Midnight snack

On Christmas night I felt the need for some cleansing greens. I was feeling a little sticky internally -- it's hard to describe the feeling exactly. I am not referring delicately to a digestive problem or anything of that nature, but I could tell that my body needed a big plate of kale. (Actually, I have been CRAVING mustard greens lately -- the baby kind that are nice and spicy, but not too hot and not bitter, but I can't always obtain baby mustard greens. The only place I know to get them regularly is from the Korean couple who have a small organic produce booth at the Union Square Greenmarket on Mondays -- they have several coolers of organic baby greens. But since I hadn't been there in a few weeks, kale from the local grocery store was the next best option. I am always in the mood for kale, unlike swiss chard, for example.)


On Christmas day we had blueberry pancakes (yes, with frozen blueberries - gasp! - so unseasonal), and the most delicious bacon from a local farm. I think blueberry pancakes are so yummy that I don't even put maple syrup on them. For lunch we had nachos (a rare indulgence!) with beans (cooked in bone broth), avocado, tomato, black olives, salsa, and lots of melted cheese and raw sour cream. Delicious!! At dinner we shared 1.5 lbs. of pork spare ribs with my homemade BBQ sauce (recipe forthcoming!) and a baked potato. We also had a little cabernet sauvignon (a very cheap bottle, I will admit) heated for several hours in the crock pot with a cinnamon stick, whole cloves, honey, and slices of pear and orange. I would estimate the alcohol content was reduced to less than 1%, so I wasn't feeling imbalanced from alcohol, but from all the other stuff, probably the excessive amounts of salt and the sugar from the wine (and the lack of vegetables!).

Whatever the reason, the kale really hit the spot. All you have to do is rinse and chop several leaves, steam them until bright green using a steamer basket, top with butter, and enjoy! You may also add a little sea salt if desired.