Handy Veggie Cooking Chart

We need to refer back to this in the summer when we have all those wonderful fresh, local veggies at Country Harvest Greenhouse!

Salad in a Jar

Found this on Facebook the other day.  It's a fun and functional way to prepare several salads for yourself during the week.  You can find delicious homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers at Country Harvest Greenhouse June through September.


Needed: Mason Jars with 2-part lids and bands, which provide a vacuum seal when closed tightly, preserving the salad items better.  Choose either a pint or quart jar, depending on the size of salad you'd like to make.

Ingredients/Arranging Your Jars:
Place the following in the jar in order from BOTTOM to TOP:

Dressing
Shredded carrots
Cherry tomatoes
Chopped cucumbers
Sunflower seeds
Hard boiled eggs
Baby spinach

Store in fridge for a few days, but no more than a week.  When ready to eat: shake jar, place on a plate, and eat!

Ingredients are endless - red onion, radishes, peppers, romanie, argula, etc. Just remember to put the dressing at the bottom and the lettuce at the top -- keeps the salad from getting soggy.

Image and recipe source: shared on Facebook by Hillbilly Recipes

No Bake Energy Bites

 

A snap to make, totally delicious, and good for you. 

Don't forget to get your local, raw honey from us at Country Harvest Greenhouse!

 

Ingredients:

1 cup (dry) oatmeal
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/3 cup honey
1 tsp. vanilla
 

Directions:
Mix ingredients together in a large bowl. Roll into bite size balls. Refrigerate to set. Enjoy!!

Marinated Cucumbers, Onions, and Tomatoes

A healthy and tasty side dish.  If you don't have a garden full of veggies, we've got fantastic homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers at Country Harvest Greenhouse June through September!

Ingredients:
3 medium cucumbers, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 medium onion, sliced and separated into rings
3 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon fresh coarse ground black pepper
1/4 cup oil

 

Directions:

Combine ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving

 

Recipe and Image Source: Natural Weight Loss Friends

Apple, Arugula & Endive Salad (Curly Endive)

Endive is rich in many vitamins and minerals, especially vitamins A and K and folate -- plus it's a great source of fiber.  It's a slightly bitter green.

This salad packs a punch of flavor with the endive and the peppery arugula, sweetness of the dressing and fruit, and the tangy goat cheese.


Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon orange juice

1 teaspoon honey

Dash of salt

1/4 cup pecans

2 heads of curly endive, chopped

1 cup arugula

1 apple, sliced thin
1/4 cup dried cherries or cranberries
1/4 cup goat cheese, crumbled (optional)


Directions:

To make dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, juice and honey. Season with salt.

In a small sauté pan, toast the pecans over medium heat. Allow to cool.

Mix together the endive, arugula, apple and cherries (or cranberries) in a medium-size bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Top with the pecans and goat cheese (optional).

Sautéed Swiss Chard with Parmesan

Swiss chard is a nutritious, slightly bitter green that is high in vitamins A, K and C. 

Fresh, young stalks can be used raw in salads, while older, larger stalks are best served cooked or sautéed.  The bitterness will fade with cooking.

Chard is a spring harvest plant and is one of the more hardy leafy greens, with a harvest season typically lasting longer than kale, spinach or baby greens.


Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil                                                    
1 tablespoon minced garlic                            
1/2 small red onion, diced       
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 bunchSwiss chard, stems & center ribs cut out & chopped together, leaves coarsely chopped separately
salt to taste           

 
Directions:

Melt butter and olive oil together in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the garlic and onion, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the chard stems and the white wine. Simmer until the stems begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chard leaves, and cook until wilted. Finally, stir in lemon juice and Parmesan cheese; season to taste with salt if needed.