Wednesday 18 March 2015

Embracing Routine, and Braised Cabbage


Instagram lately.


Airing out stinky hockey equipment.
Swedish meatballs at IKEA.
A quick trip to Muskoka, where there's still plenty of snow.
Our kitchen, turned into a barbeque assembly area.
Wii, rediscovered.
Food.
Hockey.

I'm grateful that we made the time for a quick road trip last weekend.  Things have been so routine around here, and although I try to appreciate all of the moments that make up our everyday lives, I desperately needed a changed of scenery.




We celebrated another hockey tournament championship.

Number one son decided to make a birthday cake for his girlfriend.  The recipe he chose wasn't a simple one, and a two hour education followed.


Lessons learned:

Unhusked hazelnuts do NOT have the husk removed.  
Hazelnuts are also known as filberts.  
Husks are not easily removed with a vegetable peeler.  
Toasting nuts removes most of the husks with minimal effort.
Hazelnut paste is not Nutella.
Heavy cream is whipping cream, not the table cream I use in my coffee.
The toothpick will never come out completely clean.
Icing a cake with mousse is a pain in the a**.
Mom needs a new stand mixer.

We ate Irish food in honour of St. Patrick.  The kids thought the corned beef tasted like ham, so the ham-haters in the house weren't impressed.  I've never made this before, so I just used the pre-seasoned, packaged brisket from the grocery store.  Next time I think I'll try making a more authentic one from scratch.

Surprisingly, the braised cabbage was a hit.  Until now, I had never even so much as bought a cabbage, unless you count the pre-shredded coleslaw mix.  Growing up, I couldn't stand it.  If cabbage rolls or sauerkraut appeared on my plate, you could bet I'd be at the table for a very long time trying to find ways to avoid eating.  I didn't much like the smell while I was slicing it, but once it started to simmer the smell was amazing.  One of the kids thought it tasted like onion rings.

I will be making this again.


Braised Cabbage

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons bacon fat
2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
One half of large head of cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
1/2 bottle beer
Red pepper flakes, optional

Directions:

In a large pan, melt butter and bacon fat. Add the onion, bay leaf, and cabbage, stirring to mix. Add the beer, season with salt and pepper, and cover. Braise until the cabbage has wilted, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.

Remove the bay leaf, sprinkle with red pepper flakes (optional) and serve immediately.





36 comments:

  1. How sweet of your son to make a cake for his girlfriend's birthday! I laughed at the educational experience it turned out to be. But that's good for him to learn! Girls love boys who can cook.

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  2. Congrats on the hockey win! And hooray on a change of scenery! I could use on one of those! Looked beautiful friend!! You had me cracking up about the cake experience and as always thank you for another yummy recipe! Nicole xo

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  3. My son did some cooking for his girlfriend (and was inexperienced also). She still married him! I love your account of lessons learned. I think I will try your recipe for braised cabbage. I'm visiting from Coffee and Conversation.

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  4. I love the quote at the top of your blog.....so true. :) And the recipe looks amazing!

    Have a great day rock star!
    karianne

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  5. I am going to have to try the braised cabbage! I'm a fan; Husband not so much. When I do corned beef, I put a Guinness in the crockpot with it. Deepens the flavor or something like that. ;)

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  6. That braised cabbage looks good - nice recipe, thanks

    All the best Jan

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  7. How sweet that your son battle through all those hurdles to make a birthday cake for his girlfriend. You've raised a wonderful young man, momma. Thanks for sharing at the This Is How We Roll Link Party on Organized 31.

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  8. Your sons cake turned out great, I bet it tasted even better!!! I have learned to like corn beef and cabbage. I like cabbage rolls but recently turned them into a casserole rather than rolls, more flavor and juicer.

