Easy New Year's Recipe - Cowboy Collard Greens and Black Eyed Pea Soup with Bacon Fried Cornbread

bacon

🥗Healthier: turkey bacon

💰Cheaper: smoked sausage

Turkey bacon reduces fat while maintaining flavor.

buttermilk

🥗Healthier: plain yogurt

💰Cheaper: milk + vinegar

Plain yogurt provides creaminess with fewer calories.

collard greens

🥗Healthier: kale

💰Cheaper: mustard greens

Kale offers similar nutrients and flavor.

black eyed peas

🥗Healthier: canned black beans

💰Cheaper: dried pinto beans

Canned black beans are convenient and provide protein.

Fry 6 pieces of bacon in a cast-iron skillet until crispy; reserve the bacon grease.

Add 1 box of chicken broth and 1 cup more to the skillet.

Slice 4 carrots thinly and add to the skillet along with 2 minced garlic cloves and 3 finely chopped roasted hatch chilies.

Add 2 cans of black-eyed peas (do not drain) to the skillet.

Brown a whole ham steak in the same skillet until both sides are browned; cut into bite-sized pieces and add to the pot.

Season with salt and black pepper; cover and let simmer.

In the same skillet, add 2 tablespoons of reserved bacon grease and sauté a diced yellow onion until tender.

Prepare collard greens by removing the stems and chopping the leaves into bite-sized pieces; add half to the skillet with the onion and let cook down before adding the rest.

Add 2 teaspoons of white vinegar to the collard greens and cook until incorporated with the bacon grease; cover and simmer.

In a mixing bowl, combine 2 cups of yellow cornmeal, 1/2 cup of flour, 4 teaspoons of baking powder, black pepper, and salt.

Add 2 tablespoons of reserved bacon grease to the dry ingredients.

Whisk together eggs and mix into the dry ingredients until combined, adjusting cornmeal as needed for consistency.

Crumble the reserved 6 pieces of bacon into the cornbread mixture and mix well.

Heat 1 cup and a half of lard in the cast-iron skillet and drop spoonfuls of cornbread batter into the hot lard to fry.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens