3 for 1 Veggie Week

This vegetable story starts with fish tacos. You see, part of a wonderful fish taco is the cabbage in which you fill said taco.  At the grocery store they were selling half a head of cabbage. Who sells a half a head of cabbage? – I didn’t ask questions I just snagged it.  After having fish tacos for dinner and lunch the next day I still had basically an entire half of a cabbage left.  So I thought- what a great way to start my vegetable experiment- with a vegetable I never cook that I already have laying around the house.  

So my mind started brain storming- wilted cabbage, bacon, maybe a splash of some type of vinegar….  I jumped on my favorite recipe site: Allrecipes.com and found just what I was looking for! I modified it just a little.

Fried Cabbage

(modified from Original Recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Fried-Cabbage-II/Detail.aspx)

6 slices turkey bacon

½ tbsp olive oil

½ head green cabbage- sliced into ribbons

½ onion- chopped

1 tsp white sugar

1 tbsp cider vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

1. Put olive oil in a large skillet, heat on medium/high
2. Cook turkey bacon-  after cooked remove from pan- let cool then chop
3. Add sliced cabbage and chopped onion to the hot pan- cook until the cabbage gets soft.
4. Add chopped bacon, sugar, cider vinegar, salt and pepper to the wilted cabbage.  Stir to mix and it’s ready to serve.

Family verdict:

Me: The bacon flavor, and the sweetness of the sugar really came through- the vinegar was just a mild undertone. I thought the cabbage was more of just a base for these other flavors- not a strong cabbage taste at all.

Toby: Cabbage- although being a smelly vegetable- was one Toby didn’t like to begin with. Being a good sport, he tried it for me. He said the bacon did come through really well, but he could still taste the cabbage.

Natalie: It resembled lettuce so she was already resistant. She put the smallest string of cabbage you’ve ever seen, on her tongue, then spit it out.

Conclusion:

I thought the recipe turned out really well and I’d eat it again. However since the rest of my family disagrees I might not be making it terribly often.  Maybe I’ll try it again when Natalie isn’t so against lettuce. 

The cabbage was the main vegetable I had in mind for the article, however that same night that I made the cabbage I also cooked up a butternut squash.  This is not a new vegetable for our family, but it’s such a wonderful, and dare I say decadent, vegetable I thought I’d share my pictures and how simple it is to make.

Butternut Squash

1 Butternut Squash

1-2 tbsp butter (depending how big the squash is)

salt & pepper

1. Cut squash in half longwise, scoop out and throw away seeds.
2. Put squash cut side down in a microwave safe dish large enough to fit both halves as well as fit in your microwave.
3. Put about 1 inch of water in the dish with the squash, Cover with plastic wrap and put in microwave
4. Microwave on high about 15 minutes (may take longer if you have a large squash)
5. Carefully remove from the microwave- the water is basically boiling, and the steam escaping from the plastic is very hot.
6. Remove the plastic wrap and flip over the squash pieces. Pierce with a fork- it should poke through with no resistance.  If the squash is still hard, re-cover and microwave another 2-3 minutes and check doneness again.
7. When the squash is soft, drain off most/all the water as best you can- it just makes it easier to work with.  Scoop out the orange of the squash into a bowl leaving the hard shell behind.
8. Mash with a fork or potato masher. Add butter, salt and pepper to taste. Mix and Serve.

 

Family Verdict

Me: Just decadent. Smooth, creamy butter nut squash is just awesome!

Toby:  “You made a believer out of me.”  He didn’t ever really have butternut squash, and now he’ll eat a healthy portion whenever I make it.

Natalie:  It was one of the vegetables I made for her when she was a baby. She still likes it to this day!

Conclusion: One of the regular vegetable rotations in the family- especially in the fall/winter months.

One last vegetable recipe for the article is also not new to our family, but I figured since it was only the second or third time I’d made it, that it still counted.  I made this the night before the cabbage and squash, and thought I’d practice taking some food pictures. 

Breaded and Baked Zucchini

 

2 medium zucchini

1 egg

2 tbsp milk

1 clove smashed garlic

½ cup Italian bread crumbs

2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

1 tbsp chopped parsley (I don’t ever have parsley so I skipped this)

¼ tsp black pepper

1. Combine egg, milk and garlic in a shallow dish or bowl. Set aside for about 15 minutes, while you complete steps 2, 3 & 4. You want the garlic flavor to infuse into the egg and milk mixture
2. Preheat oven to 450. Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. You may need two baking sheets.
3. Slice zucchini into “chips”.  No need to peel.  (about ¼” slices)
4. Combine breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley (if using) and pepper in another shallow dish or plate.
5. Dip zucchini slices into egg mixture, then into crumbs and place on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
6. Bake for 10 minutes, then turn over and bake for 5 minutes more until brown and crispy.

 

Family Verdict:

Me: So good! A great alternative to frying.  I made them without the cheese before (because I’m lactose intolerant), but they are better with the cheese. I think if you take out the cheese you should to add salt to the bread mixture.

Toby: He thinks they are great. Last time he tried dipping them in BBQ sauce. I didn’t care for it that way, but he seemed to like it.

Natalie: Not a favorite for her. I think she has a hard time with the skin still being on it.

Conclusion:  A recipe I’ve made already a couple times for the family and will continue to do so. I’ll keep presenting to Natalie and maybe eventually she’ll grow to like it, or get over the skin thing.  Toby and I like it and as long as 2 out of 3 of us like it. I’ll usually make it again.

So, that wraps up week one of my vegetable cooking.  Now, what to do for next week….. I have a couple ideas up my sleeve, now I just need to make it to the grocery store.  Stay tuned.  Oh, and if you try any of the recipes we try please post and tell me what you think or ideas for improvements!