The Helpful Plate

 sauteed cabbage with spring onions and peaches

One of the ways I like to temper the flavor of strong, pungent veggies is to add an element of sweetness; in this case, I used peaches. I find that cabbage can be an acquired taste or that folks love it or hate it. Once you find a palatable recipe for your cabbage (not) lovers, you’ve found a nutritional powerhouse.

Cabbage is loaded with Vitamin C, folate, fiber, potassium, magnesium, and Vitamins A and K. Plus, one head of cabbage can be used to make multiple dishes…unless you’re feeding a crowd so it’s an economical vegetable too.

Probably the most popular summer use of cabbage is cole slaw. I grew up in the South and we love our cole slaw. But let’s not shortchange cabbage; there are so many other good uses!

So here’s a fairly easy recipe using cabbage. I used Napa cabbage but any variety will do. In fact, Napa cabbage leaves are very delicate and get soft fast, so regular green cabbage may even work better in this recipe if you like a more robust, crunchier texture in your cooked cabbage.

Ingredients:

1/2 large head of Napa (or other variety) of cabbage, chopped

1 Tbs lemon-flavored olive oil, divided or 1 Tbs plain olive oil + 1 tsp lemon juice

1 large spring onion including stem, chopped, approximate 1 cup

1 large peach, pit removed and diced, peeling optional

1/2 tsp Harissa spice

1/4 tsp smoke paprika

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Dash cayenne pepper

1 Tbs liquid aminos or soy sauce

1 Tbs flavored or plain balsamic (I used blueberry-flavored)

Instructions:

1. Separate sliced green onion tops from chopped onion bulb.

2. Heat 2 skillets - 1 large skillet for the cabbage and a small-medium skillet for the onions and peaches over med-high heat.

3. Add 1/2 Tbs of the oil to each skillet.

4. Add the sliced green onion tops to the smaller skillet and the chopped white onion bulb to the larger skillet. Stir both to coat.

5. Cook each 3-5 min. until white onion is translucent and glistening.

6. Turn off the heat under the smaller skillet and cover.

7. Add the chopped cabbage to the larger skillet that contains the chopped white onion bulb.

8. Stir the onion and cabbage mixture and cook for 5 min until the cabbage sweats and wilts.

9. Add the Harissa to the cabbage mixture and stir to combine fully.

10. Reduce heat under the cabbage to low-simmer and add the liquid aminos or soy sauce. Note: Liquid aminos and soy sauce both have a salty flavor so I did not add salt to this recipe. Cook 1 min more; turn off heat.

11. Turn heat back on low under the smaller, covered skillet and add the chopped peaches, cinnamon, cayenne and smoked paprika. Stir to combine.

12. Once the smaller skillet contents are heated through and coated with the spices, add the balsamic. Stir thoroughly and cook 1 min so that balsamic caramelizes the fruit.

13. Replace the lid and turn off heat. Allow to sit for 2-3 min.

14. Before serving combine the contents of the 2 skillets or spoon the cabbage into a serving bowl and top with peach mixture.

Note about the onion: I don’t mean to use the small skinny spring onions that come in a bunch in the grocery store; I mean a large white onion from the Farmer’s Market with 4-6 inches of the green stem attached. If all you have access to is the bunch at the grocery store, that’s OK. but if you use them, you will have to use the whole bunch not just one onion.

Note about the peaches: You can actually add this ‘peach topping’ to almost anything such as rice, riced cauliflower or even oatmeal. This is a great way to use peaches. You could double, triple or quadruple this portion of the recipe to have a yummy topping on-hand for other uses. You can increase versatility by omitting the onions and/or topping with toasted pecans.