Liver and Onions

I have a confession to make. I was a very odd child ! While my siblings and friends would go nuts over pre- sweetened cereals , I could not stand them. I wanted eggs and some kind of meat for breakfast. Sadly that would only happen while camping. While they would sneak cookies from the cookie jar, I would swipe cans of mussels or tubes of liver sausage and eat them. I would crave protein with fats instead of sugars and carbs. Something tells me that way back then I was naturally trying to address my nutritional needs through cravings.  Another odd thing was that my favorite dinner was....liver and onions ! Truth be told I could have probably ate it every night, but for various reasons this did not happen. I continued to make and crave liver and onions till one day the "health" advocates determined it was a very bad food to eat, due to the cholesterol, fat and chemicals. We now know that blood cholesterol has nothing to do with cholesterol you ingest from foods and EVERYTHING to do with the amount of insulin your system pumps out in an attempt to balance the affects of carbs you ingest, in particular without fats and protein. In other words, an egg white omlette and fat free bran muffin is going to bring you a lot closer to a heart attack, metabolic syndrome, diabetes and so forth than the whole eggs, bacon and butter breakfast ever will.

But back to liver. Turns out our mothers and grandmothers were right- it is good for us. It is also something that we should eat once a week ( like fatty fish). What exactly is it good for ? 1 slice beef liver contains 78.2 grams protein,1,539 % RDA Vitamin A and 101% RDA Iron. It is  Low in sodium, No sugar, High in iron,
Very high in niacin,Very high in pantothenic acid,Very high in phosphorus,Very high in riboflavin,Very high in selenium ,Very high in vitamin B6, Very high in vitamin B12 and High in zinc.Liver has long been a part of the treatment for pernicious anemia because it is a rich source of heme iron (the organic iron in animal foods). This type of iron is five times more easily absorbed than non-heme iron. Pork liver contains the highest amount of iron, at 34 mg per 4-ounce serving.

Liver is something that I intend to serve once a week, and I was struck by the absence of liver recipes in most cookbooks. Liver is also something that you will no longer find in most fresh butcher counters of grocery stores ( along with heart, tongue, kidneys and brains/sweetbreads). You find it in the freezer case. Happily I remember how my mother used to make it, so I will show you how it is done. Liver, when cooked right, is absolutely delicious as well as nutritious.

 First, place your liver in a dish, cover it with milk and allow it to soak 30-45 minutes. This step pulls the "strong " taste out of the liver and makes it much more palatable to more sensitive pallets. Meanwhile, peel and slice a mess of onions and saute them in bacon grease or butter. Avoid vegetable oils or Crisco because they make the liver taste wrong.

When browned, transfer to a platter and add more bacon grease to the pan and bring to a high heat. Dredge the liver in a mix of flour, salt , pepper and paprika and quickly fry in the pan- no more than 3 minutes on each side. It usually winds up put it in the ban, count to 30, flip, count to 30 and transfer to the platter. Serve with grilled onions and katsup or balsamic vinegar, but nothing is really needed.

My son has only had liver a handful of times , but liver sausage sandwiches several times. He saw the platter, grabbed two slices of liver and inhaled them ! Something tells me he just might really be my son after all. Yes I carried him and gave birth to him but I became very suspicious when it was learned that he disliked chocolate. I could not believe that ANYTHING that came from my body could not like chocolate ! 

Earth Day and Liver

Happy day after Earth Day - or as my son kept calling it Green Day. I think the green logos and the said named band got twisted in his head and it made for some funny moments.

We began the day with something I called Fruits of the Forest Oatmeal. Why the name ? Because I got tired of saying oatmeal with berries, pears and apples. Fruits of the Forest sounds so much more interesting, don't you think ? Great oatmeal dishes deserve fun PR !

