Massaged 3 Green Salad

I talked Tiff into a 3 Greens Massaged Salad - more I talked her into massaging the greens. She worked out their kinks and we ended up with this beautifully wilted salad with all kinds of little goodies hidden inside along side a piece of haddock.

MASSAGED 3 GREENS SALADS
adapted from Nouveau Raw
Serves 2-6

• ⅔ head of mustard greens
• ½ head of kale
• ½ lb of spinach
• 1 lemon, cut lengthwise & juiced
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 3 tbsp extra virgin, cold pressed olive oil
• 1 ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ fresh cracked black pepper
• ½ chopped green onions
• ½ dried cranberries, or more to taste
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1 c quartered cherry or grape tomatoes

1. Wash the greens really good, especially since they're fresh. Pat or spin dry. Chiffonade or thinly cut the greens.
2. In a large bowl, mix the lemon juice, sea salt, pepper, olive oil and cumin. Mix this up well, it's your dressing.
3. Add the chopped greens to the dressing mix. Now the fun part, literally massage the dressing in. It will get messy but you'll end up with a beautiful slightly wilted salad. Massage until the greens break down and turn slightly darker. You'll know it when you see it.
4. After massaged, add the green onions, avocado, cranberries and tomatoes and toss the salad.

So why massage you ask? It helps to break down the greens bitterness and allows the other flavors to step up in the salad instead of just the strong bitter flavors of the mustard greens or kale you taste the lemon, cumin and even the green onions. I promise there's still crunchiness left and there's something magical that happens to the salad when the greens are wilted. There's even an article on Huffington Post about it. Try it for yourself!

You can eat this salad on its own or pair with chicken or fish. We chose fish and it was a truly delicious end to the work day.

Mess o' Greens

With the onset of spring and the CSA kicking up, apparently here in MA this brings a big ol' mess o' greens. In brainstorming recipes, I try to focus on what recipes are simple. Recipes that display the beauty of each fresh veggie, herb or fruit, but those that also combine the flavors well. Here are my recipes, some work, some don't and their notes and reviews below.

Lindentree Farm CSA Week 1

Veggies & Fruits

• turnips with greens
• radishes with greens
• mustard greens
• kale
• arugula
• strawberries
• broccoli
• bok choy
• spinach

Herbs

• lovage
• oregano
• thyme
• chives
• chive flowers

TURNIPS
For the turnips, I roasted them at 450° after tossing them in a mix of balsamic, olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. I added some red potatoes in there as we didn't have enough turnips to use alone. After 30 minutes the potatoes were done. Some of the turnips ended still being a bit crisp. This was not my favorite for turnips. If we get them again, I'll try something different.

Recipes for turnip greens proves to be more difficult. I found a salad recipe, some Southern sautee greens recipes and a turnip greens tart recipe that appeared interesting.

I'm torn between the mess o' greens with warm pecan dressing recipe and the tart. I would really like the greens to shine, and really want to incorporate more raw goodies into my life again with less creamy, heavy dishes. Decisions.

LOVAGE
Since neither of us has tried this herb before, I thought what better than a recipe where it's the star. So I've got two types of things picked out and I'll make a final choice later. chicken with lovage and lemon lovage soup Summer Vichyssoise With Green Peas and Lovage

MUSTARD GREENS
I wanted something there they would shine. So of course their spiciness needs to stand out but not be overwhelmed. What a better way than a mixed green massaged salad AND spicy mustard green pesto over roasted potatoes.

BOK CHOY
Of course this brings all those lovely Asian flavors to mind for me. I immediately imagine a slaw which I can pair with Tiff's favorite salmon recipe. Google brought me this lovely slaw/salad, actually called Crisp Baby Bok Choy Greens in Tangy-Sweet, Sesame-Soy Vinaigrette. It'll be paired with a favorite, budget bytes's Teriyaki Salmon sans Sriracha mayo.