Vegetable Sides Day One

Sunday nights are pretty casual at our house.

I call my mum in Montreal before dinner. Then we sit by the fire and eat a simple meal, usually a stew from the slow cooker.

Last night Larry ate brisket he had cooked in the slow cooker (grass-fed organic beef from Rocky Canyon Farms at the Hollywood Farmers Market) and I ate leftovers. I love leftovers. I put wilted greens (made with collards and beet greens) in the bottom of a small casserole and layered barbecue beans over them. I covered the casserole and reheated it in the oven -- excellent.

We had mashed potatoes too -- apparently potatoes are necessary with brisket.

As the side dish, I cooked broccoli and carrots using a technique I learned years ago when I was eating macrobiotic. Put an inch of water in the bottom of a pan, bring it to a boil, then add the vegetables and let them cook, covered, until done. The heavier vegetables go in the bottom and the lightest on top where they will just steam. When they're cooked, you drain off the small amount of water.

I cut the broccoli florets into large pieces. Then I chopped the tough bottom inch off the broccoli stem, and peeled the remainder down to the tender green part. I cut this in half lengthwise and then into 2-3" lengths. I cut the carrots in 1/2" thick rounds.

I brought an inch of water to boil in a deep pan. I added a little salt and then put the broccoli stems and carrots in to cook, covered, for about 5 minutes. When they were tender on the outside but still tough on the inside (I poked with a slender knife to find out), I added the broccoli florets, covered the pan, and cooked until all was tender. I drained off the water and put the vegetables in a bowl to serve.

Years ago when I first fed Larry broccoli, he asked for lemon pepper to season it. I didn't know what lemon pepper was. Now I put a jar on the table, but he says that farmers market broccoli does not require lemon pepper. It tastes really good all by itself.