Greens

fruits and veggiescookingfarmers market

Mar 1

Written By Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

Greens are one of the first vegetables to appear in spring farmer’s markets. You will often find many kinds of greens, including braised or cooked, salad, and sprouted greens.

Sprouts or microgreens make a great topping for almost anything, elevating how any entree looks. Baked fish, chicken, and even vegetarian beans all look fancier with micro greens. Mustard sprouts have an amazing flavor and would be delicious in sandwiches and salads.

Braising greens include chard, kale, mizuna, mustard, and beets. Remove long stems from the greens and dry them in a spinner or with paper towels. Cooking greens can be sauteed in olive oil with garlic and then cooked with unsalted broth. They can also be thrown into soups.

It is a good time to try many kinds of salad greens like oak leaf, arugula, mache, and mizuna. These may also be referred to as "mesclun or mix." The best way to rinse greens is to place them in a colander in a large bowl full of water and then let the dirt sink to the bottom. Lift out the colander and drain well. You might want to do this a few times if they look dirty. You can also use a lettuce spinner if you have one.

If using salad lettuce greens, place them in a nice glass salad bowl. Toss with oil and vinegar. Then top with fresh sliced veggies.

Enjoy!

farmer's marketsaladgreensJune#04-2023

Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

Judy’s passion for cooking began with helping her grandmother make raisin oatmeal for breakfast. From there, she earned her first food service job at 15, was accepted to the world-famous Culinary Institute of America at 18 (where she graduated second in her class), and went on to the Fachschule Richemont in Switzerland, where she focused on pastry arts and baking. After a decade in food service for Hyatt Hotels, Judy launched Food and Health Communications to focus on flavor and health. She graduated with Summa Cum Laude distinction from Johnson and Wales University with a BS in Culinary Arts, holds a master’s degree in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America, two art certificates from UC Berkeley Extension, and runs a food photography & motion studio where her love is creating fun recipes and content.

Judy received The Culinary Institute of America’s Pro Chef II certification, the American Culinary Federation Bronze Medal, Gold Medal, and ACF Chef of the Year. Her enthusiasm for eating nutritiously and deliciously leads her to constantly innovate and use the latest nutritional science and Dietary Guidelines to guide her creativity, from putting new twists on fajitas to adapting Italian brownies to include ingredients like toasted nuts and cooked honey. Judy’s publishing company, Food and Health Communications, is dedicated to her vision that everyone can make food that tastes as good as it is for you.

Greens

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