So, kale me maybe

Once upon a time, kale was only known as two things.  Decorative "cabbage-y" things for the Fall garden and the frilly, yet rigid garnish on the dinner plate.  Oh sure, the vegetarians have been consuming this stuff by the truckload all these years, but who ever paid attention to that?  Until the late 80s, John Q. Public viewed vegetarians as hemp-smoking, free-loving, dashiki-wearing weirdos.  

Finally, they broke that mold and emerged into "mainstream America" as health-conscious, animal-friendly, normal people.  (I know my veg friends are getting a kick out of this!) So, then, the rest of the world started paying attention.  "Hey, what do they know that we don't?"  At first, people thought they only ate side dishes.  Some thought there's no way they could keep it up...what about protein? But as more attention and seriousness was paid to our veggie-loving brethren  (and sistren? is that a word?) we began to learn a lot about nutrition and how "we carnivores" could adapt.

Which brings me back to that kale that was tucked in under your baked potato to brighten up your plate.  Kale is really, really, seriously, majorly, hugely good for you.  I'll skip ahead in my history lesson (yeah, I'm a real scholar here!) to where kale is today. Two words:  IT'S EVERYWHERE. But, there's a trick to kale.  I still think it's too rigid to eat raw, although I know people do it.  So, the trick is to cook it correctly.  I've cooked it before and have gotten a thumbs down from Neil.  This caused me to abandon the idea for awhile then I tried again.  This time I went for kale chips.  I kept hearing everyone on Facebook and Pinterest raving about them and how their kids love them. Turns out, I'm the only one who likes them.  Good thing though, because I've learned that I can mow through an entire cookie sheet full of them.  I'm the lone kale eater.  Well, I was...

I came across a Weight Watchers recipe that piqued my interest.  

It had bacon.  It had cannellini beans. It had onions. So many elements used Chez Akre. And, it had bacon.  Did I mention that?

 

 <<Ok, despite all I had to say earlier about vegetarianism, clearly, I'm not a vegetarian.  

I am an admitted baconivore.>> 

In a nutshell, this recipe involves cooking bacon (see photo above for reference.) Crumble it and set it aside. Then, saute some crushed red pepper and garlic in the bacon grease for about 30 seconds and add chopped onion. Cook until the onions soften then add your kale and cook until it starts to wilt.  Add some chicken broth, cover & simmer until the kale is tender.  Add cannellini and cook until liquid evaporates.  Finish it off with some salt, a little sugar and balsamic vinegar.  Sprinkle with bacon and serve it up.  

I loved it.  The kale was cooked well and was nicely tender. This is where I've fallen short in the past.  Another way I know this was successful?  Neil actually said, "The kale is good."  This was meaningful because last time the subject came up, he flatly stated that he just doesn't like kale. Unfortunately, the Vivver is going through an intermittent phase of deciding in advance that she's not going to like something, so this kale dish never really got a fair shake from her. 

Going back to my vegetarian friends, obviously, this dish can be made without bacon and would be (almost) as good.  I really loved it because I'm all about dark, leafy greens and incorporating more of them into my family's diet.  The beans added some heartiness and protein, of course.  And, well, then there's the bacon.  Need I say more??

Lowcountry Backyard

Yeah, so everybody's heard of The Masters, right?  Even if you think golf is one of the most hypnotic, sleeper spectator sports of all time, you've heard of it.  Well, after the Masters comes The Heritage at Hilton Head.  Since I only became remotely interested in golf at the ripe old age of 31, it goes without saying that I've never been to The Heritage.  Until now.

My friend Kelley, had tickets but was unable to use them, so she offered them to me.  I thought, "Huh, I've always heard it's really fun.  Why shouldn't we go?"  So, I accepted her offer.  Good move on my part...not only did we have tickets to Saturday's play but we also had an invitation to a Hospitality Suite.  N.I.C.E.

After a fun day of wine, awesome pulled pork, cruising about the links and Harbour Town, running into friends from high school and watching said friends play the "dollar on the ground attached to fishing line" trick, it was time for us to head home.  But, first, we needed to fuel up.  And the car too.  I had consulted my buddy, Urbanspoon, and the website for The Heritage and came across a restaurant I wanted to seek out before leaving the island. The Lowcountry Backyard.

I am so glad we followed our noses.  First, this place is right off the traffic circle at Sea Pines, so it was a cinch to find. As their website tells you to come early, we were in good shape since around 4:30 we were looking for a substantial "snack" before our drive back home.  Like a couple of nerds, we were standing outside when they unlocked the door, with our Heritage tickets hanging from our shirts. To be exact, however, there was actually another couple there before us, so we didn't have to be the mega-geeks seated first!

Here's the low-down. We both flipped our lids over this little place.  It's a small dining room and a backyard dining area.  This day was chilly, so they didn't even bother asking us if we wanted to be outside...they knew we'd say no.   The dining room is charming and intimate. I loved the fact that the ceiling has those little pin-hole fiber optic lights in it.  You know, the ones that subtly change color. It has a very close and comfy feel to it like you're in the dining room of a friend. Right off, we were greeted by the most fabu waitress we've had in awhile.  She's quite beautiful, actually.

Amy. Best Waitress Ever!

First off, they make fried green tomatoes here.  I am a sucker for fried greens.  Funny thing is, until the movie Fried Green Tomatoes I'd never even heard of this.  People say and think it's so Southern, but in my South, this was not a frequent flyer on our menus. But after that movie, they started showing up everywhere. I think it was Rockaways that introduced them to me.  Things haven't been the same since! So, we ordered the fried green tomato appetizer to share.  It came as a stack of tomatoes with homemade sweet pickles.  The tomatoes were perfect and were drizzled with homemade Ranch dressing but those pickles were pretty incredible too! The slices were thick enough to allow the tartness of the tomato really come through. Fried well too, no excess grease.

