More Than the Sum of Its Parts

                                                                             

 I kinda feel like I posted this recipe previously but can't find it so here goes.

We are big fans of collards and have been forever, long before kale came on the scene. There was a time, I recall, along about the first grade, that I didn't like collards but when my mother told me that Vance Smith (a boy in my first-grade class that I must have had a crush on) loved collards, I gave them another chance and have eaten them happily ever since.

My family always cooked them in broth with some sort of meat--fatback or hog jowl. I add onion, garlic, a tiny bit of sugar, red pepper flakes and serve them with chopped raw onion and vinegar. Sometimes I stir fry them. Mighty good, either way.

Then I saw this recipe on the package of greens (yes, a shortcut--chopped greens) and found another thing to love about collards.

Mixed with cooked potatoes and a little milk, the greens are elevated to, well, maybe not quite fine cuisine, but seriously and surprisingly good. Maybe an American version of England's Bubble and Squeak? Whatever--it's delicious. Would be a nice base for a fried egg too.

Here's the recipe:

3 pounds white potatoes, cut in two- inch chunks

Salt

2 TB. Olive oil

16 0z. chopped collard greens 

1/2 c. chopped red onion (or more) with more for garnish

1/2 to 3/4 c. milk

Cook potatoes in salted water to cover till tender. Drain in colander and set aside.

Add olive oil to drained pot, heat over medium heat, add greens and 1/2 tsp. salt. Stir till wilted.Add onions and cook another few minutes.

Add the drained potatoes to the greens and mash well. Stir in 1/2 c. milk. More milk and more salt if desired.

                                    

Breaking Up Christmas?

I find myself faced with something of an existential dilemma. For the fifty-nine years we've been married, I have adhered to my grandmother's tradition of getting the tree out of the house before the new year.  A fairly sensible tradition with a real tree that is daily getting to be more and more a fire hazard. 

But a niece of mine is in town, visiting her daughter, my great niece, and they are coming out for a visit (and some collards and black-eyed peas for luck) on New Year's Day.

'I kinda hate it they won't get to see the tree,' I told John, 'It's so pretty. And I'll have to really push to get all the ornaments put away before-'

'So leave it up. Take it down on Monday.'

I was surprised to find how very much I didn't want to break with this long-standing tradition. Did I really believe that leaving the tree up another day would bring bad luck? Or was this tradition simply a way of remembering my grandmother?

  After wrestling with this problem a bit, I decided to remove one ceremonial ornament . . .

And to cut off a token piece of the tree and take it outside.  Silly, yes, but it made me feel better. And perhaps it's a good thing not to let tradition or superstition stand in the way of common sense and hospitality.

But come Monday, out it goes!