the slices befuddled my nineteen year old mind.  My veggie intake revolved around the almight potato and corn for some color.  And sadly I was not eating red meat or pork at this time.  I had many many meals over that time span of five years that were just fries or mashed potatoes.  And I wonder why I have trouble with my blood sugar.  Well fast forward to now and I love bell peppers.  I am still not a huge fan of the green bell pepper.  But red, orange, yellow are always welcomed in my fridge and we tend to at least have one or two in the crisper.  To any dish they can add color, a little sweetness, and just a little kick, plus they are incredibly versatile for me as I eat them raw or cooked.  Well the purple can also be added to the mix.  Although they seem pretty rare and tend to cost a little more than their buddies.  I also would say the purple bell pepper (try to say that three times quickly!) is the closest in flavor to the green bell pepper.  It doesn't quite have the sweetness and had a tish more kick than the brighter peppers.  But we ate it sliced up in our big dinner salad Saturday night and I finished up the rest of the slices for lunch.  So definitely tasty! 

You may have noticed that both veggies brought back some cozy memories.  Thats what happens with food we romanticize and capture sweet memories.  It isn't the food that we crave for comfort - its what memories it carries.  We make memories around the dinner table with conversations, occasionally arguments, and we also make them in the kitchen as we share about our day and pass on traditions of our family and our culture.  I love to share in my husband's pride for New Orleans and the flavors and aromas that bring that twinkle in his eye of remembrance.  I like to think that there are veggies that remind me of my dad instantly - not just bell peppers but also spinach (because he hates it!) and radishes because he makes sandwiches out of just radishes.  I like to think of my mom taking the time to cook my favorite cheese sauce because she wanted to make me smile.  I remember we used to have this bear little figurine that either read you're a superstar or you're special on a star shaped mirror.  That would appear now and then as a congratulations to a job well done or a happy birthday. 

There's a lot to be said about the dinner table movement.  Don't lose your family to schedules.  Remember to take that time to discuss your day and share in each other's lives.  Its hard to turn off the television ban telephones and sit face to face it what has become an electronic world.  But do you want your children's memories to be electronic based or the aromas and flavors and laughter filled memories of sitting around the table and really sharing your lives by breaking bread?  So yes after our purple cauliflower and purple bell pepper I am feeling a bit royal as I remember how my parents allowed me to feel like a princess and now how my hubby and son treat me feel like a queen. 

May your HealthFULL journey show you the blessings of living like royalty.  Cherish your treasures of love, friendship, joy, blessings, adventure, and time. 'Til we meet again. . .

Bringing more Green into the World

Think Green.  We use that color to explain so many things - clean environment, safe products, money, the color, someone is looking sick, jealousy.  We like this color, we use this color, we discuss this color.  But do you eat this color?  Oh I know you just blushed.  Because we love green green but many of us as kids decided that healthy green vegetables have no place in our world or our tummies.  But as an adult we are told these foods are "good for us" because they are so "healthy".  And our reactions range usually from "Blech!"  or if I must *take a bite with eyes closed super tight and nose plugged with other hand while other hand holds the fork ready to jam the green health food into our mouths.  I should preface most adults are like this who haven't really given "greens" a chance. 

Actually, they are quite tasty.  Are you thinking I am a pod person?  No I am one of you I promise.  Green vegetables to me used to mean no flavor or rabbit food.  But as I allow myself to use them more often I am becoming more familiar with their tastes and textures and what works for a meal (at least in our household) and what most likely won't be crossing the threshold of our home.  If you haven't guessed yet we ate Turnip Greens for the veggie of the week.  Quite tasty and now having sampled a variety I can share a little bit of their differences. 

We'll call them the Big Five Greens. (If for no other reason because our household has sampled all five and they are fairly common at popular supermarkets so you can too sample all five and pick your favorite :)

If you shop at Whole Foods they label produce with ANDI scores.  According to http://www.belsandia.com/andi-score-andi-nutrition-rating-system.html ANDI stands for Aggregate Nutrient Density Index developed by Dr. Joel Fuhrman which
basically identifies the most nutritional bite you can chew meaning high nutrients for less calories - this works high in the favor of greens but works against healthy fats (nuts, olive oil).  So though I find the information interesting and worth learning it - by no means should it dictate your diet completely.  Eat with knowledge is what I advise (and I am just a person with little nutrition background - more of a recent hobby and by no means have a doctor license.)

