Chops, Cauliflower and Greens

On Sunday, we wanted to make a somewhat healthy meal for dinner, and we needed to use up a HUGE half head of cauliflower from the CSA box. We opted for pork chops, mashed cauliflower and sauteed mustard greens and kale (also from the CSA).

For the pork chops, we haven't made them in so long I wasn't sure what to do. So I search www.allrecipes.com for a pan-fried pork chop recipe and found this one for coriander and cumin rubbed pork chops. The recipe was really easy and the flavor was great--it wasn't too overpowering, but just enough. One difference, though, is that the chops took much longer to cook than the five minutes a side the recipe indicates.

For the cauliflower, I found a recipe in my Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health cookbook. It was super easy, but, again, took longer than the recipe indicates since there was SO much cauliflower (and I didn't even use the entire half a head!). Here's the recipe:

Mashed Cauliflower with Shallots

-1 head of cauliflower, trimmed and chopped

-2 tbs. olive oil

-1/4 cup minced shallots

-2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

-1/2 teas. salt

-1/4 teas. ground black pepper

-1/2 cup finely chopped scallions

-1/4 cup minced fresh parsley (I skipped this)

-grated Parmesan, asiago or sharp cheddar (I used shredded Parmesan)

Steam the cauliflower until very tender, about 7 minutes. Put in a shallow bowl and set aside.

Warm the oil in a small skillet on medium-high heat and saute the shallots, garlic, salt and pepper until the shallots have softened. Add to the bowl of cauliflower and mash with a potato masher. Stir in the scallions and parsley. Stir in grated cheese if desired.

I really liked it, but, then again, I like cauliflower. I also thought the green onion flavor really stood out. Nate thought it was still very cauliflower tasting.

For the mustard greens and kale, I sliced and chopped the greens pretty thin (cutting part of my finger nail off in the process--oops!) and sauteed them in a skillet with a bit of water, olive oil and some garlic. (I may have used some onions too--I can't remember now!). It was good. It had cooked for quite a while since I had started the greens first. Nate thought it tasted better than the greens we've made in the past.

All in all, it was a good, filling meal!