Tag Archives: Lettuce

Cannoli Strawberries and Strawberry Salad

Bag of the Week, , , , ,

Cannoli Strawberries

Ingredients: 1/2 Pound Strawberries, 1/3 cup ricotta cheese, 2 tsp sugar, sliced almonds

Instructions:

  1. Wash Strawberries, remove the leaves, slice in half and arrange on a plate.
  2. In ziplock bag, combine sugar with ricotta, seal bag, mix.
  3. Cut one small corner off of the bottom of the bag. Squeeze the bag to pipe the sweetened ricotta onto the strawberries
  4. Arrange a few sliced almond pieces on top.
  5. Serve immediately or store refrigerated, best quality if eaten sooner

Strawberry Salad

Ingredients: Mixed lettuce, spinach leaves, pea shoots, slice strawberries, sliced almonds, dressing of your choice

Instructions:

  1. Wash mixed lettuce, spinach leaves removed from root end/hard stems, pea shoots (the leaves and stems are all edible)
  2. Chop the large spinach leaves and long pea shoots into bit sized pieces
  3. Wash strawberries, remove leaf part (hull the berries), and slice them
  4. Top the greens with sliced almonds or candied almonds and a dressing of your choice.

[Optional] Candied Almonds:

  1. Heat a skillet over medium heat . Add 1/4 cup almonds and a little sugar 1tsp-1TBS.
  2. Stir till almonds become golden. Pay constant attention, nuts go from not done to burned very quickly.
  3. Remove from heat and cool on a plate before using
Learn more about Strawberries from FoodHero.com

More recipes to try:

Strawberry Ricotta Crostini with Pea Shoots from the Kitchn.com

Fast Spinach Ricotta Pasta from The Clever Meal

Honey Drizzled Ricotta and Fruit Toast from BingeWorthyBites

How to Use Pea Shoots

Pea shoots are the tops of pea plants the shoot, leaves and tendrils that grow to support the development of the pea pods. These are delicious too and available at Farmers Markets in the Spring.

Add to a stir-fry, or pasta, mix in with salad greens, or snack on them. Pea shoots are easy to use and fresh.

Check out a few links to see how to enjoy PEA SHOOTS.

How to buy and Use Pea Shoots by Food52

Chinese Style Stir-fried Pea Shoots with Garlic at Food52

Pea Shoot Salad with Shaved Parmesan at JustFarmed

Salad with Butter Lettuce & Spicy Mustard Greens

Recipes, , , ,

Fresh local greens return for spring in Healthy Beaver Bags

See basic technique for assembling a lettuce salad.

Ingredients:

Butter Lettuce – a mild sweet and smooth textured leafy green with rounder petal like leaves, Mustard Greens – a spicy leafy green, Cucumber, Red Onion, Carrot, Ranch dressing (or another dressing), Bread Croutons

Optional: Add a food with extra protein: Sliced hardboiled egg, black beans, seeds or nuts, cooked chicken

Instructions:

Quick version: Wash and chop the veggies into bite sized pieces. The largest volume, about 2/3 should be lettuce and smaller amounts of the other vegetables. Toss together and put in a bowl topping with a sliced hardboiled egg, croutons, and dressing.

Detailed version:

Wash and prep vegetables:

Butter Lettuce: Pull leaves of the butter lettuce from the bunch breaking off just above the root end. In a bowl or pan submerge in cold water to clean moving around the lettuce to let dirt or debris fall off to the bottom. Replace the water a couple of times to have a triple wash of your leaves. Shake or place on a clean towel or paper towel to dry a bit before use.

Storage tip: Use just how much you’d like to eat right away. Lettuce keeps better if it isn’t washed and if its root end is still attached, in the fridge in a bag. Washed lettuce can be stored in a bag or container with a damp clean paper towel in the fridge.

Mustard Greens: Wash by plunging in cold water to remove dirt. Let water drip away before using.

Cucumber: wash with water to remove dirt. Cut off ends. Cucumber can be sliced into rounds or any bite sized shape.  It can be eaten with the peel or without.

Storage tip: Store cut end wrapped in the refrigerator. Slices or chopped cucumber can be stored sealed in the fridge. They will break down in a few days and should be used before then.

Red Onion: Brush off any dirt from the outside. Trim off the ends. Pull off the outer papery layer of onion. Slice from poles one end to the other to make very thin slices that can be separated and sprinkled over the salad.

Storage: An onion can be stored partially cut and tightly wrapped in the fridge. I would plan to use the rest in the next day or soon, the quality will decrease.

Carrot: Wash the exterior of the carrot scrubbing out any dirt. Cut off ends. Carrots can be peeled with a knife or veggie peeler, but it is not necessary. Chop into bite sized pieces, shred or slice.

Storage: carrot can be stored in a container refrigerated.

Assemble salad

Think about the flavors and textures of the different vegetables and your taste for them. If an ingredient is unfamiliar taste it first.

[Storage tip: A salad that is all combined will not store well. If you washed and prepped more than you want to eat right now. Store the components separately in the fridge and combine just before use]

In a bowl place mostly lettuce, top with mustard greens, sliced cucumber, finely sliced onion, and carrot.

Add on top dressing and toss to mix.

Add croutons to the top.

If you are adding a hardboiled egg, seeds, nuts, meat or chicken, add at the end.

Check out:

Minced Chicken Lettuce Wraps – another fun way to use butter lettuce! Recipe from SeriousEats

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2009/02/minced-chicken-in-lettuce-cups-recipe.html

How to wash and store lettuce to keep it fresh and crunchy From Food Network

https://www.foodnetwork.com/how-to/packages/help-around-the-kitchen/how-store-lettuce

Butter Lettuce Facts

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-butter-lettuce-plus-a-simple-butter-lettuce-salad-recipe#whats-the-difference-between-butter-lettuce-and-romaine-lettuce

Mustard Greens Facts

https://harvesttotable.com/mustard_greensmustard_greens_c/