So our big five green choices: Kale, Mustard, Turnip, Collard, and Beet greens is what I plan to compare.  First off the first four listed: Kale, Mustard, Turnip, and Collard Greens have an ANDI score of 1000.  Which is the highest score listed on the ANDI.  Beet greens come in at a much lower number.  I think in the 300s but I had trouble finding the actual number online. 

My favorite green is the Turnip Green which we just tasted last night.  We cooked it typical southern fashion where you boil it down with spices and some tasty fat.  Not the healthiest preparation but I think is a great way to introduce yourself to the vegetable.  They have a bit firmer texture than collards but definitely not as strong as kale.  So the turnip greens hold up really well for a soup or the boil down method.  And then you can use the stock to create flavorful rice or soup.  The turnip greens have a great spiciness to the ending of their bite that allows it to incorporate with a smoky, salty, or sweet flavor.  We ate the greens with some cod and a little bit of rice and a cool cucumber salad.  Odd mixture but we were trying to finish up some odds and ends.  The greens mixed well with the whole meal. 

Second up for my favorite are beet greens.  They have such a delicateness to their leaves and sweetness as they carry some of the beet flavor into their red veins.  We wilt these down in a saute pan with a small amount of liquid (a flavored vinegar usually and some water just to wet the pan and allow the green's water to do the rest of the wilting) with a bit of salt and pinch of sugar (to really highlight the greens' natural sweetness) a bit of pepper or other "spice" and you have a delicious, nutritious, and super easy side.  I think this green is a great way to incorporate greens into a kid's diet (or the apprehensive adult).  The liquid clinging to the greens is usually tinged red which adds some color, beauty, and for the crowd who appreciates it a bright purply tinged blood :)

Third I will go for the much talked about superfood - Kale.  Kale is a strong leaf both texture wise and flavor.  Its dark color is from all the nutrients that call this vegetable home.  Kale is strong enough to handle some baking and many people I know brag about Kale chips.  I have it down as a recipe to definitely try ( I do warn you the smell in the oven is a bit strong - think burning leaves - but the taste is fantastic :)  We have had kale several ways.  Raw in some salads - such as a quinoa salad with some fruit to sweeten the salad.  We have also half wilted, half sauteed the leaves.  I prefer cooked kale vs. raw kale.  I feel it holds a bitter taste which I am not a huge superfan.  But have learned it can work when balanced against other flavor profiles. 

Collard greens are a staple around these parts of the country ( I am based in South Carolina).  I can honestly say I do not recall ever seeing Collard Greens let alone ringing them up (I worked in a grocery store for 7+ years in northern Minnesota) until we moved here.  And my husband remembers eating them for most New Years' Days.  For the last couple of years we have tried to uphold the Southern tradition of eating black-eyed peas and our collard greens to bring us both luck and prosperity into our upcoming year.  I find the collards a bit more fragile than the hearty greens and a bit more mild. Kale has bitterness, turnips have spiciness, and beets have sweetness and collards just are collards in my opinion.  We have only had collard greens in the boil 'em down fashion.  Maybe worth trying a new method for these.

And my least favorite green are the Mustard Greens.  I truly believe this has to do with our preparing them like collard greens and drowning what I imagine to be a sour spicy flavor.  I enjoy true mustard taste as was quite disappointed that I didn't love these greens thinking these would be my most favorite.  Maybe I went into the tasting with too much expectation.  They also are pretty hardy for leaf strength - not quite like weight lifter kale but runner - up definitely.  I haven't given up on these leaves yet.  They deserve a second chance but with a recipe more their style.

Hope this gave you a new understanding and appreciation for the world of greens.  Don't be afraid of them (you are even stronger than kale.  Imagine how strong you would be if you ate kale  :)

May your HealthFULL Journey be filled with culinary adventures, active happiness, and inspiring motivation. 'Til we meet again. . .