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Warm Chard with Grapefruit and Sea Salt

Chard with Grapefruit Sections and Sea Salt

Chard with Grapefruit Sections and Sea Salt

Have you chard-ed dinner yet?

I have always avoided Chard. I was raised by immigrant parents from India.  We don’t know what in the world chard is. At the grocery store, we skipped over a lot of the “American” vegetables like Kale, Rhubarb, and Turnips. We steered our grocery cart past anything that looked pretty, colorful, or remotely appetizing. Grocery shopping was like a drive-through zoo– no stopping, feeding, or petting.  “Yeah, mom, let’s buy something disgusting, like okra.”

A lot of people simply avoid the unfamiliar– not only food, but lots of things like Eastern medicines, exercise, and big words.

But vegetables are less intimidating, especially when they are local and organic, like what’s in your Greenling Local Box every week! Even if you don’t get the Local Box, be more adventurous with your food and try something new! You’re only a product of your upbringing, but it’s never too late to be the pioneer for your household. Get your kids involved too– because how else are the dishes going to get done?

Chopped Chard and Spring Onions with a large ba-donka-donk

Chopped Chard and Spring Onions with a large ba-donka-donk

I had prepared this as a starter salad for a meal one day, but it turned out so good I ate the entire portion before my husband returned from working out.  When you taste this Warm Chard with Grapefruit and Sea Salt, you’ll taste a mix of cold and warm and sweet and salty. Your mouth will be thoroughly confused, yet completely delighted.

I’m finally familiar with Chard. Not so familiar with the treadmill.

Black Sea Salt (any coarse salt will work but this is a chance to color outside the lines)

Black Sea Salt (any coarse salt will work but this is a chance to color outside the lines)

Warm Chard with Grapefruit and Sea Salt

The spring onion bulbs from the local box really give this dish a beautiful subtle sweetness!

Ingredients:

1 bunch Chard

1/2 teaspoon of olive oil

1 spring onion, thinly sliced – whites only

1/2 of a grapefruit, peeled, sliced into large circular sections (I know you like them round and juicy, Sir Mix-a-Lot)

pinch of black sea salt or coarse salt or any “fun” salt

 

Directions:

1. Rinse Chard and coarsely chop into 1″ sections.  If the thick stems seem very stiff, don’t discard them – chop them much finer, like a dice.

2. Heat olive oil in a  wide skillet over medium-high heat and then add sliced spring onion whites. Cook for one or two minutes until the onions look like they’ve softened a bit.  Add the diced thicker stem sections now, if applicable, and cook for 1 minute.

3. Then add the remaining chopped Chard and stir gently and quickly – (not a time to rearrange apps on your smart phone.  You can Instagram later). Cook just until the Chard is wilted but still bright green.

4. Remove from heat.  Arrange warm chard on a plate, top with grapefruit slices, and sprinkle with sea salt.

 

Nutrition Tip:

The Vitamin C in grapefruit assists in the absorption of iron from the chard.  It’s always a good idea to have some citrus with leafy greens!

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10 Things To Do With Garlic Scapes

garlic scapes

“Garlic WHAT?” Get excited for one of spring’s most anticipated farm-fresh delights– garlic scapes! Scapes are the wild shoots that spring from the tops of garlic plants. Their color is springtime green, and the shoots can be thick or thin, curved or corkscrewed, and vary in height. They also come with leaves, which are more similar to leeks or green onion, and are also edible! Garlic scapes have a mild garlic fragrance and a mellow garlic flavor. The scapes are meant to be cut from growing garlic in order to help the garlic grow. So it’s a win-win for the farmer and us, the cooks!

Here at Greenling DFW, our garlic scapes come to us from Paul of Mexas Farm. Paul helps Greenling stay green and sustainable by taking some of our compost! We’re happy to keep the circle going by serving up Paul’s delicious garlic scapes this season. Stumped for how to cook these beauties?

10 Things To Do With Garlic Scapes

pickled

1. Pickle ‘em
Because who doesn’t love pickles? These pretty pickled Garlic Scapes are so simple, even pickling/canning novices can enjoy.

