easy vegatable recipes

[vickil]

Okra & Tomatoes

2 slices turkey bacon
1 pound frozen okra, thawed and sliced
1 small onion, chopped
½ green bell pepper, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 14.5 oz. can stewed tomatoes (make sure no-sugar-added)
salt & pepper to taste

Cook bacon. Drain, crumble, & set aside. Saute okra, onion, pepper, & celery until tender. Add tomatoes, salt & pepper, and cook until well blended. Top w/crumbled bacon.

[A-Rod]

From Eating Well magazine:

White Chard Braise

Serves 4 (1 cup each)

A rich, meaty-tasting dish, this is a great accompaniment for roast fish or chicken.

Active Time: 30 minutes
Total: 1 hour (including 30 minutes soaking time)

1. Place porcini in a medium bowl. Pour boiling water over them and let soak until softened, about 30 minutes.

2. Separate chard leaves from stems; cut leaves crosswise into 1-inch strips and stems into 1-inch lengths. Drain the porcini in a fine sieve lined with paper towels over a 2-cup measure. Add water to the soaking liquid if necessary to measure 1.5 cups total. Rinse the porcini under cool running water. Squeeze out any excess water and coarsely chop.

3. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add white mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add garlic, the chard stems and leaves, reserved liquid, and chopped porcini; stir to combine. Cover and cook until the cahrd stems are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is reduced by half, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Per Serving: 120 calories; 4 g fat (1 g sat, 3 g mono); 0 mg cholesterol; 14 g carbohydrate; 7 g protein; 5 g fiber; 482 mg sodium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (140% daily value), Vitamin C (60% DV), Iron (25% DV), Potassium (19% DV).

[my-goddess]

ROSY RADISH HOME FRIES
16 ounce bag radishes, washed, dried and trimmed (I bought a bag of already washed radishes)
1 small onion, diced (2.5 ounces)
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon cooking oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Quarter the smaller radishes and cut any larger ones into eighths. Heat the butter and oil in a medium skillet; add the radishes and onions. Cover pan and turn heat to low. Let cook for 5-10 minutes. Uncover, turn heat to medium and cook until nicely browned, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes 4 servings (3.5 net carbs each)

If you can get past the pink color, these taste amazingly like fried potatoes. The covered cooking helps to soften them a bit before the browning stage. I covered mine for 5 minutes and they still had a little crunch so 10 minutes might be better. Although they tasted a lot like potatoes, there seemed to be something missing so I think the addition of a couple slices of bacon might add just the right flavor. If you use bacon, brown it a bit before adding the onion and radishes, and omit the butter and oil.

Thank-you so much this was sooo amazingly good

[pb&j]

*bump*

I tried Radish hash browns (P1)last night, but I varied it from the recipe posted above... peeling/shredding the radishes really eliminated the radishy taste - it was ALMOST like eating potatoes!!

You can season it any way you like - i'll give you my variation, which was a little like cajun hash brown.

-1 lb radishes, washed, peeled, ends cut off, shredded finely
-1 teas. minced garlic or garlic powder
-1/2 finely diced onion
-1 teas. paprika, 1/4 teas. each of black & red pepper
-sprinkle of cumin & salt to taste

Mix all of the above well, saute in 1/2 teas. olive oil for a few minutes until cooked & light golden (I did about 2-3 minutes)

It's great - great for P1!!

Edit - forgot to ask - anyone ever try boiling & mashing radishes? I think I can make a decent faux mashed potato out of these!!

[recipelover]

I have added whole radishes to a crockpot stew. They are amazingly like potatoes in the stew.

[pb&j]

cool, thanks recipelover!

[magickrhythm]

Easy Broccoli with Cream Cheese Sauce (P2)
Flagirl

INGREDIENTS:
16 ounce bag of frozen broccoli
1 packet of low-fat cream cheese (or cream cheese substitute for Phase 1)
1/2 cup of Land O’ Lakes half and half
1 tablespoon of Smart Balance spread
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

Cook broccoli according to directions. Place cream cheese, half and half, lemon juice and Smart Balance spread into dish. Warm in microwave at 50 percent power for 3 minutes. Stir, repeat another 3 minutes until it reaches the consistency of a med white sauce. It will be lumpy whisk until smooth.

Does anyone know what package size of cream cheese to use? 8 ounces? 3 ounces?

Thanks!

[recipelover]

My guess: 8 oz. package because of the 1/2 c. of half & half and the lemon juice. That leads me to believe you need more cream cheese to blend with the liquids

[magickrhythm]

That is what I figured. We made it (without the lemon juice since I didn't have any on hand) and it came out good. I had to add some basil, oregano, salt, and pepper to it...but it was still good.

[nainai]

Edit: Sorry vickil. It looks like you and I had the same idea! I didn't see you had already posted an okra recipe. Oh well, I am going to leave mine on as it varies a bit from yours. I LOVE Okra and Tomatoes. I will have to try your recipe next time I make them!

I love southern food and although I can't eat a lot of my favorites, I can still get my fix with the vegetables.

COLLARD GREENS
5 slices turkey bacon
2 smoked ham hocks, cracked and placed in cheesecloth (I use smoked turkey legs or chicken andouille sausage)
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon whole black pepper
1 teaspoon hot pepper seeds
3 tablespoons seasoning salt
3 bunches collard greens, or others of your choice
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
Vinegar, for serving, optional
Chopped onion, for garnish, optional
Cook the turkey bacon in a large stockpot. Fill the stockpot 1/3 with water. Add smoked meat and seasoning. Bring water to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until meat falls apart when touched with tongs or fork.
Cut greens into 1/2-inch strips. Wash the greens thoroughly. Add greens to pot, with salt and black pepper. Cook until tender, about 2 1/2 hours.
Hints: Add vinegar at serving time. Add chopped onion, if desired.

Okra and Tomatoes
· 4 slices turkey bacon
· 2 small onions -- chopped
· 1 1/2 pounds small fresh okra, washed, stemmed -- cut in 3/4" rounds
· 4 ripe but firm large tomatoes -- peeled & chopped
· 2 teaspoons salt
· black pepper -- to taste
· 1 small hot red pepper -- seeded & chopped
· In a skillet, fry the bacon over moderate heat until crisp, drain on paper towels, crumble, and set aside. Add the onions to the skillet, reduce the heat to low, and cook 10 minutes, stirring a couple of times. Add the okra, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and hot pepper, stir well, and simmer till the okra and tomatoes are just soft, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle the top with crumbled bacon.


I also love just about any vegetable roasted with a little olive oil and garlic salt. I roast at about 400* until it is a little brown on the outside, but still crunchy. I HATE overcooked vegetables. Asparagus, brussels sprouts, and cauliflower are my favorites. I'll do a medley of summer squash, red peppers, onion, carrot and zucchini and top it with Parmesan cheese when it is about 5 minutes from being done. My friends ask for this every time they come over for dinner!