This week I started reading “It starts with food”, a book I downloaded on my Kindle, and learned about their Whole30 program. The ‘Whole30’ program is a Paleo food diet–a diet without grains, legumes, dairy, alcohol and sugar for one month. I agree that eating too much sugar (in any form) or consuming too much alcohol is dangerous. But I can’t live without my rice, dal, fish or vegetables. Whole30 supports eating seafood/meat/poultry with veggies, but they do not accept rice or dal. I am not a meat lover but do enjoy it on occasion. So it is hard for me to be on this diet but, as I learned that grains do not contain much dietary value, I am trying to eat more vegetables. I’ve always loved greens (spinach, brussel sprouts, and zucchini) with garlic. After potato, garlic is my second favorite food in the kitchen and I love adding it to my vegetables in power or clove form.
I tried making this recipe several times before posting it. It can go great with any meat dish like beef brisket or dal and rice. The nutritional value of brussel sprouts and zucchini is very high. They contain plenty of fiber yet has very few calories, which is why I alternate them in every other week. It is also very easy to prepare and can be finished in a jiffy (I guarantee that).
My mom says I was always a stubborn girl when it came to eating food. I only wanted potato and rice. Whenever she made fish curry with potato, I would only eat the potato and curry with rice. Ditto with lamb and goat curry. I never liked eating anything except potatoes. Eventually, my mum gave up and didn’t feed me anything but rice and potato. After going to college, I slowly grew an interest in eating vegetables, rice, fish and dal. Today they are my favorite foods. I call it a day when I eat rice, dal, greens and fish at my dinner. In India, we get several kinds of seasonal greens. My mother used to prepare based on weather, season and her mood.
When I came to the States, I was limited to cauliflower, cabbage, eggplant, green onions, mushroom and spinach. I did not know about the rest of what they sold in grocery stores. I always saw people buying brussel sprouts but did not know how to make it. Unlike me, my husband was a good kid. He always ate his greens. So when I asked him, if I should get a packet of brussel sprouts, he did not say no. After coming home, I washed and cut them into halves, added garlic and baked them in the oven. After taking them out of the oven and trying one we wanted another, and another, and another. Before we realized, we both finished the packet of baked brussel sprouts.
After that incident, I buy it every other week and prepare it with very simple ingredients. It is now one my favorite greens, which I did not grow up eating.
Recipe for Greens with garlic
1. Pre-heat the oven at 400F.
2. In an oven safe dish, put the vegetables. Add the spices, salt and oil. Mix it well.
3. Bake it for 25 minutes until it is brown on edges. Serve hot as side.
