Spring Greens Goodness!

Spring’s arrival marks the beginning of the long-awaited growing season in Minnesota, that abundant time of year when the freshest of fresh produce – in a rainbow of the brightest colors Mother Nature has to offer – entices us to move away from the onions, carrots, and potatoes we survived on all winter and turn our focus to flavorful herbs, tender baby lettuces, bitter greens, and other short-lived spring riches like rhubarb and foraged mushrooms.

For me, spring is synonymous with everything green: super fresh baby salad greens, microgreens, and every kind of nutrient-dense leafy green you can imagine. Traditional medicines like Traditional Chinese Medicine tells us that these are the foods our bodies need to detoxify from the extra fats and sugar we consumed during the winter months, so it shouldn’t be a surprise when we start craving fresh salads in April or May.

Additionally, it is widely accepted that eating a lot of these green foods in autumn to detoxify our bodies in preparation for the heavier foods of winter is also a good idea. When shopping at farmers markets and eating with the seasons, you’ll see that farm fresh greens are often available now in both spring and fall.

Though leafy greens have definitely gained a larger audience the last five years, they still feel mysterious to a lot of folks. The following is a super simple template our CSA farm gave us early into our membership that can be used for kale, Swiss chard, spinach, and even arugula.

 

Easy Kale

1 bunch kale

1-2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon olive oil

red pepper flakes, to taste

Thai fish sauce or balsamic vinegar, to taste

 

Wash, stem and chop the bunch of kale.

Sauté 1-2 cloves of thinly sliced garlic in the olive oil.

When the garlic begins to turn golden, toss in red pepper flakes to taste and sauté briefly.

*Add the kale and a couple splashes of Thai fish sauce (use balsamic vinegar instead, if you prefer a “sweeter” taste)

Cover and steam until tender.

(*If you don’t like the tougher texture of steamed kale, you can choose at this point to quick-boil the kale in another pot first before adding it to the pan with the fish sauce.)

I often add chopped spicy sausage or chicken to this template in order to make it into more of a meal. If you use balsamic vinegar instead of fish sauce, you can also add dried fruit like currants or raisins to jazz it up. Greens can be a great vehicle for a wide range of satisfying flavors!

xo,

Claudine