2. Make Pesto
Pesto is a delicious spread to keep handy- wonderful for any number of pastas, as a spread on sandwiches, a base for salad dressings and sauces, or simply eaten with a nice chunk of bread. You can throw in other herbs or green leafy things too.

baconwrapped

3. Wrap ‘em in Bacon
For meat eaters, there’s really nothing better than something wrapped in bacon. Show off the flavor of spring while keeping your carnivorous friends happy.

4. Roast
Like with garlic itself, roasting the scapes brings out their sweetness, making for a lovely side dish. Simply toss the washed scapes with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast at 450 for 5-7 minutes, until browned nicely. If you’d like to use the leaves too, roast them for 5 minutes first.

5. Use Raw
Like the spring onion greens we’ve also seen this season, they’re terrific raw! Thinly chop the shoots and  add to a tuna or chicken salad, stir into hot rice or scatter over a salad, the way you might scatter sliced scallions or an herb.

6. Stir-Fry
Garlic scapes are excellent for stir-fry dishes as they don’t compete with stronger flavored ingredients, but rather complement them with a sweet succulent character. Try this recipe for vegetarian Stir-Fry with Garlic Scapes, Carrots, and Shiitake Mushrooms. You can also use those leaves, just stir-fry longer.

garlicscapevinegar

7. Gift Infused Vinegar
For fresh vegetable salads, only the best dressing will do- and what’s better than a salad dressing you made yourself? Make your own Garlic Scape Vinegar and gift to friends and family throughout the summer. Simply add olive oil + a squeeze of lemon for a beautiful salad dressing!

8. Make Spring Soup
Take advantage of everything green to make a beautiful spring soup: Garlic Scape, Spinach, and Pea Soup. ! Serve it hot if you wish, or cold as a starter on a hot summer day.

9. Make Mayonnaise 
After you make your own mayonnaise, you’ll never want to buy store-bought again. Fresh garlic scapes give this mayo a delicious boost for potato salads, sandwiches, and more!

flowers

10. Wait for the bulbs to bloom!
Paul of Mexas Farm says if you aren’t a huge fan of garlic, simply use as a springtime bouquet! The little bulbs will bloom in about a week, turning into pretty purple fuzzballs. Perfect for outdoor barbeques or garden parties

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Amee’s Broccoli Cheddar Beer Soup

You weren't going to throw these away, were you?

You weren’t going to throw these away, were you?

 

Grated Broccoli stalks are great for soup OR an Asian slaw salad

Grated Broccoli stalks are great for soup OR an Asian slaw salad

“Whatcha gonna do with all those stalks, all those stalks inside that box?”

You’re lucky you can’t hear me sing Black Eyed Peas. You’re welcome. Hi, I’m Amee (of rabbit food rocks), and I’m a new Greenling blogger! I’ll be helping you find ways to make delicious vegetarian dishes with all that Local Box fruit and veg.

So if you don’t know what to do with these lovely lady…stumps, I’ve got you covered with two beautiful words: beer and cheese.

You have to be in the right mood for any kind of broccoli-cheese soup, but what I don’t like is when I order a cup of soup and they bring me what resembles queso.  Here’s a recipe for a  lighter version, but you’ll see that I open the door to be indulgent too.  Enjoy!

This is the only way to sneak beer into work.

This is the only way to sneak beer into work.

 

Broccoli, Cheddar, and Beer Soup

Ingredients:

1-1/2 Tablespoons oil (canola)

1/2 an onion, diced

1-1/2 cups finely chopped broccoli stalks* (this is a rough estimate – do not go OCD on me)

3/4 cup beer, preferable a pale ale (I used a black lager, but follow Simon Says, ok?)

2 Tablespoons flour

2 Tablespoons butter (insert mmm here)

1-1/2 cups lowfat milk (1% or 2%)

1/2 cups whole milk (whole milk would be good; half-n-half would be cray cray.)

1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese, packed (I used rich and creamy local cheddar from Veldhuizen  that I added to my Greenling order this week)

salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat.  Add onions and chopped broccoli stalks and saute until onions appear translucent.  Add beer and allow it to cook down for about 5 minutes or until there is minimal liquid.  It should look swampy, not soupy.  Cook the beer WAY down, where you shouldn’t have much liquid, but it shouldn’t be dry either.  Then empty contents into a small bowl.

