Battling with collards

Collards, let's talk. You're healthy. You lower cholesterol, prevent cancer, and fill me up with loads of vitamins. You're even cheap, to boot.  I *really* want to like you. But you're bitter. Oh, so bitter. Maybe you didn't get hugged enough as a child.

I've tried them a million ways, grudgingly choking them down each time, but I think I might have found a keeper with this recipe. The acidity of the tomatoes and the flavor from the spicing helps mask the bitterness of the collards. Only taking about 30 minutes to make, this can easily be thrown into the weekday rotation of 'easy to whip up when you're feeling whipped' meals.

Collards with lentils, tomatoes, and Indian spices

Adapted from Whole Foods, Serves 4

Ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 heaping tablespoon garam masala
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes
1 bunch collard greens, thick stems removed and leaves sliced into 1-inch-thick ribbons
1 cup lentils

Directions
Bring 1/2 cup water to a simmer in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook 5 minutes or until onion is translucent. Stir in garam masala and cook 1 minute. Add tomatoes and their juices with 1 cup water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in collards. Cover and simmer 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine lentils and 2 cups water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook about 20 minutes or until lentils are tender (green lentils will take longer than red). Stir lentils into skillet with collards and serve.

Avocado and Black Bean...what?

If you thought nothing in this world could be more frustrating than an unripe avocado, try having TWO of those stubborn guys. Like insolent little children, they just sat on the counter in their little green jackets, hard as could be. Normally, I might be a little more patient, willing to coax them along. But I am heading out of town in 24 hours, so it came down to the wire.

Enter: creative uses for avocado.  I’ve used avocado in a quick bread before, but when I saw this recipe, the promise of fudgy, chocolatey goodness (without butter or oil!) won me over. I am a girl, after all.

The word on the reviews, which I am echoing, is that these brownies taste worlds better once they have had a chance to sit and cool, ideally overnight.  Naturally, for the sake of scientific integrity, I had to do taste tests along the way. Right after they came out of the oven, I was underwhelmed. After they’ve chilled all evening, delicious! I’ll have to report back on the “day after” taste test tomorrow.

Temporary verdict: they don't satisfy the same cravings as the most decadent of brownies, but for a heart-healthy way to get your chocolate fix, these are pretty damn good.

Now, it’s time for me to get my little ducks in a row for my impending “lovefest trip”. First stop is in Maryland to celebrate my grandparents’ 70th wedding anniversary. That’s a long time, isn’t it?! After that, I’m going to hop, skip, and jump down to North Carolina for my friends’ wedding. The cup runneth over.

No mixing!

Starting to look like brownies

Brownie success!  Now if only I could learn to operate a camera....

Black Bean & Avocado Brownies
Adapted from Cara’s Cravings

Ingredients:
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 eggs
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 ripe avocado
6 tbsp cocoa powder
pinch of salt
1 heaping tsp vanilla
6 tbsp white sugar
2 tsp instant coffee

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.
Grease an 8×8 pan.
Combine the beans, egg, syrup and avocado in the food processor.  Blend until completely smooth.  Add the remaining ingredients and continue to blend until fully combined, scraping once or twice.  Spread batter into pan and bake 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool completely, preferably overnight.  Cut and serve.