Coconut Creamed Greens from Whitney Miller's New Southern Table (& her book signing in Memphis today!)

Whitney Miller's second cookbook, New Southern Table (Nelson Books 2015) was released this month, and we are so happy for her! Justin took the photos for the book, which is filled with re-imagined Southern classics and so many creative dishes we can't wait to make during the holidays. Whitney won MasterChef in season one, and soon after her victory, she wrote her first cookbook, Modern Southern Hospitality: Simple Recipes with Southern Charm, and traveled all over the world cooking up a storm and speaking about topics close to her heart.

Whitney, a native of Southern Mississippi, is currently in Memphis for the holidays with her awesome husband Ryan, and she's speaking and signing books today, Saturday, Nov. 28, at 4 p.m. at Booksellers. So come on out with us and meet our friend, get a book signed, and take care of a little holiday shopping at the best bookstore in town this afternoon!

We wanted to share a recipe from the book with you -- one that's representative of Whitney's modern take on Southern food. We already had a bunch of frozen blanched greens from the farm, so this was the perfect thing to make as a side dish today for lunch. (Except it looked so good that we actually ended up having it with tofu scramble and stewed tomatoes for breakfast!)

Whitney Miller's Coconut
Creamed Greens

2 teaspoons coconut or olive oil
12 cups packed, chopped turnip greens or kale, ribs removed
2 (14-ounce) cans coconut milk
6 cloves roasted garlic
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
honey (optional)
1/2 cup unsweetened shaved coconut, roughly chopped

Place the oil in a large sauté pan and heat over medium heat. Add the greens and cook, stirring and tossing occasionally, until slightly wilted, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and roasted garlic. Stir until well mixed. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the salt, and cook uncovered, for an additional 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Transfer the greens to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the greens are broken down into chunky small pieces, about 30 seconds. Do not puree. Stir in the honey to cut any remaining bitterness from the greens. Pour into a shallow 8-inch casserole dish. Season the creamed greens with additional salt to taste. Sprinkle the coconut in an even layer over the greens.

Preheat the broiler. Broil the greens until the coconut is golden brown. Serve warm. (Makes 4 servings.)

Recipe courtesy of  Whitney Miller and Nelson Books, an imprint of Thomas Nelson.