Place of Refuge

Place of Refuge

24 July 2011

Spicy Greens

OK,
so in this heat it's hard to eat
lots of meat.
                 Really.
Especially at my tender, advanced age.
So on this hot un-negotiable night
I thought I'd go light.

I have this almost obsessive interest
in the green salad, and
in how much variety you can get in a salad,
just using green.

So, this caught my eye
at a local cooperative grocer:


Sounds great,  doesn't it?
So I bought it, and when I opened it,
I was struck
by the variety of greens,
and the similarities they hold
to something a cow would eat.

Now, look at it:




I almost felt I could go out
into my backyard
and pick it,

but then I looked closer,
and began to get excited about eating it.

So I'm now going to show you
what I did with it, 
because the salad I'm eating right now
is simply fabulous.

So, of course I cleaned it once, 
then put it in a drainer to clean it
again,
but this time, I started adding stuff,
starting with arugula
from my own porch garden--


Now, I was surprised when my arugula grew in this shape;
it must be the variety.
I'm more familiar with the longer, leafy kind
that I used to be able to get
when I lived in Turkey.

After that,
I added some basil,
also from the porch garden,


Oh, and I should point out,
I put in a handful of mesclun mix,
and then a couple leaves of romaine,


Now, you clean that up and stir it up,
and look at all that color!

So, to this I added 
this rather lovely locally produced feta
(yes, I'm giving some local plugs here)


and I used some dill
(again from the porch! - no I did not use the part
where it has come to flower.
Now, should I?)



in a very simple oil and balsamic vinegar dressing,
and,
well, 
here is the outcome:


Now, will tell you,
I'm just reveling in the experience
of having just eaten
that salad,
and I will tell you -- it was fabulous!
Those Spicy Greens are really spicy --

But while I'm at it,
I'll also tell you
what I ate it with.

My other food obsession
is rice,
and I found this lovely mixed rice,
thanks to my brother --


which I made with a vegetable broth,
and I'll tell you,
its nuttiness really compliments
the greens' spiciness.

And I washed it down with a glass of this,
which I have to say is a very nice
Spanish white wine from the Rioja region,
 which I can get in my area
for below $15.00




So,
there you go --
I was inspired to write a blog entry
about a meal which,
by the way,
was a fabulous summertime meal!


And it all began with the title
"Spicy Greens"



(note: I just noticed the Spicy Green people
have a website named right
on their package --
it is:
and here's a paragraph from their website
about who they are:

"Remembrance Farm is a 90-acre biodynamic vegetable farm located in Trumansburg, NY, in the heart of the beautiful Finger Lakes region.  We specialize in growing salad greens and root vegetables for sale to local stores and restaurants, and to individual households through a cooperative Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program known as the Full Plate Farm Collective."

)

2 comments:

Debra She Who Seeks said...

We really enjoy Lundberg Wild Blend rice.

PENolan said...

Gorgeous.
I just love the name Remembrance Farms - but you've inspired me to have a glass of wine.