I am always trying to find ways to serve veggies in a more interesting manner. So while deciding how to prepare the broccoli I already had on hand for a Carr family dinner, I found this recipe which I had copied who knows how long ago. It sounded wonderful and I felt it would go very well with the baked salmon and mushroom risotto my sister-in-law was preparing. And you know, sometimes I get lucky. And I sure did when I served this wonderful dish.

It is extremely easy to prepare, the presentation is beautiful, and the flavor divine. Even your children might find that broccoli isn’t so awful when it’s drizzled with this yummy sauce.

Having just typed “yummy”, I am reminded of the article I read this morning in the NW section of the Seattle Times entitled “The food terms Seattle chefs hate”. And I realized in just a few sentences, I had used two of the food terms that eight Seattle chefs would most like to never hear again. The two words I used, and use quite often are “veggie” and “yummy”. According to the chefs – veggie because it’s demeaning to the noble vegetable and just sounds gross. (Really people. Demeaning? Is it demeaning when people call me Patti rather than Patricia? And gross? How about escargot, tripe or Rocky Mountain oysters if you really want to talk gross!)  And yummy, because the word should be reserved for lollipops and the like. (Well, if I never before felt inadequate about not being a trained chef, this statement has surely put me in my place! Because when someone tells me that a dish I’ve prepared is “yummy”, I take that as a compliment. Never once have I thought to myself, I wish they had told me the dish was delicious, luscious, or scrumptious. Good grief! But then, I’m not a trained culinary expert, so I guess therein lies the difference.)

So you know where this is leading. I will continue to use words such as “veggie” and “yummy” when I am describing dishes. I will concede and not use one of the listed terms – umami – because I don’t have a clue what the word actually means! I do however know what yummy means. And this recipe is a prime example.  

• 1½ lbs. fresh broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces (see picture of 1 1/2 lbs. below)
• 1/3 c. unsalted butter
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 3 T. low-sodium Tamari or soy sauce
• 2 tsp. plain white vinegar
• freshly ground black pepper
• pinch kosher salt, unless using regular soy sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 c. chopped salted cashews

Steam the broccoli until crisp tender. (If not serving immediately, run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Heat later when ready to serve.) Arrange broccoli on a serving plate or in a low sided serving bowl.

While the broccoli is steaming, melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper, salt, and garlic. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Mix in the cashews, and pour the sauce over the broccoli. Serve immediately.