This broccoli salad, twice over, could be just the trick for using up almost any leftovers you might have in your refrigerator/freezer, and the adventuresome could even fry up very lightly in a pan this veggie, and maybe add some cauliflower for the green and light-white to get more traditional, that remains behind with various types of breading and zesty Asian sauce — topped with melted cheese of many sorts? — to be a mocktail of bar comfort food. (Use lots of the many types of veggie oil in the pan, and be careful not to over-sear the crowns, is that redundant?) Thus it becomes your own recipe, although not as proprietary as BWW, so you can share it with your friends. The best and cheapest comfort food is a subject that’s on my to-do list to delve into, and it may end up being a bucket list, as there are so many things ahead of it on my Must Publish Soon rankings.
Who among you knew that broccoli could be so bountiful? (We knew it is healthy). Great for vegetarians, and if they skimp on the sauces, their time will not come as soon as when my bucket list is flagged, by myself, as urgent.
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So here goes. Another list, this time on broccoli at its best. I told the woman behind the deli counter that I’d try to get around to posting this. She was “B” curious.
I advise starting with two different but closely related deli items at Dick’s Market. Broccoli and bacon salad, and cheesy broccoli pasta. Mix the two, half and half, and you have the start of a party. And add in on your own, any of those makings that you happen to have around your kitchen.
And buy more broccoli, or add what’s in the crisper. And add more in as you go about eating it, filling the gap on the side of the bowl caused by what wound up in your stomach, and bringing back freshness. You can get a broccoli crown for under two bucks a pound when on special at places like Dick’s.
Add in any of the following: Sweet peas or whole pea pods sliced smaller, chopped bell peppers, onions, celery, any white meat or ham, and lesser amounts of (various?) minced hot peppers starting with the standard green, brussels sprouts, spinach, raisins … Some of that pepper juice could be sprinkled on top, and/or be part of a marinade for grilled chicken breast, any form of horseradish and even used as a drizzle that sizzles, sour cream and also mayo if you must. And just a bit of cole slaw dressing and the cabbage greens and purples that make it up. A touch of ranch, but leave it at that amount. It can be served cold (a bit of lettuce as a bed?) although you may want to boil the broccoli until just a bit tender. That goes for small amounts of rice also as an underlay.
One other tip of homespun wisdom: Do you find that its very hard to cut celery into pieces, without the strings of it dragging along behind and not severed? Try using not a knife a good scissors to avoid such residue, just cut slowly so not to wear out the blades. And if the crown is used up, I make use of the upper part of the broccoli stem, just don’t go too far down, but you can cut it short wherever you want, to your taste. The texture is a bit rubbery but hard, so when slicing you might invoke again, your scissors, taking a bit of broccoli in small pieces kitty-corner off the side.