We got four bags of greens - 2 kale, 1 red kale, and 1 Swiss chard. We gave some to a lady the hubs works with, as we do each week, and still had a mess of greens to work with. Well there are only so many salads one can eat...just sayin'. So I had to come up with different recipes for those.
We also got (which you cannot see) a bag of basil. This is the fifth bag in the back that you can barely see all the way on the right. It is one of those big bags the greens come in, but 1/4 full. Which may not sound like a lot but it is A LOT. Normally the herbs come in these little bags. You can almost see the little bags behind the squash and cukes, but in front of the greens bags.
The herbs, besides basil, that we got in the smaller bags were sage, oregano, and dill.
We got 3 more of those bright yellow squash things (I have GOT to look these up), 4 of the pale yellow bumpy squash things (again, look it up R!!), 7 cucumbers, 3 green bell peppers, several jalapenos, several banana peppers, some really long skinny green peppers I haven't figured out yet, and some super skinny long dark green peppers that look somewhat ominous. I am really looking forward to figuring out the peppers. Is salsa in my very near future????
As I said earlier, I have been trying to come up with different ways to use each of the items. Healthy or not, you can only eat these things so many times a certain way. My goal this summer was to find different ways to eat different foods ~ expand our horizons, increase healthy eating. You know the drill. Some will be hits. Some will be misses.
Wednesday night "we" grilled {aka I prepared and the hubs grilled} pork steaks, burgers, and hot dogs. I also had him throw on some zucchini and squash spears that had been marinating in olive oil and garlic.
It turned out okay. I think I would like a few more herbs or spices on it in the future, but I can dig it.
While he was grilling, I was working on more dill zucchini pickles and sweet cuke pickles, like last week. I still haven't dared to try the dill pickles yet, but the hubs, A, and I like the sweet ones! I also threw together a recipe for sauteed Swiss chard. Except by the time it was time for me to throw in the Swiss chard, I looked at the recipe and realized it was supposed to be kale. I figured it wouldn't hurt though, because I had seen recipes for sauteed Swiss chard and kale. So I dropped it in. If you like cooked spinach with vinegar, this is the recipe for you.
The littles didn't like it, although they both tried it. I ate it and it was okay but wouldn't love to have it a lot. The hubs liked it. It was frightening. Here is my recipe:
Sauteed Mushrooms and Swiss Chard
1 8 oz box of mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
6 garlic cloves, minced (or 6 t of minced garlic)
6 cups of Swiss chard
1 T olive oil
In a pan, heat olive oil and garlic. When garlic becomes fragrant (about 30 seconds) add the mushrooms and saute until a golden brown. Add the basil-garlic butter (or butter and herbs of your choice), then the Swiss chard. Swiss chard cooks really quickly, so stir and don't let sit. Cook for about 2 minutes, then serve.
The original recipe is here.
Grilled Zucchini and Squash
Zucchini and squash (whatever amount you want)
olive oil
herbs and spices
Cut your zucchini and squash into spears. Remove the center seed part on the squash. Put the zucchini and squash into a big plastic bag. Pour olive oil over the spears to coat. Put whatever herbs and spices you want in the bag and close. Gently move bag around to completely cover the spears with oil, herbs, and spices. Let marinate for 30 minutes or longer. When grill is ready, place directly on the grill, rotating to ensure all sides are grilled. It will take between 12-15 minutes, depending on how much you prefer your veggies cooked.
The original recipe is here. Yeah, I know, this one is not even really close anymore, I just don't really dig lemon zest on veggies. Or on grills. It goes in desserts to me. Just need to give props where props are due.
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I threw the yellow squash into the food processor and now have 17 cups of shredded squash. I plan on baking Chocolate Zucchini Bread today and hoping squash can go in its place. The rest has been prepared for going into the freezer for things like this: Sweet Zucchini Cupcakes, Garden Harvest Cake, Zucchini Parmesan Loaf, Zucchini Pecan Flax seed Bread, or to slip into sauces when the fam isn't looking.
Now, on to figuring out what the peppers are!
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