Friday, April 8, 2011

Oh, to be the POTUS


If, for some reason, my husband suddenly found himself occupying the Oval office, able to making sweeping changes with a wave of his hand, I have reason to believe he might echo George H. Bush. “I do not like broccoli. And I haven't liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I'm President of the United States and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli.” 

So imagine his disgust as it has become apparent that one of his children's most favorite vegetables is - yeah, broccoli.  "What is wrong with them??"  he moans as the kids happily gobble up second, even third servings of  their beloved green.  "Are you sure they're normal?"  Well - define normal.  It is true that broccoli shows up on a regular basis around here. To his credit, the husband manfully downs his share and has, over the years, put up with my inventive attempts to improve his opinion of this maligned vegetable.  Slowly, he's been coming around.

  Through all my experiments, this is what I've learned: DO NOT OVERCOOK.  Is there anything worse then limp, stinky overcooked broccoli flopping around on the end of your fork?  Steam the broccoli, briefly, and don't mess with it too much.  No smothering it to death.  Just a few simple seasonings with the broccoli left a  bit crisp, and you have an easy, tasty side dish.  This version is a  family favorite. It is so unfussy, yet so flavorful, I like to think that even Bush might have been persuaded.




Lemon-Garlic Broccoli
1 head fresh broccoli divided into florets (or a bag of frozen)
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic,  finely minced (about 1 tsp)
Zest and juice of one lemon
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tsp kosher salt

Method: 
Place broccoli in microwave safe bowl with tightly fitted cover (or use plastic wrap, even though it's not a green thing to do).  Add 1/4 cup of water.  Cook on high for 3-4 minutes until broccoli is crisp/tender.  Meanwhile, in skillet, heat butter and olive oil until butter is melted.  Add garlic and lemon zest.  Cook and stir for about a minute.  Remove from heat.  Stir in lemon juice,  pepper and salt.  Place back over med heat and add steamed broccoli.  Saute just for a minute or until broccoli is combined with butter sauce.  Serve and try to refrain from licking the sauce off your plate.

2 comments:

  1. I love you, Derenda, but I'm not sure that even this recipe will convince me to eat broccoli! Thanks for posting recipes - I can't wait to try some.

    Julie G.

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  2. Just made this dinner for the 1st time this evening. My lil family LOVED it!! Even those who don't really care for broccoli! Thanks for the yummy and healthy recipe!

    Crystal Groff

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