Debbie Meyer Green Bags for Long Lasting Fruits & Veggies

With summer produce here and our local co-op in full swing (http://www.athens.locallygrown.net/), I was desperate for a way to make my beautiful fruits and vegetables last longer. I'd seen Debbie Meyer's Green Bags on TV (http://www.cakecutter.com/greenbags.html), and on a recent visit to Alabama, my mom mentioned them. I don't usually order things from TV, but I was considering trying these out when, as luck would have it, I found them in the Kroger produce department. The bags supposedly contain a natural mineral that absorbs the ripening gas that fruits and veggies produce. The absorption of the gas then is supposed to make the fruits and veggies stay fresh longer. The bags at Kroger are $9.99 for a box of 20 and each bag can be re-used 7-8 times. So far, I really like them. They're easy to use and seem to be working. I think they are definitely worth trying if you find yourself with lots of fruits and veggies that you don't want to freeze or can. I'll keep you posted as time goes on. If you try them out, email us and share your experience with Debbie Meyer's Green Bags - thesoutherndish@gmail.com (and no, the Southern Dish receives no compensation for products we recommend. They are just things we like!)

Hormone-free Dairy Products

I love rich, creamy dairy products: butter, cheese, sour cream...yum! Lately, many of us cooks, foodies, and eaters of all sorts have had concerns about the levels of bovine growth hormone in our dairy products. The long and short of it is that some dairy farms have traditionally shot up their dairy cows with synthetic hormones to make the cows grow faster and produce more milk sooner. Well, guess what? Not that I ever thought of it until recently, but those hormones get into the dairy products and then get into our bodies and may affect our and our children's growth and development. But I just can't stop eating all of my favorites, so I wanted to tell you all about a few products that I'm aware of that claim to be hormone free. I'm not making any promises here, folks, but these products are self-reported hormone free and are in most major supermarkets:

Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream (yay!)
Horizon Organic
Kraft 2 % cheese (who'd have thunk?)
Organic Valley
Stoneyfield Farms

For more hormone-free dairy products in your area, go to http://www.sustainabletable.org/shop/dairymap/ and click on your state! Happy eating!

A Southern Dish Favorite: Xocolatl Gourmet Chocolates

How do I love thee? Oh, Chocolate, let me count the ways! I love you milk, dark, with nuts, in bars, to drink...Well, you get the point! And I have found a new favorite gourmet chocolate shop in my very own former hometown, Macon, Ga. The name of this divine chocolatier is Xocolatl Gourmet. Check out the website at http://www.xocolatlgourmet.com/. Have you seen the move Chocolat? This is a real-life version. I was lucky enough to receive a gift box from Xocolatl Gourmet for Christmas. I opened it to find a decadent mix of flavorful dark chocolate as luxuriously wrapped bars, whimsical frogs, and sweet-salty clusters with roasted pistachios and dried fruits. For your next special treat for yourself or as a gift, remember Xocolatl Gourmet...they'll also whip up special creations for events, too. Xocolatl Gourmet is definitely a Southern Dish fave!

Greens and Pot Liquor

Mary Mac's Tea Room (http://www.marymacs.com/) in Atlanta is one of my favorite Southern restaurants. The food is wonderful, the prices are reasonable, and the staff is gracious. One of the restaurant's traditions is to serve first-time guests a piece of piping-hot cornbread with a cup of pot liquor. Most Southern-food lovers are familiar with the term, but for those who aren't, pot liquor is the savory broth that results from cooking greens Southern style. Next time you're near Atlanta stop by Mary Macs and try some for yourself. Until then, try cooking up a pot of greens in your kitchen.

Whether your favorite is kale, collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, or, my personal favorite, a mixture of several kinds, adding a steaming bowl of greens can only improve a meal. They are filled with vitamin K and iron, so if you keep the sodium and fat low, they are good for you, too. Speaking of sodium and fat, I'm going to give you two ways to cook them. The first is my way, adapted from my grandmother, and has a bit less sodium and unhealthy fat. The second way I'll post is the I-don't-care-about-my-arteries-or-blood-pressure old-fashioned approach. Frankly, my taste buds actually prefer the healthier method. And don't forget the cornbread (see my earlier Favorite Cornbread post. The Mexican Cornbread is my favorite with greens!) and Pepper Sauce (post coming soon!). Do you have a favorite way to cook your greens? If so, send us an email or post a comment.

Greens, Southern Style

1/4 c. butter or buttery spread such as Smart Balance, in chunks
1/2 lb of greens, washed and sorted with the toughest stems trimmed out
1 can low sodium chicken broth or your own homemade stock
water

In a medium to large stock pot, heat the fat until it melts over medium-high heat. Drop a large handful of greens into the pot. Do not dump all of them in at once. You want to let the greens wilt down until they look like sauteed spinach. This happens fairly quickly; it takes a minute or so. When the ones you put in are wilted, leave them there and add another large handful. Repeat this until all greens are wilted down. You may need to turn the heat down depending on your stove. Stir almost constantly during this process. Scorched greens are very bad. If you notice the bottom of the pot getting dry as you are wilting the greens, add a few tablespoons of broth. You don't want too much liquid at this point, though.

Once all the greens are wilted, add all of the stock, about 1 can per 1/2 lb. of greens. Increase heat to bring to bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour. You'll need to check periodically to make sure you have enough liquid. You don't need to keep the greens covered in liquid but you want enough that you're not in danger of having the pot boil dry. Add water 1/2 c. at a time as needed during the cooking time. Taste the greens after 45 minutes to check the seasoning, if you feel they need more salt, remove the lid and let a bit of the water evaporate. That will increase the salt ratio just using the salt found in the broth. Be sure to leave enough liquid to have some of that good pot liquor with your cornbread.

Traditional Method
Rather than using Smart Balance or butter, use reserved bacon fat to wilt the greens. Or fry pork fat back until you have 3 T. or so of drippings. You can leave the fat back in the pot to flavor the greens. Use the method described above to wilt the greens in the fat. Because the sodium content of the processed meats is so high, I suggest diluting the broth you'll use to simmer the greens or else you may end up with a salty mess. One way to avoid that problem altogether is to use plain water. You might find the greens a tad bland if you do that, though. Homemade stock without added salt is a good option if you're using bacon grease or fat back, but that can turn this simple dish into a time-consuming one. Try a ratio of 1 part store-bought broth to 1 part water if you're flavoring with processed meats. Cook as described above. Enjoy!