Super stack of fried green tomatoes

 
I am not a meatloaf eater.  My mom hates meatloaf, therefore, my family never had meatloaf. I've grown curious about it as I've aged, but I've always concluded that my mom knew what she was talking about.  It's a brick of meat. The meatloaf of this restaurant is described as "potato chip meatloaf."  I thought it was interesting that some of the reviews actually said stupid stuff like "I really couldn't appreciate the potato chips." Really?  Really?  Who are these people?  Have you ever been able to "appreciate" the torn up bread or bread crumbs in other meatloaves?  Here's a newsflash...you shouldn't taste bread or potato chips or panko or whatever binder is used.  And here's something else you should know...by using potato instead of bread, these clever folks have made this dish gluten-free, which we know is necessary for some and "all the rage" for others.

Neil ordered the meatloaf sandwich on flat bread with a side of grits.  I know, I know. Odd combo, but that's how my man rolls.  This meatloaf is a game-changer.  From the moment the plate hit the table, I was intrigued.  It didn't look like meat-brick.  Not at all.  It had sauteed onions, beautiful flatbread, but what really caught my attention was that there was actually JUICE coming out of the meat.  What?? Meat bricks don't have any moisture, right? Well, this is the true exception. The grits are magnificent.  Definitely cooked with cream; perfect consistency.

The meatloaf sandwich and incredible grits

 On to my plate...I chose the shrimp burger. Now this is a dish that first showed up around here back in the early 80's.  It was at the Shrimp Shack on St. Helena Island. Maybe it's because childhood memories run deep, but to this day, I think the Shrimp Shack still is the King Daddy of shrimp burgers.  However, the Lowcountry Backyard is a very close second.  The Backyard's burger was nicely cooked. I believe theirs is pan-fried and like the tomatoes, not greasy at all.  It was served, as you can see, with a beautiful bright red tomato and a crisp romaine leaf.

Shrimp Burger

I selected the macaroni salad as my side, since I'd read so much about it.  I thought it was quite good because even though it's a mayo-based pasta salad, it wasn't swimming in mayonnaise.  And, some more of those yummy homemade pickles. 

Neil and I were simply delighted with this place. The food is really good, the atmosphere is comfortable and inviting and it's not an over-priced seafood-slinging tourist magnet.  Our server was very friendly and open to our questions.  She knows the menu and made our experience A+.  I'll tell ya this...I'm ordering that meatloaf for myself next time.  Wow.  I never, ever, ever expected to hear myself say that.  This should tell you how flippin' good the stuff is.  And, if you expect or want to taste potato chips, you're just going to have to get a side of chips.  
 

 

Dining al Fresco out of a Brown Box

Ok, I'm not IN a brown box.  But, I am in love with a brown box.  This past Saturday was my 2nd delivery from BrownBoxVeggies.  I am their new biggest fan. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the "Veggie Girls" stock up a big box of fruits and veggies to deliver on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of the month.  They reach out to as many local farms as possible to grab what's fresh and being harvested right now.  Then, they pack the box FULL of what they've found and sell it to people like us for only $22!  I couldn't duplicate what I received for $22 in a grocery store and the produce was fresher and didn't go bad on me before I could use it all.

My first box was so beautiful, I almost cried when I opened it.  Even my little one got excited helping me unpack.
  

OMG!  Look at this!

This box contained broccoli, parsley, tomatoes, spinach, kale, Carolina Sweet onions, squash, zucchini, pears, oranges, potatoes and asparagus.  A true cornucopia.  We used every bit of it with delight.  So, this past Saturday was my 2nd go-round.  Sorry that I didn't take a photo of Box #2...we dove in and never looked back!  This time we received Carolina Sweets, cabbage, collards, oranges, grapefruit, tomatoes, radishes, Romaine, corn, strawberries, apples and dill.  Lots and lots of dill.  I'm talkin' about two humogous bunches each about 3" around and 12" long.  My head is reeling trying to figure out what to do with all of it.  This week might be the week I dive in and try to make my own pickles.

But, first, dinner.  Of course, when you think of dill, one of the first ideas you have is salmon.  Since my daughter is eating salmon (happily) I'm cooking it every chance I get.  I whipped up this dinner and we ate al Fresco on the patio.  NOW, my title makes some sense, huh?  Salmon with dill sauce, sauteed pea pods, and yellow rice.

Here's what I did.  I salt and peppered two 6oz. salmon fillets (skinless).  I placed them on foil and topped each with some slices of Carolina Sweet onions and lemons and wrapped up the foil tightly to enclose them.  I baked them for about 20 minutes or so at 350°.  While that was happening, I made this sauce:

2 Tbs light mayo
2 Tbs sour cream
1 Tbs white wine
1 1/2 tsp capers
1 tsp finely chopped Carolina Sweet onion
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp horseradish
1 Tbs fresh dill, chopped
1/4 tsp garlic salt
pepper   
 

Then, we just drizzled the sauce over our salmon and devoured it!  I'm a sucker for anything pickled, so I think I'll actually add a few more capers next time.  I have actually eaten capers out of the jar with a spoon before.  (The first step is admitting it, right?) Thank you Veggie Girls for my jam packed boxes of loveliness.  And, you may be the reason that I finally embark on this pickle making project.  The idea of canning is a little intimidating, but I can't let all this dill go to waste! If any of you need some dill, I can hook you up.