Fried Chicken and Cheesesteaks

I've made this a couple of times recently and its fairly easy and really good. Plus leafy greens are supposed to be good for you .... Take a large pan and heat a bit of oil, lard or bacon grease (a tablespoon or two, though I never measure). Meanwhile rinse about a pound of fresh spinach. Throw the spinach in the pan and stir occasionally while it wilts. Season with a bit of onion powder and a bit of garlic (I used one frozen cube of crushed garlic, but garlic powder or fresh garlic will work as well). Add some squeezed lemon juice and sprinkle with salt. Add one can of drained artichoke hearts, preferably the small ones. Serve warm with dinner!

1/2 C (1 stick) butter 1 large onion, chopped 20 oz. bag spinach, thawed & drained 1 can artichoke hearts, drained & chopped 8 oz. cream cheese 2 C shredded hard cheese (perhaps half cheddar, half parmesan) 2 T tabasco Crackers, Tostitos Scoops, Celery and/or pita chips for dipping melt butter in saucepan, sautee onion until soft. Add spinach, artichoke hearts, cream cheese, 1 1/2 cup shredded cheese, tabasco. Stir until blended and heated through. Pour into casserole dish, sprinkle w/ remaining shredded cheese. Bake at 350 about 10 minutes until cheese starts to brown.

I'm surprised at times that people who like the flavor of artichoke have never actually eaten a whole one. So here is a little tutorial: First - buy them only when they look very fresh - they should feel heavy for their size (not dried up), and look like leaves that would still be on the tree - not those you'd find on the ground in November. Rinse them well, and chop the hardened end off the stem. I like to cook mine by steaming. I do this in one of two ways - either I put small to medium size artichokes in my 8 cup glass measuring cup, add some water at the bottom and cover with a plate before microwaving about twenty minutes at a low power. Or, I put them in my steamer pot. The ones I had tonight were HUGE, so I cooked them about forty-five minutes. They are finished when a leaf EASILY pulls free from the artichoke. Serve on a plate or in a shallow bowl, with another dish available for all the trash. (only eating ribs or cracking crabs produces as much waste). Pull a leaf off...

Last night's dinner (this is a rather inprecise recipe, but I don't think the exact quanitities will matter much): ~ 1.5 pounds boneless chicken breasts ~ 12 oz fresh spinach ~ one slightly mushy green pepper, bad bits removed (if you only have a fresh one, I suppose it will do) ~ 1.5 cups chopped artichoke (frozen, fresh or from a jar) ~ one large onion, chopped ~ garlic - fresh minced, from a jar, or frozen minced cubes from Trader Joes ~ 8oz. block cream cheese ~ a few tablespoons of pesto, homemade or from a jar ~ olive oil ~ salt & pepper ~ romano, parmesan or a similar flavorful hard cheese Sautee spinach in a bit of olive oil until fully wilted - turn a few times while cooking: Set aside the surprisingly small quantity of spinach which results. In the same pan, sautee the onion, and when that is almost cooked (translucent) add the chopped pepper and garlic. Once the vegetables are soft, turn the heat down to medium, and add the cream cheese. WATCH THIS CAREFULLY, sti...