Enjoying Winter Greens

Mixed cooking greens from 
Lime Valley Mill

yep, I said "enjoying"....

It was a bit of a journey.

The first time I encountered the wide variety of greens available was when I first began changing to a whole foods diet. 

I was familiar with lettuce, as in iceberg and romaine, and spinach. I had seen other greens at the grocery store before but I'd never really heard of them much less what to do with them. 

You can imagine my surprise when trying collards and kale for the first time, simply steamed and served over a bed of rice! I choked those babies down but it was quite a while before I ventured down that road again! 

In fact, I really didn't do much investigating and experimenting with greens until I began juicing last spring in an attempt to regulate some hormonal issues I was experiencing (you know, hot flashes, heart palpitations,achy joints, acne, night sweats, mood swings, memory loss, dizziness, scatter-brainsim -- oh wait, I still have that one!). I had made a lot of dietary changes for our family but I wasn't very good about getting raw veggies in, especially greens beyond salad or spinach.

Crazy hormones or mostly raw diet, highly concentrated in greens.......you guessed it, MORE GREENS! 

Dilemma: where do I find them if I don't want grocery store greens and what do I do with them?!

Finding them was quite simple -- Tony and I stumbled upon the most beautiful greens out there, in my opinion, at a local farmers market in Lititz. 

Right away I purchased kale, collards, and Swiss chard. I was surprised how much better fresh picked, local greens tasted! They weren't my favorite, yet, but I was determined to feel better so I started experimenting. I'm so thankful I did!  

Swiss chard

I started out mostly by juicing them along with carrots, cucumber, apple, ginger, and lemon -- still my favorite juice of all! I truly believe the juicing helped develop my taste for strong greens. I chopped them up and added them to green smoothies as well. Strawberries and a packet of stevia complement both chard and kale quite well! 

Next, I started chopping them up and adding them to taco salads and eventually, other salads, tacos, atop burgers, as pizza toppings, under beans and rice, etc. 

Finally, I started preparing mixed winter green stir fries.....YUM! My first few attempts were bitter but edible. But, through, persistence, SUCCESS! 

When I cook atop the stove my goal is to retain as many nutrients as possible. I want every ounce of goodness I can get! So, I gently heat the coconut oil, add some freshly pressed garlic and saute lightly. Then I quickly add the greens in their whole form along with a few toppings that seem to suit them well for our taste buds ("our" being Tony and I -- the kids haven't ventured here yet -- they are still consuming them in fruit smoothies), saute about 30 seconds or less. Shut off the heat and cover to wilt a few minutes. 

We literally CRAVE these babies now and I am so excited when I arrive home from the market with my precious greens! I love the beauty they add to our dinner plates and the health they bring forth in the cells of my body! 

Oh, and did I mention that nearly all of those crazy hormonal symptoms pretty much non-existent at this time?!

Here are some ingredients we found to really compliment the beautiful flavor of our greens:

fresh grated ginger

freshly pressed garlic

coconut oil

sesame seeds

fresh squeezed lemon juice

a touch of sea salt

a tiny touch of cayenne

about 1-2 t of honey

raisins

We use these in any combination although, I think the more our tastes adjust, the less of the these we use. 

Enjoy! 

If you have a favorite recipe for raw or lightly cooked greens, please share!

Taco salad with romaine, spinach, kale, arugula, cilantro, and other veggies...
a great way to start sneaking those greens in!