Melon, cottage cheese, and Chinese five spice
(This recipe works with any fruit canned or fresh.)
Melon (any type; make sure it’s ripe; if you’re not sure, leave it on the counter for a day or two.)
Cottage cheese (I prefer small curd, 1% milk fat)
Chinese five spice or cinnamon
Cut melon into bite-sized chunks and divide chunks among individual-sized serving bowls (one per person). Spoon on a dollup or two of cottage cheese as desired. Sprinkle on 1/8 tsp. Chinese five spice or cinnamon or to taste. Serve.
Grilled kale
Kale leaves (washed, dried, and left whole; 2 or 3 per person)
Olive oil (or olive oil cooking spray)
Kosher salt
Wash and dry kale leaves beforehand leave them whole. The stems will help you flip the leaves on the grill. Preheat the grill to medium or medium-high.
Brush each leaf with a thin coat of olive oil on both sides or spray with the olive oil cooking spray. Place the leaves on the grill in a single layer. Cover or close the grill for about a minute, open it up, flip the leaves, and, leaving the cover off, watch as the edges just start to turn brown and crispy. Remove before they turn black. Once all the leaves are grilled, use your tongs to hold the stalk as you take a knife to cut and remove the inner stem and cut the leaves into bite-sized pieces and place them in a serving bowl. Or leave the leaves whole and put them in a bowl and serve with tongs. Sprinkle each leaf with a very few grains of kosher salt (a little goes a very long way).
Suggested variations after cooking:
o Sprinkle with pepper flakes or dry rub.
o Sprinkle with seasoned or smoked salt.
o Sprinkle with a flavored vinegar and serve as a warm salad.
o Use the grilled kale as a bed for kabobs, grilled fish or potato salad.
This recipe works amazingly well.
Smokehouse Kale
2 slices bacon, sliced crosswise into 3/8-inch-wide strips
One medium onion thinly sliced
One bunch kale (about 12 leaves)
½ – ¾ cup chicken stock
A pinch kosher salt
1/16 tsp ground Chipotle or ½ tsp chili powder
½ tsp or more of Liquid Smoke (mandatory; this is the secret ingredient)
Sauté bacon over low heat in sauce pan until it starts to brown. Then add sliced onion and sauté stirring occasionally until onion is translucent. In the meantime, cut the stem out of each kale leaf by folding each leaf in half at the stem and cutting all the way through along the leaf side of the stem. Then stack the still-folded-and-now-stemless leaves and cut into 1-inch pieces, cutting all the way through all leaves both horizontally and vertically. Add kale to the onions and bacon and add ½ cup of the chicken stock. Simmer for 30-40 minutes until the kale is tender (it takes longer than you think), addming more stock if necessary and seasoning to taste starting with a miniscule amount of ground Chipotle (if using) and a small pinch of salt. Kale is easily oversalted. Add enough Liquid Smoke to flavor the kale; it takes more than you think because it smells smokier sooner than it tastes smokey.