2. Melt butter in the same pot and then whisk in flour until it looks homogeneous (yeah – big word for me too).

3. Lower heat to medium.  Whisk in 1/2 cup whole milk plus 1 cup only of the lowfat milk.  Cook for 5 minutes, until it has thickened into a sauce.  It should remind you of a very naughty Alfredo sauce almost.  Lower heat to low and whisk in grated cheese.  Now it should look queso-y.

4. Allow cheese to melt completely, add broccoli-onion mixture, and season with ~ 1 teaspoon salt and some ground pepper.

5. Remove from heat.  Cool slightly, and then using a blender or immersion blender, blend.  Add the remaining 1/2 cup milk.  Blend.  Return mixture to pot.  Heat on medium-low and add pepper.  Taste.  Spike it with a tiny dash of a peppery tabasco maybe?

6.  Serve** or pack for lunch.  Make obnoxious mmmm sounds in your cubicle.

 

*Don’t even think about taking 3 minutes out of your day to peel the outer layer of the broccoli stalks.  It’s all going to be cooked and blended into a soup.  You’ll live.  Use that time for something more valuable – like updating your Facebook profile picture.

**When you are done, you won’t see nomadic bits of broccoli florets in your bowl because we only used stalks, but if that bothers you either (a) add the florets in step 1 or (b) close your eyes.

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Save Green- Make Your Own Stock!

stock

Here at Greenling, we’re constantly on a mission to use as much of the vegetable as possible. Beet greens? Sauteed and delicious! Skins? We eat ‘em on almost everything! But sometimes there are parts of the vegetable you just don’t want to eat (the bottoms of onions, tough ends of celery), or maybe you simply have too much to use before the vegetable goes bad. Don’t worry, there’s a tasty solution for that- homemade chicken or vegetable stock! Homemade stock is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to add flavor and depth to your meals all while reducing kitchen waste.

Preparation
You probably won’t have to buy veggies to make your stock- simply scraps alone will suffice! A good plan of action is to simply keep an airtight container or gallon ziplock bag in your freezer that you can toss scraps/unused veggies in as you cook. You can do the same thing with herbs- if you’re not going to use them before they go bad, add them to the bag. It is important to make sure you scrub and wash your vegetables! Use common sense- cut and discard moldy or slimy parts. You’ll want to use each stock bag within a few weeks.

Similarly, if you’d like to make chicken (or beef) stock, buy a whole chicken and keep the neck, back, and wings, and any bones. Store in a separate bag or container in your freezer.

What to use
Onions, green onions, leeks, shallots (skins, peels, cores, trimmings)
carrots (vegetable and green)
celery (stalk and leaves)
mushrooms (and stems)
potatoes
squash
root veggies (and their leaves)
peppers
peas
corn (and cobs)
spinach, kale
apples
pears
herbs
(note: Brussels sprouts, asparagus, cauliflower, broccoli, fennel, and cabbage impart strong flavors, and beet skins have a tendency to make broth bitter. Avoid these, or add towards the end of cooking time.)

Cooking
The key to a great tasting stock is to cook slowly, and use a variety of vegetables, herbs, and spices. Balance the strong (onions, celery) with the sweet (carrots, sweet potatoes.) Deb (from Smitten Kitchen, recipe below) simmers her stock uncovered for 3 hours. Similarly, a crockpot is a great solution for strong, delicious stock. You could set your crockpot on the lowest setting before you go to sleep and leave it for 10 hours or more. Taste as you go, the flavor will develop over time. After your stock is finished, you’ll want to strain it through a sieve or fine strainer. Discard or compost the solids. Store stock in the refrigerator for 3-5 days or frozen (in jars or ice cube trays!) for a few months.

