Easy peas and collards

Happy New Year!

I got shamefully little sewing done this weekend.  I meant to, but malaise took over and I managed to fritter away my time doing other things.  Oh, well.  I think sometimes we need permission to do that, too.

Since it's New Years, I did make a pan of easy peas and collards for good luck.  Well, additional good luck--my New Years Eve dinner consisted mostly of Fritos Scoops and Texas caviar.  Yesterday was cold, though and I wanted a hot meal.

Easy peas and collards

(James in Austin tells me it's blasphemy to eat them together.  I say it may be so, but it's tasty, tasty, blasphemy)

3/4 cup dried black-eyed peas

1/4 pound lean ham

2 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1/2 pound collards (that's 1/2 pound edible leaves, after they've been washed and de-stemmed.  I used half a one-pound bag of frozen, chopped, collards to make life easier)

one onion

a little bit of oil or drippings

Cook peas 20 minutes or so, until they're mostly done but not quite (black-eyed peas do not need to be soaked the way most beans do); you'll end up with about a cup and a half.  Meanwhile, chop the onion and cook it in the oil or drippings until golden.  Chop the ham, add it to the pan, and cook it a little more.  Cover and let it steam in the moisture from the onions so you end up with some juice in the bottom of the pan; I used a big frying pan, but a regular pot would work, too.  Add the broth.  Drain the cooking liquid from the peas and add them, too.  Simmer a bit and then add the collards.  Season to taste.  When everything is well heated and cooked to your liking, which shouldn't take long, they're done.

Makes 2-4 servings.  Two if you're really hungry, four if you're less hungry and round it out with other a starch.

This has some liquid but not so much that I'd call it a soup.  I usually eat this over rice, because I like rice and it's easy and I always make extra when I cook it, but I keep thinking I need to take the time to make some cornbread to go with this instead.  It'll be all eaten by the time I get around to it, though.

Serve with hot sauce on the side.