vegansaurus!

How-to, yo: Blanch broccoli!  »

Is it crazy that I just learned how to blanch my vegetables? Yes, yes it is. But I figure, if I didn’t know, and I cook all the time, other people have got to be stumped by this too.

Whenever I cook my veggies, they end up a mushy mess. Don’t get me wrong, I kind of like it that way. However, I believed it was time to learn the more professional method of blanching my vegetables, specifically my broccoli. After perusing a website for help, I decided to ask my boss (Mitchell Fox, chef and co-owner of Source, no big deal) how to blanch my broccoli.

Here’s the lowdown:
1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add lemon juice and salt to said water (before boiling it.) Lemon juice will help keep your broccoli a beautiful green color.
2. Immerse broccoli in boiling water for 30 seconds. NO MORE THAN 45 seconds!
3. Immediately dunk broccoli in a bowl of ICE cold water to stop the cooking process.
4. Use broccoli in a delicious vegan dish! It’s so green and crisp! Great job!

Broccoli in ice water. Isn’t Instagram the best?!

I used my broccoli to make a healthy mac’n’cheese bake! I took my nacho cheese, added nooch, subtracted chili powder, added soy noodles and blanched broccoli, then baked it off! So tasty! (With a side of sauteed beets and the leafy greens they come with!)