Fried Rice

So all those veggies that were left over from your raw veggie and dip plate at your Memorial Day cookout/ pool fiesta, they have a place to go. Its called a screaming hot frying pan. And that, along with some culinary magic, will turn them into fried rice. You Need:

2 cups diced raw veggies. Anything goes here, brocolli, peppers, cellery, cauliflower, etc.

1 cup rice

3 tablespoons the asian sauce of your choice. I used pad thai sauce, but you can use peanut sauce or simply soy sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 eggs

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, pour in the rice, turn off the heat, and cover. While the rice is cooking, find a large skillet and put it on the stove. (If you have a wok, use that.) Dump the veggies into the skillet, along with the sauce and the vegetable oil. Put the stove on high, and stir fry the veggies until they are al dente, almost done. When the rice is complete, scoop it into the veggie skillet on high heat. Then crack the eggs into the skillet. Stir everybody around until the egg is cooked and each grain of rice is coated in saucy goodness. Not only did you just make a delicious meal, side, or snack, you saved homeless vegetables from going to waste. Go you!

Is This Worth It?

You've seen them before, the vegetable appetizer platters, with the chopped raw peppers and carrots arranged around a bowl of ranch. They taste good, look nice, and can be procured from any caterer or supermarket produce aisle. However, these platters are a huge waste of money. Think about it, one package of celery, one head of broccoli, one head of cauliflower, a bag of baby carrots, one cucumber, one bell pepper and one box of grape tomatoes does not collectivity cost $36 dollars, but thats how much these platters cost. Now you may say, "oh no i'm waisting my money because chopping veggies involves effort and time, both things I do not have." Well, first of all, i'm embarrassed for you that you do not have the skill to run a knife through a bell pepper. Second of all, it takes little time to chop veggies, and no one said you had to do it all at once. You can chop the carrots and celery the day before, and the broccoli the day of, no one will know the difference. Doing it yourself also allows you to select local and organic produce, both of which are better for the environment than conventional produce. So to conclude this lesson, chop your own vegetable platter, its better for your wallet and better for the earth.

Kale Tomato Soup

-2 bunches kale

- 1 bunch collards

- 1 small fennel

- 28 oz can of peeled tomatoes

- 14.5 oz can of petite diced tomatoes

1 big box vegetable stock

Empty cans of tomatoes into a big soup pot. Put on a low heat. First, rinse off the collards and rip them up into lettuce sized bites. Throw them in the pot. Then rinse off the kale and rip it up as well. Add a little bit of heat to the pot (my stove is on a 1-7 scale, 7 being high, put it at about a 4) then chop up the fennel into little chunks, reminiscent of cubed cheese. Add them to the pot and pump up the heat. The collards and kale will cook down a bit. When they cook down, add the spices you are feeling to the pot ( I did paprika, cayenne and black pepper) but whatever you want works. It takes about 15 mins or so for the kale to cook down. Then put in a bowl, grab a big spoon, and try not to burn your mouth!