I have a dear friend who absolutely LOVES to make fun of the way I eat. Has done for years. I won't mention her name here because she has no means of defence against this diatribe, but I'm sure anyone who knows me (and her) will know precisely who I mean. And if not, it doesn't matter - the only reason she got to me was because - despite her less-than-decent way of drawing attention to the issue, she was absolutely right. Her major issue is/was with the fact that I seldom show any sign whatsoever of interest in eating vegetables.
And - loud and clear - may I state here that this is only partially true. What I hate are the vegetables with which I am presented in restaurants. Pickles. Coleslaw. Sad-looking lettuce posturing as a 'salad', with a few anaemic tomatoes or something. Disgusting. If I want any of these things, I promise, I will order them. When I don't, I feel it only right to request that they not be brought - it's wasteful, and I'd be much happier knowing that they might end up on the plate of some other, less crazy diner.
I also hate salads. Hate them. I am not a rabbit, and I somehow cannot see the point of eating leaves. It has even reached the point where I've considered seeing a hypnotist, in the hope that s/he might be able to reprogramme me to think that leaves and peppers (to which I am borderline allergic - not enough to be sick, just enough to be uncomfortable and therefore cranky for up to a full day after eating them) taste like chocolate. Wouldn't that make an enormous amount of sense? Intellectually, if not physiologically - I'm sure that what chocolate does to the body is not entirely in the mind. And therefore I'd still be craving something else after snacking on leaves.
Long story short (well - shorter) - I actually love vegetables. But only when I prepare them myself. This makes me weird? I don't care. For this 30 Before 30 insanity, I decided that it would be only good and proper to come to terms with 5 new vegetables - a) in order to have something to say to Ms. X, and b) because I'm interested.
I did a vague search on the interweb to find something like a 'Top 10 Healthiest Vegetables' list. (Y'all know how much I love taxonomies and lists...)
What I found was more of a Top 10 healthiest KINDS of vegetables. So, I've taken one from each list and developed a nice recipe for each. These top ten include relatively familiar vegetables - I cannot in good conscience say that learning to cook carrots was 'something new' for me - but what I did WITH them certainly was.
[I am blogging about cooking vegetables. Where are the Four Horsemen???]
1- Cruciferous Vegetables
I cooked broccoli. I steam it and serve it with fresh lemon juice and capers. The Mexican also taught me a recipe to make with broccoli stalks (the bit that you normally try to remove at the shop, or else feel that you're being cheated when it's sold by weight...)
I even ordered cauliflower in a restaurant recently!
2- Carrots
No real innovation here - they are my favourite vegetable. I don't like them raw (unless accompanied by mandarins and balsamic vinegar) but any other way is great. I got an immersion blender for Christmas and have used it to make a variety of soups since, but the best so far has been my version of a carrot and coriander soup. Delicious. And dirt cheap!!
3- Dark Green Leafy Vegetables
The majority of items on this list don't inspire me much, they being leaves, but I love spinach. Again, cooked with some lemon. Baking it in filo a la grecque isn't really in line with the whole self-improving notion of this post, but the fact remains that spanakopita is the best (only?!) way to enjoy spinach. As for collard greens - I shall wait until I visit Savannah and have a Deen cook it for me. I'm sure it's best with butter.
4- Tomatoes
Again, not exactly foreign to me - although tomato soup is the next thing on my agenda. I also love making stuffed tomatoes - also a Greek recipe! I bought some heirloom tomatoes recently for the rataouille I made at Christmas. They were almost too beautiful to chop!
5- Beans and Peas
What to say? Beans are such a broad range of things. I like some, not others. Peas - best with miso.
6- Asparagus
Antoher likely soup candidate in the near future. Also great izakaya-style, wrapped in bacon and served with beers, tofu, fish, all that good stuff.
7- "Allium Foods"
I think this means onions, shallots, scallions, garlic etc. These have all become staples of my cooking - none moreso than garlic - since I went 'foodie', so they can all go on the list. I'm not a very big fan of shallots, which taste somehow stronger to me than regular onions, but they were a hit with my maple candied sweet potatoes at Christmas....
8 - Bell Peppers
Non-negotiable. I won't eat them raw. But they improve so much with cooking that I'm being adventurous. I had a chile rilleno at a Oaxacan restaurant recently, and thanks to the advice of Marcella Valladollid, I'm trying some new Mexican recipes, which clearly demand peppers galore. But gently. Pass the Tums.
9- Sweet Potatoes
Side dish triumph! The whole US thing of serving these with marshmallows I find rather gross, but they are really good baked and fried and served as a savoury piece. And easy to prepare!!
10 - Squash
I am using the ratatouille here again. It had aubergine, courgette, yellow squash in it, so covers all the items under this rubric. And turned out rather well, by all accounts.
Wow. I have overachieved with my vegetable enthusiasm. I set out to aim for 5 new ones. I have managed over 10. Chocolate comes from beans. Making it a vegetable too. Win win.
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