    Thanks for stopping by to link and share on The Oh My Heartsie Girl WW this week!!
    We appreciate you shared your blog with us!!
    Have a great week, Karren~Host

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  9. Hi Jen,
    I don't know which I liked the best your fabulous Braised Cabbage or the lessons learned by your son for the birthday cake. I enjoy the memories when my boys are in the kitchen. Your post is awesome and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Happy Spring!
    Miz Helen

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  10. Look at all the lovely snow... My Canadian husband gets very misty-eyed whenever he sees photographs of snow – we very rarely get any in London. I love the look of that braised cabbage : ) Thanks for linking to #CookBlogShare

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  11. Great post! Both recipes look delicious! Thanks for sharing with us at Pin-Worthy Wednesday!

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  12. Thanks for sharing at Wordless Wednesday! Hope to see you next week! xoxo

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  13. Everything looks delicious here! YUM! :)

    Thanks for joining the Link Up this week! Don't forget to enter the $5 Starbucks Giftcard Giveaway!

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  14. Adding bacon fat to anything has to make it taste good, right? ha ha!


    Thanks for sharing on Tasty Tuesdays. Hope to see you back next week.

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  15. Thank you so much for sharing this at Bloggers Brags this week. I am pinning it to our group board on Pinterest. Have a great week, and please visit us again next week!

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  16. I love braised cabbage and your recipe sounds really good, especially with corned beef. Thank you for sharing with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop! I hope you’ll join us again next week!

    Cheers,
    Kathy Shea Mormino
    The Chicken Chick
    http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com

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  17. I enjoyed your post! Congrats on the championship! Love that your son made a cake for his girlfriend. The recipe looks delicious too! Thank you for sharing with us at Brag About It! Hope you'll link up with us again next week!
    ~Laurie
    http://www.myhusbandhastoomanyhobbies.blogspot.com

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  18. Thank you for contributing to Motivational Monday!

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  19. Those baking lessons sound like me today trying to attempt a pie totally from scratch. All I can say is "yikes."
    We eat smothered cabbage around here with onion and bacon--I think using beer is a great idea!
    Thank you for linking with the final round of See Ya in the Gumbo!

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  20. You have a busy life! Congrats on the hockey and high five to your son for the cake! Thanks you so much for sharing on the (mis)Adventures Mondays Blog Hop. I look forward to seeing what you share this week!

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  21. This looks delicious! Thank you so much for linking up at Tasty Tuesday! Your recipe has been pinned to the Tasty Tuesday Pinterest board! Please join us again this week!

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  22. Looks like you've been busy! I need a new stand mixer too. lol. Thanks for linking up to Tips & Tricks. I've pinned this to our Tips & Tricks board. :)

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  23. Looks delicious, thanks for sharing with Hearth and soul blog hop, pinning.

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  24. It's nice to have an alternative to boiled cabbage! Thanks for sharing on the "what's for Dinner" linky!

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  25. Wow Jen, this cabbage sounds really good!
    TFS this at Cooking and Crafting with J&J!

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  26. I do like cabbage especially with corned beef. Your son done a wonderful job of the cake. Thanks for sharing on #overthemoon


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  27. this dish looks yummy so I'm pinning it for later!

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  28. Cabbage that tastes like onion rings sounds like a win to me! Hopefully the cake turned out well too. :)

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  29. I love braised cabbage -Thank you for sharing with Pin worthy Wednesday Jen

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  30. The meal looks so delicious! :)

    Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!

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  31. Thanks for linking up at Welcome Home Wednesdays! See you next week!

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  32. I haven't had braised cabbage before. It sounds so much better than sauerkraut. That stuff is bad. Isn't it funny that kids will pick the most difficult thing to make a boyfriend/girlfriend? We have been through that a time or two. Thank you for linking up to Tips and Tricks. Hope to see you again this Monday.

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  33. Your braised cabbage looks and sounds good! Thanks for sharing your recipe with us at Merry Monday.

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  34. What a great post and I just love your Braised Cabbage. Hope you have a very special week and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Miz Helen

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  35. Cake lessons made me smile, my boys would be the same left with a recipe but what a lovely thing to do #MagicMoments

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  36. We love Braised Cabbage and your recipe looks so good along with the awesome birthday cake! Hope you are having a great week and thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday!
    Miz Helen

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