5-25 Delivery - Greens, Greens, Greens

Let me start by saying I am little behind the 8-Ball with this blog.  I have received two deliveries before this one and found myself wondering what in the world to do with it all.  I started researching on line for clever ways to eat it, as well as store it.  That quest for information helped form my idea for this blog.  So here we go!

What a haul!!  Isn't she lovely?  Isn't she won-der-ful?  Green, glorious green!  It's one of my favorite colors (just ask my little one!)  What isn't pictured is an additional head of butter crunch lettuce as well as a loaf of Amish-made whole wheat bread!  Oh the goodness!  But what to do with it all?  Here is what I've done so far...

Disclaimer - I am really bad about measuring when I'm just making stuff up.  My thing is that I just do and use amounts that taste good to ME.   But please, just do what tastes best to you.  I promise to get better about recording an amount range as we go along :)

Creamed Spinach (and Broccoli)
I had a little bit of spinach leftover from last week's box, so I decided to get a little decadent (yet not crazy, keeping it in the semi-healthy, but still in the "real" category).  It's really very simple!  I served it as a side with grilled nitrate/nitrite free hot dogs.  (No processed buns - just naked!)

Spinach - washed, stems removed, torn or rough chopped
Garlic - finely chopped
Onion - finely chopped
Butter - just a little
S&P
Parmesan Cheese
Splash of milk or cream
Goat Cheese

• Saute garlic and onion in a little bit of butter (you can use olive oil if it makes you feel better!)  Do this on medium to medium high heat. Getting the garlic too hot will cause it to taste bitter!
• Once onion and garlic are softened, add spinach.  Remember, spinach will cook WAY down - what starts out looking like a huge amount will cook down to almost nothing, so add a lot.
• Once the spinach has wilted, add the milk and parm cheese.  Stir to make sure the cheese is well-incorporated throughout the spinach. 
• Add the goat cheese and let it melt.  Stir so all the spinach coated with the glorious creamy sauce.
• Enjoy!

Since my daughter and husband don't care for spinach, I also chopped one of the heads of broccoli into very small florets.  Steamed them until tender, and poured the remaining sauce from the spinach over it.  RAVE REVIEWS!

Butter Crunch Lettuce Salad with Garlic Scapes
Wow - these heads of lettuce are HUGE!  One head served as two days lunch at work for me!  And what are garlic scapes?  I wondered the same thing...turns out they are the green stalk that grows out of the garlic.  They have a very mild taste - not strong like the garlic itself.  Use pretty much the same way you would scallions or green onions.  This was the most simple of salads...

• Wash and dry lettuce...tear into small pieces
• Chop garlic scape into small pieces
• Cracked pepper to taste and add your favorite dressing

Easy Peasy!  The next day I added a little goat cheese and pine nuts for variety!  So fresh and sooo good!

Grilled Pork Chops and Roasted Swiss Chard
Oh my gosh!  Winner Winner Chicken Dinner - ok, pork chop dinner.  But you get the idea! 

For the swiss chard you will need to wash and prep the greens (remove the stems).  Be sure to dry them really good. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. In a large bowl, make a dressing of anchovy paste, olive oil, and a splash of lemon juice (not much lemon juice at all!  Just enough to brighten it up and balance the salty).  Don't be scared by anchovy paste - it isn't really fishy, more salty than anything.   Chop the swiss chard (rough chop, approx. 1" pieces).   Put the chard into the bowl with the dressing and toss to coat them all.  Once they are all coated, transfer them to the lined baking sheet.  Make sure to spread it out so you don't have a huge pile of it.  Then pop it in the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes - doesn't take long.  Watch for the edges to start getting nice and crispy.  The crispier the better for me.

For the chops, once I had finished dressing the chard, I put the two chops in the dish with the leftover dressing.  I rubbed them around to get all the salty goodness leftover in the dish onto the chops.  Heaven I tell you.  Great flavor and really simple. If you are anything like my hubby, you like a lot of sauce, so he still used bbq sauce on his. I am a purist, so I just went for it as is.  My favorite so far!

French Toast
This morning I made the most amazing french toast with the whole wheat bread and free range eggs I've ever had. I sliced the bread nice and thick, whipped a couple of the eggs with a splash of milk and did the average french toast thing.  But there was absolutely NOTHING average about it. The use of real fresh ingredients turns something good into something amazing.  I used real 100% maple syrup (no high fructose corn syrup here!).  Oh my oh my!

I still have a LOT of produce left and will post again soon with what I come up with. I am thinking of Chinese Slaw with the napa cabbage and some sort of frittata with the rest of the eggs and more salads.  Should be a tasty week!