A Girl And Her Greens

I love greens.  REALLY love them.  I eat them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  I eat them raw, grilled, steamed, stir fried, pureed in smoothies, and coated in olive oil and roasted.  They go in pots of white beans or chickpeas, minestrone, get baked in casseroles, and are transformed into a glorious green lasagna.  More on that lasagna later. 

After a winter of little variety in produce, I come unraveled at the sight of bright, tender, green vegetables at the Bainbridge Farmers' Market. 

Raab at Butler Green Farms at Farmer's Market

Last week my market bag spilled over with baby arugula, sprouted broccoli, speckled bib lettuce, raab, bok choy, spinach, and two less common offerings – sproutini (the young shoots from Brussels sprouts) from Persephone Farms and vitamin greens from Butler Green Farms. 

Vitamin Greens and Bok Choy

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Sproutini

I snacked on sproutini in the car on the way home.  It was shockingly sweet and mild.  Not a hint of bite or bitterness.  Saturday night it went on the grill, doused with olive oil, sprinkled with salt and pepper.  When it had wilted and taken on a little smoky flavor, I drizzled on white balsamic vinegar infused with grapefruit from The Lively Olive in Port Townsend, and shaved on lemon zest.    

What little remained became a throw-together 10-minute lunch.  Leftover roast chicken and cooked pasta from earlier in the week went into a saucepan with chopped sproutini, a half-cup of water, a tablespoon of butter, a grating of Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.  I heated it through and dove in.

Vitamin greens are similar to bok choy, but more tender and sweet, and a bargain at $3 for a bunch bigger than your head.  I stir fried some with Town & Country’s house-made hoisin sauce, Hong Kong noodles, green onions, and carrot.  A little sauce was spread on grilled tuna steaks to complete dinner.  

Phil Thinks I Should Have Plated This To Make It Look Prettier.  

Sorry, We Were Hungry.  

If you’re ready for a show-stopper, use vitamin greens to make the green lasagna from A Platter of Figs by David Tanis.  It’s a weekend afternoon project, but worth every minute you put into it.  The recipe makes a big batch, and it freezes perfectly.  Here's the recipe: Green Lasagna  

Although we usually plan our meals on Sunday for the coming week (this saves a surprising amount of money and time), I buy produce several times a week.  Having a CSA subscription to a local farm guarantees access to fresh produce and local meat throughout the week.  For years I’ve had a subscription with Brian McWhorter's Butler Green Farms.  Brian's approach to the CSA is like loading up a pre-paid debit card. In early spring you add money to your account.  Then you shop for whatever you like, when you need it.  Your CSA share entitles you to visit the farm stand in Rolling Bay on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and use your CSA account at Farmers' Market on Saturday.  More information can be found here: Butler Green Farms

Baby Arugula On Nona-Style Pizza Drizzled with Olive Oil

For innovative ways to prepare fresh vegetables, peruse Chez Panisse Vegetables by Alice Waters or The Greens Cookbook by Deborah Madison. 

It may not be easy being green, but it is easy to eat greens.