An impromptu girls get together on a lazy Sunday afternoon actually started the Saturday prior when my sister announced she was having a play date for her girls. Being the aunt that I am, I invited myself and asked what she was preparing to eat, assuming that food would be an invited guest. She informed me that she was putting two beef roasts (as some people call them) in the crock pot. She mentioned some other tasty sounding items and I was hooked! I offered to make collard greens, and prepared my palate for a feast!

I’m a southern-belle, born and bred, but by no means am I a chef or fancy-smancy cook. After all, the whole premise of this blog site is about dining out, not cooking. However, the things I do prepare I take delight in preparing them well. One of them is collard greens. I’m a fan of turnips, kale, swiss chard and mixed greens featuring bountiful, earthy greens like mustard greens, but there’s just something about collards that set them a part in my southern heart.

My collard greens are simple to make and healthy:

A bunch (or bag) of fresh cut collard greens

.32 oz of chicken stock

Two teaspoons of vinegar or apple cider vinegar

Two cups of water

Four chicken bouillon cubes

A teaspoon of garlic powder

A teaspoon of Greek seasoning, Slap Yo Mama or some other flavorfully, spicy seasoning

Two tablespoons of sugar

Two tablespoons of chopped, fresh onions or a tablespoon of onion powder

***Extra “kick it up a notch” features could include: a smoked turkey wing or leg during the intial cooking process, fresh okra later in the simmering process, or hot sauce or pepper vineager as a tasty topping.

• Bring the chicken stock to a boil (along with smoked meat if you are using it), while thoroughly washing your collard greens (Google how to wash greens if you need to.)
• Add collards and the other seasonings.
• Add water.
• Cover.
• Add additional seasonings if desired as you sample the greens about half-way in.
• Let cook for 1 ½ hours then simmer until tender.
• Enjoy your collards…with cornbread of course. (And check out my post about Cornbread, the caviar of the south…https://angelaeatstheham.com/2015/04/23/im-cooking-cornbread/)

@AngelaMMoore316