I had originally planned on certain lessons and activities for the day, but Nick was so excited that it was Green Day that I abandoned those plans and decided to turn a lot of earth day programs and activities into our lessons. It's one of the beauties of homeschooling- the ability to change plans and strike when and where the iron is hot. One of the things we caught was a program called Life after Oil- which dealt with a scenario of life once the globe's oil supplies run out ( something the Peak Oil people are predicting to happen in the next 20 years). He was pretty cool with the idea of no cars until he saw this meant no shipment of foodstuffs and forced rationing. That scared and greatly upset him, until I explained that it simply meant people would have to do things in a different way and that there is indeed food all around you , outside your front door. This became a biology lesson where we grabbed the field guides, headed out the door an found food in our back yard. Dandelion leaves wrapped around orange sections are absolutely delicious - if you make sure you are picking dandelion greens from a non sprayed source and carefully was them before eating. These and several other foodstuffs are growing right out your door, at your feet. Nick was impressed and reassured that life would go on - an important belief for any human being !

Eventually it was lunchtime and I decided to make something I saw on Marissa's blog , but with some different ingredients. Lithuanian rye bread ( love love love !) with red pepper hummus, baby spinach , sliced avocado and cucumber slices. I paired it with some baked pita chips and veggies- it was really tasty ! I think I am ready to classify hummus as one of my favorite foods in the world .

WARNING
The following meal may cause memories of childhood trauma, responses of EEWWWW and other such side affects.

With that said, I present to you last night's dinner- Healthy Saute'd Liver and onions with Vinegar and Honey Glazed Brussels Sprouts, Couscous salad and a green salad with cranberries and walnuts

Healthy Sauteed Liver and Onions

1 medium red onion
3 TBS low-sodium chicken broth
3 TBS low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 lb calf's liver -- sliced thin (1/4-inch)
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic -- chopped or pressed
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and pepper to taste

Thinly slice the onion. Chop or press the garlic.
Turn stove to medium. Heat 3 TBS low-sodium chicken broth in a stainless
steel skillet.When the broth begins to steam, add onions, cover and
Healthy Sauté for 4 minutes.When the onions have lost most of their water
content and have become dry, push them to the side of the skillet,
leaving space in the center.Heat the second 3 TBS broth in the center of
the skillet, leaving the heat on medium.When the broth begins to steam,
add the sliced liver and Healthy Sauté uncovered for 3 minutes.
The pieces will be browned on one side, and the liver will release
liquid.
Turn the liver pieces over and brown the other side for 3 minutes. When the liquid has evaporated, the
liver is done.Remove the pan from the heat and drizzle the liver and
onions with balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil,
and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste.Transfer to a serving plate and
serve immediately.


Vinegar and Honey Glazed Brussels Sprouts

1 pound Brussels sprouts
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey

Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
Trim the ends off Brussels sprouts and halve. Set aside in a mixing bowl.
In a small saucepan, combine vinegars and honey. Bring to a boil over
medium heat and cook, stirring often, until mixture is reduced to ¼ cup.
Toss vinegar and honey mixture with sprouts, and spread on prepared
baking sheet.Bake for 25 minutes.Makes 4 servings

Confession- as a child , one of my favorite meals was Liver and Onions, and we ate it once a week because liver was cheap, high in protein and good for you. My mom would coat it in flour and spices, pan fry it quickly , and it was one of the most tender, tasty things she made. I ate a lot of organ meats as a kid- at that time they were considered to be healthy. Then came the late 70's and a really bad study on cholesterol led people to believe that eating eggs, liver and so many other foods would lead to heart attacks. Finally, the truth is coming out . These foods will not raise your cholesterol and are actually good for you. Did you know that liver contains compounds that help to actually prevent a heart attack ? It's true. The danger form eating liver too often comes from it's incredibly high level of Vitamin A, and certain health conditions make it hard for the body to process the level. Liver supplies 29 grams protein,36 percent of the RDA for iron and 634 percent of RDA for Vitamin A.162 percent DV of riboflavin, 72 percent DV of pantothenic acid, 72 percent DV of folate, 66 percent DV of niacin, and 54 percent DV of
vitamin B6. It does a body good !