Corned Beef and cabbage is thought to be a poor man’s meal, but that is not the case if you’re buying your cut of meat at whole foods.  Luckily we had all the other ingredients on hand so it wasn’t too bad splurging on a nice cut of beef.  At the meat counter Mo and I were somehow coerced into buying the biggest slab of corned beef they had to offer.  We had to hurry home to start cooking the 6 pounds of beef so we wouldn’t be eating our meal at midnight.

The weather in the Boston area was beautiful on St Patty’s day so we all took advantage of the much needed sunshine by drinking beers and listening to tunes  on the back porch while the corned beef boiled away.  The hardest part to this meal was peeling the pearl onions, besides that this was one of the easiest dinners I’ve made to feed a crowd of about 10.  We followed this recipe and used cabbage, carrots, pearl onions and potatoes as our vegetables.  As if 6 pounds of beef and a mountain of root vegetables weren’t enough food, we made a side of braised turnips and a giant green salad.

Mo Taking out the Beef

The corned beef came out delicious- i was excited to see that it was a normal beef color and not that bright pink shade common among the cuts that are pre-packaged and jacked up with preservatives.

Matt loading up on veggies

After polishing off all the beef and root veggies we found ourselves entering a food coma.  To fight off our feelings of lethargy, we mixed up some whiskey and baileys shooters which gave us much needed energy and filled the void of not making a dessert.

My new Food and Wine Magazine had some yummy looking cabbage recipes, one of which stood out in my eyes so I brought my mag, a head of cabbage and some local granny smiths down to visit my two foodie friends in Providence.  After some catching up with a few drinks and a stroll around India Point Park, we headed to the kitchen to prepare this delicious fall meal.

Pan Roasted Pork Chops with Creamy Cabbage and Apples
Of course we made some alterations to this recipe.  First of all we didn’t plan ahead enough to marinate the chops overnight so we compensated by making a sauce out of the pan drippings, mustard, beer and herbs to drizzle over.  We also substituted rosemary for thyme because it was readily available but either herb would be delicious, as long as its fresh.  The final alteration was that we omitted most of the cream and sauteed the cabbage and apples in beer and cider vinegar- i would definitely recommend this approach.   In the end I’m sure the F&W recipe is delicious as is but sometimes you just have to improvise with available ingredients.

My Coworker also shared a yummy cabbage recipe I can’t wait to use as a side on my next nacho/burrito night.  It would even be tasty in a fish taco!
Ingredients:
lime juice, minced garlic, cilantro, olive oil, salt, pepper and  shredded cabbage

Combine all ingredients and season to taste- the longer you let sit the more the flavors can merry.  If you like it a little spicy add some jalapenos.

Fall Salad with Gorgonzola

spinach
radicchio
napa cabbage
sliced mushrooms
diced onion
celery
cucumber

Dressing: a simple vinaigrette of white vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, s&p, dried basil, dried oregano, grated garlic, and finely diced onion

]]> http://crowsinthekitchen.com/2009/11/04/fall-salad/feed/ 0