Cooking with vegetables

As I blogged about a couple weeks ago and as I will continue to blog about, I've been getting into vegetables lately. As I mentioned in that first blog entry, there was a time when I wouldn't get anywhere near a vegetable, much less get into one.

So when I took a look at everything I purchased at the grocery store today:



I couldn't help but think to myself, but in all caps, "What the fuck?"

Sorry about the f-bomb. I considered creating two versions of this entry; one PG and one f-bomb laden. Because when I think about these changes I'm witnessing in myself, it makes me want to drop a bunch of them. One after the next. Because of all the f-bombing things I ever thought I'd be f-bombing cooking, and then eating, it sure the f-bomb wasn't anything that looks like this:



That is Garbanzos Kon Spinaka, Sephardic Spinach with Chick-Peas from Greece, that I found in my copy of The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook by Nancy Harmon Jenkins. The recipe involves spinach, onions, chick-peas, dill, and lemon juice. Served over steamed white rice, the dish is pretty good. But I must say, the more rice, the better. Of the recipes that I've tried in this cookbook so far, about half have come up on the side of too bland. This is one of them. I'm still learning what magic I can create with spices to improve blander dishes.

Setbacks like the odd bland dish don't discourage me. There are plenty more vegetarian dishes to taste, and I've already found some winners that I'll be cooking again. Some aren't strictly vegetarian, either; my goal is not actually to remove meat from my diet. The goal is just to seriously UP the veggies. And I've found that the more front-and-center vegetables are in the dishes I prepare, the more I learn to appreciate them. A filet mignon with a side of green beans just does not do the trick. Though it is tasty. Much tastier than Garbanzos Kon Spinaka.