Chicken Stock Recipe
Recipe and photo (above) from SmittenKitchen.com

Makes approximately 3.5 quarts

3 1/2 to 4 1/2 pounds chicken necks, backs and wings (omit if making vegetable stock)
Contents of your stock bag, cut into chunks (classic combination: onions, celery, turnips, carrots, sweet potatoes)
1 head garlic, cut horizontally in half
1-2 California bay leaf
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
1 tablespoon Kosher salt (optional)
a few bunches of herbs, like parsley or thyme (whatever is in your stock bag)
4 quarts cold water

Bring all ingredients to a boil in an 8- to 10-quart heavy pot. Skim froth. Reduce heat and gently simmer, uncovered for 3 hours. (Or use crock pot method described above.) Pour stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl and discard solids. If using stock right away, skim off and discard any fat. If not, cool stock completely, uncovered, before skimming fat, then chill, covered.

 

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Sweet Potato, Kale, and Black Bean Skillet

Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Kale skillet

Craving Mexican food but determined to eat healthy and use in-season veggies? This Sweet Potato, Kale, and Black Bean skillet does just the trick. Fairly simple and deliciously aromatic (and vegetarian!), this recipe makes a meal for 4-6, or sides for a crowd. Sumac and cumin give this dish its wonderfully deep flavor. Sumac isn’t a super common spice, but I found it at Central Market. (If you can’t find it, you can get a similar flavor from mixing chili powder and paprika in a 1:1 ratio.)

I like this recipe because it isn’t fussy. I wanted kale and sweet potatoes to be center stage, but if you would rather taste more black bean, just use a little less of the veggies. If you’re sensitive to onions or garlic (like my Mom is), you can easily leave them out and it will be just as good. Similarly, to kick it up a notch, I’d consider adding another clove or two of garlic, some chili powder, and thinly sliced red onions (added with the kale.) Serve it alongside rotisserie chicken, or eat it wrapped up in a tortilla. And if you’re not interested in healthy, I think this would be an excellent enchilada filling! Because lets be honest, who doesn’t love things smothered in cheese? Any way you slice it, this recipe can easily be made your own.

Sweet Potato, Kale, and Black Bean skillet
serves 4-6
prep time: 15 minutes | cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 or 3 sweet potatoes
  • 1 shallot
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 can organic black beans, low-sodium, drained
  • 3 hearty handfuls (3 cups ish) kale (I used Russian kale, because it’s what I had, but green kale is just as good!)
  • 1-1/2 to 2 tbsp. organic olive oil
  • 1/4 tsp. sumac
  • 1/8 tsp. cumin
  • sea salt
  • freshly ground pepper
  • 1 lime, for serving
  • tortillas, for serving
  • sour cream or greek yogurt, for serving
  • 1 avocado, for serving

Prepping ingredients

Prep
1. Peel sweet potatoes, shallot, and garlic. Wash and dry kale.
2. Cut sweet potatoes in half lengthwise. Lay cut surface flat on a cutting board and slice in half again lengthwise. Then, slice into ¼-1/2 inch thick pieces. (Sweet potatoes are tough to cut. I don’t have an amazing knife, but this method works great! See photo.)
3. Dice shallot and garlic.
4. Tear kale into large pieces.

 

Cutting sweet potatoes

 

Cook
1. Place large sauté pan over medium high heat and drizzle with olive oil. Add sweet potatoes, shallot, garlic, sumac and cumin to pan and cook for 2 minutes until you can smell the spices, stirring throughout to coat.

Sweet potato cooking progression

2. Bring the heat down to medium and cover. Let cook for about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, making sure the sweet potatoes don’t burn (oops, a few of mine did!) Cook until the sweet potatoes are soft enough to easily cut in half and are nice and brown.

3. Add black beans. Stir to mix. Add kale. At this point it will be a little hard to stir, but don’t worry, kale cooks down! Season generously with salt and pepper, mix and cover.

Mixing in the kale

4. After 3-4 minutes, uncover and stir. If it’s feeling a bit too dry at this point, drizzle a little more olive oil. Taste for seasoning- if you want more spice, add a pinch of sumac! Cook for another minute or so until kale is cooked to your liking.

5. If you’re serving with tortillas, start warming them up. For just a few people, heat them with a bit of oil in a small skillet. For a larger group, wrap a tortillas in foil and stick in a warm oven for 2-3 minutes. Cut your lime and slice the avocado.

6. Serve on top of warm tortillas, drizzled with lime and served with avocado slices and greek yogurt. I made a taco out of mine. Enjoy!

Sweet potato, kale and black bean skillet taco

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