Callaloo and Crab

One summer when I was about fourteen there was an illegal outdoor market that sprung up on the corner of Snyder and Brooklyn Avenues in BK.  My family and I must have made it out there at least three times a week for any variety of fruits and prepared foods.  

Among the most memorable street delicacies that summer were Corn Soup and Callaloo & Crab.  At the time neither really interested me, especially since my childhood memories of Callaloo were painful at best.  Not sure what possessed Cheryl to try to force me to eat the slimy okra mush when I was arguably the pickiest eater as a child.  "Mix it with rice" she would say, how about YOU mix it with rice on YOUR plate!!

Moving on... I've since come to the conclusion that Callaloo can't be all that bad since I'm pretty sure that summer I witness my mother and cousin Precious (that's not her name) huddled over one large Styrofoam cup of Callaloo & Crab like it was their last meal.  Crunching and cracking as I wondered what the big deal was.

Needless to say, I can now appreciate their constant craving of this dish.  The crab adds such a fragrant salt to the greens, and with a little pepper, Mmmmm!!

Glad I made extra!

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Something Healthy, ...Finally

Herb Chicken Pasta

I've been promising to post something healthy, healthier at least LOL.  It's not that I don't cook healthy usually, its just more fun cooking with butter and sugar ya know?!

Anyway this meal was pretty easy to prepare, I would have grilled the chicken (rosemary marinated) but it was kinda cloudy, didn't want to get stuck in the rain so I sauteed.

Then I used whole grain this spaghetti and any veggies I had on hand which happened to be red peppers, spinach and green beans.  Once the chicken cooked I mixed the veggies in with the cooked pasta just to get them partially cooked, wanted them to stay crisp.

For sauce I added Italian herbs, lemon juice, white wine, and a little chicken broth, salt and pepper to taste.

I love one-dish meals like this, very quick and simple, chicken can be omitted altogether or replaced with shrimp.  Its very light, I made a salad with it also.

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Potato & Spinach Croquettes

Sooo.… Kerr bear told me about some yummy staten island croquettes and they're all I could think about. So I tested a recipe on allrecipes.com. Not bad but I want my fried food to be more salty.