Braised Collard Greens

My friend, Sandi, gave me this recipe. We had it for supper tonight and it is very good. It came from Cook Right 4 Your Type.

3 T. olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 large bunch fresh collard grens, washed well, tips of stems removed
2 T. soy sauce or tamari sauce
Small amount of water, as needed

Heat oil in a very large skillet or saucepan. Add onion anc cook 5 minutes. Meanwhile, slice colalrds by rolling them into 1 large bunch, then butting across the leaves in 1-inch intervals. Wash them and with water on their leaves, add all the collards to the pot at once, cover and reduce heat. After 5 minutes, turn the collards so the wilted greens are on top. Add soy sauce or tamari, if using, and replace cover. Cook another 40 minutes, turning collards occasionally to make sure they cook evenly. Add a tablespoon or two of water at a time, as needed. Unlike other greens, collards are tastier if allowed to cook longer.

Serves 4

Sandi's Modifications and a few of my own:

>>We both used a large bag of collard greens and pulled out the large stems.

>>Put in a bit of minced garlic with the onion. (Garlic in a jar works just fine.)

>>Like a good southern girl, Sandi added the collards in small batches, turning after each addition. I rinsed the collards off in a large colander and dumped them all in at once. It does require a very large skillet.

>>Sandi uses up to 1/4 c. soy sauce (low sodium) for a plastic bag of greens. I goofed and bought regular soy sauce and used 3 T. They were a bit salty but both of us agreed, good regardless.

>>Sandi's note: "And for crying out loud, any GRITS (that's Girls Raised in the South (-;) knows it takes longer than 40 minutes!" Actually, I didn't find that it did but I also cooked them on higher heat until they stuck. In a Calphelon skillet and adding water, that wasn't a problem. It only helped to caramelize the onions a little more.

>>At the end, add about 1/2 t. sugar (raw is great!) and some red pepper in some form or other. (We've got every variety so, I threw in some flakes.) Yum!

Happy Birthday to me - yesterday

My, oh, my... how did I ever get to this date? The watch date shows that I have made it another decade by 14 minutes! Well, I certainly don't feel any older in my mind and not much in my body. Though, occasionally my mind tends to write checks that my body can't cash. Sometimes, it happens when it's been a while since I did a particular thing (like paint cabinets) and remember suddenly that I was much younger when I did that before. It was a pleasant day overall with calls, cards, emails and gifts from family and friends. Thank you all for a lovely day.

Elegantly Simple Triangle Shawl Option

Donna asked to see optional ways in which the Elegantly Simple Triangle Shawl can be worn. This view is shown with the point used as a collar. It is particularly effective with a larger shawl. The model shown here was knitted in Bird of Paradise Cloud 9 available in a kit.



Worn as an accessory in both of these views. Really, you can wear this shawl in a multitude of ways.

Finished Weaving Project

This is a warp I painted for the fun of it in Gulf Breeze Sunrise. The warp yarn is Serenity; the weft is 5/2 perle cotton in Dark Turquoise. I sett it at 12 epi for plain weave as 5/2 cotton is a little finer than Serenity. This definitely would work on a rigid heddle. Just don't overbeat or sett at 10 epi and use 3/2 perle for weft as 3/2 is about the same grist as Serenity. I used the warp as a demonstration of warping a loom back-to-front on my website.

Finished Knitted Project

Well, actually, the blocking was finished a while back but I am just now getting around to a photograph. (Anybody got a round tuit?) This is the shawl I knitted during the Elegantly Simple Triangle Shawl Knitalong. The yarn is some of my hand painted 8/2 Tencel in the Blue Bayou colorway. (Yes, I hope to get "a-round-tu" dyeing it soon.) I only used about 3 ounces of yarn. If I were a faster knitter, I think I would see how large I could make it. This one is a good size for me and in the summer, I think it will be nice worn with the tip of the triangle used as a collar and tied bolero-style. Love those empire waists!

Look what arrived today

I've been waiting a couple of weeks on these new colors of Kollage Luscious cotton sock yarn. It's no surprise that I recognized the sound of the Fed Ex truck! These colors were dyed to coordinate and will be lovely in HeartStrings Peek-A-Boo Flowery Lace Anklets.

Peacock Iridescence

Mary Hunt asked if I would consider adding Peacock Iridescence as a yarn rather than limiting availability to painted warps. This is the result. Thanks for a super idea, Mary!

New Colorway

This is the colorway I dyed last week and the name of it is Sunrise Serenade. It's not dry just yet but will be ready once it dries and Libba works her magic to it by twisting and adding a label. She is the greatest and I don't know what I would do without her help.