Doing a Little Crowing

Today I am doing a little crowing for reaching my goal—success in cooking my first pot of turnip greens!  One thing I have learned since MS slowed me down is to set small, attainable goals and celebrate their success when achieved, even if it is just feeling happy about the sense of accomplishing something, and build on that feeling.  So, hooray for me; I accomplished what I set out to do!  My dad wants turnip greens for Easter Sunday dinner, which I agreed to prepare, and I do not want to be embarrassed over cooking a dish that tastes terrible, and has the potential to be added to the “remember when you tried to cook…?” stories.  There is one story about a cake that I made as a part of a 4-H project on cooking dishes from all across the world that I will never live down, lol.  Mommee tried to tell me that I was cooking it too long, but I insisted on following the recipe’s instructions to the letter.  The result was a doorstop that still gets a hearty round of tear rolling laughter when joked about these many years later, and will probably come up again in a couple of weeks.  That culinary bomb is a legend on Uncle Juba Lane!  No such disaster this time, however.  As evidenced by the empty pot, filled only with a spoonful of greens left in the “potlikker”, as the old folks say, I put my foot in ‘em, all the way to the kneecaps.  My fledging pot of greens was a hit, and after Duke fixed his lunch for Thursday, a spoonful was all that was left.  I ate that spoonful, feeling very happy and pleased as punch with myself.

 I don’t really care for turnip greens because they tend to be bitter.  When the spirit hits me to fix a mess of fresh greens, it is always collards, which I really like a lot better.  My collards are okay, not as good as my dad’s even though I use his suggestion of chicken broth instead of just plain water, but they do satisfy my taste buds.  I have been meaning to ask him to tell me exactly, step by step, what to do to make my collards taste as stellar as his do, so I can write it down to add to my collection of family recipes.  Duke has been asking me to get that secret, along with Daddee’s recipe for his crackling cornbread, which I have only eaten, never made; Jiffy cornbread is just too quick and easy, and we have no complaints from the knees parked under our table.  In fact, Jalen will eat an entire pan of cornbread if we are not vigilant and paying attention.  “What happened to the cornbread”, and then we espy him wiping crumbs from his greedy little lips, haha. 

 Back to the turnip greens, since I didn’t want to ask my dad about the how-to directions, I began searching for a recipe online, first looking at a southern cooking blog, The Southern Lady Cooks, which I love.  When I am hankering for something with that down home flavor, especially a dessert or an easy meal for the crock pot that Jalen can help me get going before school, Southern Lady is my go-to site.  I have never been disappointed in any recipe followed from the site, and neither is the family.  I liked the recipe that I found, but decided to click on one more blog, Deep South Cooks.  Hog heaven, chitlin’ city—Jackpot!  I found exactly what I was looking for—southern style cooking, not too many ingredients (none hard to find or overly pricy, either; had most of them on hand in my well stocked pantry), an anecdotal recipe with helpful hints, like how to circumvent the bitter taste—perfect.  Even the accompanying picture looked like what I had in mind.

 When I cook these days, I need assistance, a pair of “legs”, to make it easier and safer for me to accomplish the task.  If the kitchen set-up were more handicap-friendly, I could be more independent, but “it is what it is”, so I am letting things “do what they do”.   I don’t fry anything anymore; Duke handles that form of cooking when we are craving some good fried chicken or an occasional pork chop.  Before Jordan went to college, I had groomed him so that he cooked dinner most of the time with little help from me other than some instructions, a wonderful blessing.  Jalen is learning to cook a little, and likes to fry hamburgers on occasion, with supervision, of course.  I have become an excellent prep chef, and can peel, dice, grate, chop, season, and put together the meals I prepare from the sofa, using a lap board for a flat surface, which helps me preserve my energy so I can get a meal to the table.  My roasting pan and my crock pot are my very best friends in the kitchen, and with someone willing to bring me the ingredients, utensils, bowls, and other essentials, I am still able to be feel like I am cooking for my family, which I love to do.  Duke and I joined forces in our tag team effort to fix the greens.  What he does to help me after working hard all day is truly a labor of love that I feel so blessed to have in my life.  He washed them well and cut away the great big stems and ugly parts of the leaves, and got the salt pork (suggested in the recipe instead of jowls to stave off the bitter taste) and water ready for the stock pot.  He also brought me the things I needed to finish culling through the greens and chopping them up for the pot.  While I was doing that, he also added the other seasonings and things I asked him to put in the pot, including some beef broth, which I used instead of the beef fat or bouillon called for in the recipe.  I used what was on hand in the pantry, and added a few things of my own that I knew would taste good. 

 It is an understatement to say that I was pleased with how they turned out.  My greens were banging!  Duke said they were really good, and when I tasted them, I thought the same, noting how they were not bitter at all.  The salt pork, cubed according to the recipe, did its job.  Wednesday night’s dinner, along with a chuck roast with gravy, onions, and Yukon Gold potatoes, was delicious and satisfying.  I even saw Jalen, who “didn’t want any greens”, going back to the pot for a second generous helping.  I did not say one word. I just smiled to myself.  My turnip greens could stand on their own for a meal, with just some cornbread, onions, and hot sauce, just like was suggested in the picture on the blog.  Hooray!  I had achieved my goals.  I did not have to ask Daddee for help and I will not be embarrassed to set this dish on the sideboard on Easter Sunday.  The only thing I need to worry about is making sure I fix enough.  With only three people, the pot was empty much sooner than I thought it would be.  I’m not sad though; that just means the greens were good, and that my test run turned out to be a winning hypothesis.  On Easter Sunday, I am hopeful that I will hear my dad say, “I like your turnip greens.  They are really good.” 

 Fait accompli!  The little girl in me is smiling.