Black Eye Pea Cakes, Corn Waffles and Greens

When this Yankee gal married a born and raised Southern boy, our culinary norms collided. Growing up on Long Island, I was raised eating a lot of Italian food, bagels, deli sandwiches, and of course, the German food of my ancestors. When my family moved to Ohio, there were a few Cincinnati-specific foods we were introduced to, but no specific Mid-west specialties. However, when I went to school in North Carolina and met JJ, I was introduced to a world of new dishes. That's not to say people don't eat this food in the Northeast or Mid-west, but it didn't seem as prevalent growing up there.

When I started to pay more attention to the Food Network and read cooking magazines in college, I mentioned the tradition of collards and black eyed peas at New Years to JJ, and he looked at me like I was just realizing the sky is blue. So since then, I've made it a tradition to make these dishes on New Years Day. Usually I just throw the beans in a crockpot with garlic, onions and vegetable stock, but when I saw this dish on Joanne's blog, it seemed like a fun new way to enjoy the traditional food. We received kale in the CSA, so I used that instead of collard greens, and I guess it was a big mistake because on January 2, I had to drop a few hundred on car maintenance. At least it still tasted good! If you haven't had your black eye peas and collards yet in 2013, I insist you do it now, with this dish!

Black Eyed Pea Cakes with Collard Greens and Corn Waffles

BEPs and Greens adapted from Eats Well With Others and Cooking Light

Corn Waffles adapted from Food.com

Greens:

1 tsp. olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large bunch of collard greens or kale, chopped (12 oz.)

2 c. vegetable stock

1/2 orange or red bell pepper, diced

1 tbsp. cider vinegar

1 tsp. honey

Pinch of salt

Black Eye Pea Cakes:

1 tsp. olive oil

1 small yellow onion, minced

1/2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

1 garlic clove, minced

2 1/2 c. black eyed peas, drained and rinsed (I used dry, canned is fine)

1/4 c. bread crumbs

2 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 egg

1/4 c. cornmeal

Fresh ground black pepper and Kosher Salt

Corn Waffles:

1 1/4 c. all purpose flour

3/4 c. fine corn meal

2 tbsp. light brown sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

2 eggs

1/4 c. canola oil

1 3/4 c. milk

1/2 c. frozen corn kernels

To prepare greens:

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat.

Add onion and garlic, saute' until tender, about 5 minutes.

Add greens, vegetable broth, bell pepper, cider vinegar, honey and salt, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes, until greens are tender. Stir occasionally. 

To prepare BEP cakes:

Preheat oven to 400*

Heat olive oil in a large saute' pan over medium heat. 

Add onion and garlic, saute' 5 minutes, until garlic is golden.

Add onions and garlic, thyme, HALF of the BEPs, breadcrumbs, mustard, cayenne, salt and pepper to a food processor, pulse until blended, add the egg and pulse again.

Add to a bowl with the remaining BEPs, stir well until combined. 

Place cornmeal in a shallow dish.

Divide into 8 cakes, dredge in cornmeal, then place on a lined baking sheet.

Bake cakes for 20 minutes, then flip and bake for another 10, until crisp and browned.

To prepare waffles:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, oil and milk.

Add baking powder, sugar and salt, whisk again.

Add flour, cornmeal and corn, using a spatula, fold until mixture is incorporated.

Heat a waffle iron over medium heat.

Spray with nonstick cooking spray, and ladle batter onto waffle iron.

Cook until waffles are puffed and release.

Bitter Greens with Cherries

When I created my new blog name and decided what direction it was going to go, I didn't really take into account Florida's growing seasons and the rest of the country. When I was harvesting pumpkins in July, many of you were shocked! I also noticed that many people who are part of a CSA (community supported agriculture) are getting their boxes now, and have been for several months. Here in Florida, the CSA's run from November thru April. 

So my in-season produce may not exactly be the same as the majority of the readers of this blog. However, many in-season items aren't exactly local, so no matter where you live, cherries are at their peak in the summer. They're generally harvested and shipped from Michigan or the Pacific Northwest. Not exactly the smallest carbon footprint, but because their season is so short, I can't help but buy as much as possible in the small amount of time they're available. 

So back to the CSA boxes. My sister lives in Washington, DC, and uses a CSA delivery service. Last week she received a bunch of swiss chard, and asked me what she should do with it. I think the dark, and sometimes bitter greens, tend to stump many people who get CSA boxes. While you may feel like it's a filler, and not very exciting, I would disagree! Many CSA's aren't certified organic, but use organic practices and don't have the time and money to spend on becoming certified. So your one bunch of organic swiss chard runs for $4 at Whole Foods. 

I looked through several cookbooks to find a swiss chard recipe, and found this one in Mollie Katzen's Vegetable Heaven. Though we're at the very tail end of cherry season, I had to use them one more time, and this recipe was perfect for that. It hits so many flavor notes, the bitter greens are cut with the sweet onion, and the cherries bring a tart, but sweet flavor as well. This dish has few ingredients, is so simple to make, but will leave you hoping to a bunch of swiss chard in your next CSA box! 

VBS Tips and Trades:

-If swiss chard is a little much for you, try substituting baby spinach leaves. Alternately, if you have kale, collared greens, or another hearty dark green, try using that instead.

-If fresh cherries are unavailable, grab a bag of frozen cherries. I love Cascadian Farm's organic frozen sour cherries.

-If you're interested in CSA's, check out this link! And others found on my "Favorite Products" page.  

Bitter Greens with Sweet Onions and Sour Cherries

slightly adapted from Mollie Katzen's Vegetable Heaven

1/4 c. fresh sour cherries, pitted and halved

1 tsp. olive oil

1 c. sliced onion (vidalia, maui)

1 tsp. salt

1 large bunch of fresh greens (4 c.), stemmed and coarsely chopped - I used Rainbow Chard 

Splash of red wine vinegar

Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet.

Add the onions and salt, sauté over high heat for 5 minutes, turn heat to medium, cover and cook until very tender.

Add greens, wilt down, cook for 2-3 minutes.

Stir in the cherries and cook 5 minutes longer.

Add a splash of red wine vinegar, spoon into a dish.

Serve warm.