Mixed Greens with Ham
by David Watkins

This month's guest recipe was written by a good friend of our family who also happens to be an excellent cook. One thing I have learned from him is the value of preparing very large batches of everything. You'll notice that if you make this recipe as written, it'll likely last you all week.

Prep time: ~30 minutes (active time)
Cooking time: ~3 hours

• 1 hambone with lots of meat
• 2 cups water
• 2 lbs. collard greens
• 5 cups broth (beef or chicken)
• 1-2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. brown sugar (optional)
• 2 tsp. dark molasses
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 to 1 1/2 lbs. green beans
• 2 to 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed to 1 inch pieces
• 1 head green cabbage, chopped

In a large kettle, bring ham and water to boil over high heat. Reduce to medium low and simmer, covered, for one hour.

Clean the greens in cold water. Cut out the tough center stem and coarse chop the leaves.

Heat ham and stock to boiling and add a third of the greens. Simmer for 5 minutes until wilted. Repeat with the next third and so on until all are in the pot. Stir in broth, vinegar, sugar, molasses, pepper, and pepper flakes.

Simmer while stirring occasionally until greens are tender, about one hour. Meanwhile, prepare the remaining veggies.

Remove the ham and cut it in small pieces. Return meat to the pot. Add the marrow as well. Now, add the onions and potatoes to the pot. Simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the green beans and simmer for 5 minutes. Finally, add the cabbage and simmer until wilted.

Nutritional info: 12 servings at 20g carb, 7g prot, 8g fat. (all approximate)



Kohlrabi Slaw 2.0

One of the very first recipes I wrote for the Performance Menu, way back in 2005, was a kohlrabi slaw. Here's a new version for 2013 that's completely changed - the only ingredient in common is kohlrabi.

Time: 10 minutes

• 1 bulb kohlrabi
• 1/2 jicama
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• olive oil and balsamic vinegar to taste
• sea salt

Peel and grate the kohlrabi and jicama. Add to a salad bowl along with the remaining ingredients, mix well and serve.

Nutritional info: 4 servings at 12g carb, 5g fat (without added oil)



Spicy Sweet Potatoes

As an athlete who consumes a lot of sweet potatoes, I know how tired of the same old flavor one can become. Here's a different spin on sweet potatoes to mix things up a bit.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 10 minutes

• 3 sweet potatoes (orange)
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper
• juice of 1/3rd of an orange
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 Tbsp. coconut oil
• sea salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Poke a few holes in the sweet potatoes, and then roast in a roasting pan for 40 minutes. After the first 20 minutes, add the jalapeno.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle. Peel the sweet potatoes, then rough chop them into bite-sized pieces. They shouldn't be quite done yet - you actually want them to not be too soft yet. Add to a mixing bowl.

Stem and seed the jalapeno. Mince and add to the sweet potatoes, along with all of the remaining ingredients. Mix well, and then add to a medium baking dish. Cover and return to the oven for around 20 minutes longer, or until the sweet potatoes have softened.

Nutritional info: 4 servings at 34g carb, 7g fat.



Taro and Yogurt Mash

If you do dairy, this can be a nice and easy post-training snack.

Time: 2 minutes

• 1 cup organic, full fat yogurt
• 1 cup mashed taro
• 1 Tbsp. honey

Combine in a bowl; mix well and enjoy! (I'm assuming you have some leftover mashed taro on hand. If not, peel and dice some taro. Boil 'til soft; drain and mash, pretty much just like you would for mashed potatoes)

Nutritional info: 1 serving at 68g carb, 11g prot, 8g fat.



Grilled Grapefruit

Here's an easy-to-prepare treat for the next time you are grilling. If winter has your grill shut down for the season, you can also fry the grapefruit in a pan and it'll turn out about the same.

Time: 10 minutes

• 1 grapefruit
• coconut oil
• macadamia oil
• honey
• sea salt

Cut the grapefruit in half from the side. With a small knife, cut around the outside, separating the fruit and the pith. You'll want to cut along each section as well, as this makes it much easier to eat once it's done.

Brush with the coconut oil (heat it to a liquid first if it's solid) and grill or fry face down for around 5 minutes. Remove and top with the macadamia oil, honey, and sea salt. Scoop out the flesh and enjoy!

Nutritional info: 2 servings at ~16g carb, 5g fat.