Apples and Greens

Sunday found me working on making applesauce.  I admit I've been a slacker in that department, always finding something else better to do. 

All the apples that we'd bought last month have been hanging out in the garage keeping cool but I noticed an unusual odor last week that told me some of the apples were starting to rot.

I've been really disappointed with this batch of apples from a "fresh eating" standpoint.  Not much flavor.  (I wonder if our hot summer had anything to do with it but the apples this year are just bland.) 

No biggie.  That's the beauty of applesauce.  Stew em down, toss in some brown sugar and cinnamon and you've got the best tasting sauce on the planet.  Or at least that's what my resident taste-tester SM says.

So Sunday found me putting up 12 quarts of chunky, cinnamon applesauce.  I also made us some mustard greens.

Greens?  In my house?

I had spoken with my southern neighbor Deb the other day about how to cook the mustard greens that I'd planted (at her suggestion) this past Fall.  These puppies are huge and the frosts we've had don't seem to bother them at all. 

Deb had said to pick a huge amount as they will cook down.

I pulled the leaves from the steams and stuffed them into my other stock pot along with 2 cups of water. 

Whamo.  That pot cooked down to nothing flat.  Deb says she stews them for about an hour and adds some ham or bacon for flavor.  I also looked up a few recipes online and added some apple cider vinegar, red pepper flakes, garlic salt and (SM suggested) some brown sugar to the bacon I'd cooked them with.

SM and I both liked this dish.  How about that?  I'm actually eating "Southern" food!  Will wonders never cease?