Spring Greens are in Season

There seems to be plenty of lettuce to be found in the Northwoods this week.  We've found a few interesting ways to eat this delicious vegetable.  To start with though, we made this traditional salad:

The first fresh picked green salad of the season tastes like a little bit of heaven.  Here I just added some cherry tomoatoes, radishes, green onions, crumbled goat cheese and dressing. 

STRAWBERRY / WALNUT SALAD (with option to add a chicken breast)

1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
3/4 c. olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 inch ginger root sliced
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar

SALAD:

Mixed greens (bib, romaine, spinach)
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast (strips)
1/2 red onion (sliced thin)
1 pt. strawberries
1/4 c. walnuts (or sunflower seeds)

Dressing: Mince garlic and ginger. Add remaining ingredients and shake to blend. Salad: Brown chicken strips in a little oil and butter. With chicken still in pan de-glaze with a few tablespoon of dressing. Set aside.
On individual salad plates arrange greens. Divide chicken and strawberries among plates. Add a few rings of red onion. Drizzle 3 tablespoons of dressing over and sprinkle with nuts.

Since the traditional salads have started to get a little old, we decided to experiment. 

SPRING GREEN SOUP

Here's the recipe:  http://www.wholeliving.com/recipe/spring-green-soup
However, I wouldn't waste your time on the recipe (unless you like blended lettuce).  We didn't really love to recipe, but I did see a recipe for Spring Green Potatoe soup that might be better.  I was at my parents house when I made this, so this is my mom's awesome summer soup bowl.

Next we tried pesto with spring greens instead of with basil. 

SPRING GREEN PESTO

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/pasta/recipe-spring-greens-pesto-048795

While Greta and I both enjoyed the pesto, there's really nothing better than the traditional basil pesto, so I doubt I would make this again.

I love to watch out for the turtles in late spring and early summer as they crawl to the side of the road to lay their eggs.  Here's one we saw close to our house:

The flowers are also in full bloom around Seeley right now.  Once the first full day of summer comes along, it seems the sides of the roads are in full bloom. 

Here's a picture of Greta with some daisies and we found some more pink poppies on the side of the road:

Here's another picture of the poppy from the top:

The lupines are also still in full bloom in Seeley.

We saw the last of the beautiful purple iris' this week too.

Next up will be the strawberries!!  I'm taking the kids picking on Saturday.

Happy Cooking!!

Rhubarb In Season!

Rhubarb has been in season around Seeley for about 1 month, so we've had lots of opportunities to try all sorts of fun recipes.   This year I had to beg, borrow, and steal rhubarb from friends, family and neighbors, - thanks to my neighbors MaryAnn, the Byrd's, and my friend Tabby.  I did plant my own rhubarb this year taken from my grandparents house in Osseo, so I hope to have my own rhubarb next year.

My daughter Greta is the only person I know who LOVES to eat this vegetable raw.  We keep it in a jar of water and she picks it out and eats the stems when she's hungry.  Most of my rhubarb recipes have quite a bit of sugar, so I was happy she could keep eat this veggie raw.

My running friend Stacey Raymond told me about this lemon, rhubarb muffin recipe which also happens to be the healthiest of my recipes. 

LEMON RHUBARB MUFFINS

 These muffins require applesauce instead of oil, whole wheat flour and uses a small amount of sugar.  Despite the healthiness, my kids ate them up and all 16 were gone in one day.  I'd say that's a pretty good sign.  The website with the muffin recipe is http://wp.me/p14M1k-1ld

Our most unhealthiest rhubarb recipe must've been the rhubarb ice cream.  Yum, it was delish though!!

RHUBARB ICE CREAM

Ingredients

• 3 cups sliced rhubarb, fresh or frozen
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions

1. Place rhubarb in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish; sprinkle with sugar; toss to coat. Cover and bake at 375 degrees F for 30-40 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Cool slightly. Process in batches in a blender or food processor. Transfer to a bow; cover and refrigerate until chilled.
**This is my Grandma Evelyn's 60 plus year old Cuisinart.  Works great every time!!
2. Stir in lemon juice. In a mixing bowl, beat cream until stiff peaks form. Gradually fold into rhubarb mixture. Transfer to a shallow 2-qt. freezer container. Freeze, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Cover and freeze overnight.

Next up:  STRAWBERRY RHUBARB SOUP

This soup was absolutely fantastic, but because of the high sugar content I limited our serving sizes to about 1/4 cup which seemed about right. 

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 lb. rhubarb, ends trimmed, cut in 1/2″ slices
1 1/2 lb. strawberries, hulled, halved
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whip cream for garnish
Combine rhubarb, strawberries and sugar in a large pot. Cover slightly. Cook over medium heat until rhubarb and strawberries give off their juices and rhubarb is very tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in vanilla. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Chop in blender. 


STRAWBERRY RHUBARB PIE

So, it's not the most beautiful pie in the world, but it tasted wonderful!!

Here's the recipe I used: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/strawberry_rhubarb_pie/

And here's another picture of the pie on my Grandma Evelyn's china:

RHUBARB BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1 cup chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb

Directions

1. In a small mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and sour cream; mix well. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Fold in blueberries and rhubarb.
2. Fill 12 greased or paper-lined muffin cups about two-thirds full. Bake at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

These muffins are not as healthy as the lemon rhubarb muffins, but they were very tasty and the kids ate them right up.

Equally as delicious:

RHUBARB BREAD

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups chopped rhubarb
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans. In a small bowl, stir together milk, lemon juice and vanilla; let stand for 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, oil and egg. Combine the flour, salt and baking soda, stir into sugar mixture alternately with the milk mixture just until combined. Fold in rhubarb and nuts. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.
3. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup brown sugar, cinnamon and butter. Sprinkle this mixture over the unbaked loaves.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a loaf comes out clean.

Now the muffins lasted an entire day, but the bread only lasted hours so I would consider it a big hit.

ASPARAGUS WITH RHUBARB COMPOTE

The asparagus was fabulous, but my rhubarb compote needs some work, so I'm going to hold off on sharing a recipe until I get it right.

Last but not least, my daughter's favorite rhubarb cake recipe.

RHUBARB CAKE

I got this recipe from my Grandma Evelyn's old church cookbook, but there's also many websites with the same recipe.  Here's one from cooks.com  http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,186,145172-253202,00.html

Along with the Spring vegetables comes the fawns.  We saw this one right next to our house the other day!

Next are the Spring flowers.  Here Greta poses by our neighbors Poppie garden.

The purple Lupines and Bleeding Hearts also make us happy.

Greta and I found this flower today on the side of the road coming back from the Farmer's Market in Cable.  I believe it's some sort of a Poppie, but I'm not sure.  My grandmother left me this vase when she passed away.  The vase was given to her mother in 1915 and has been passed on to me.  The flowers look amazing in the vase. 

We are all rhubarbed out in the Frane household!  Happy Spring!!

Crazy for Asparagus

We LOVE asparagus in the Frane household.  Winters are L-O-N-G in Northern Wisconsin and asparagus happens to be the first locally grown vegetable we can get our hands on, so we go a little overboard.  So much so, that we ate 24 pounds in 3 weeks.  Yikes!   Luckily, there's a farmer in Shell Lake (Bashaw Valley) that supplies us with all the organic, locally grown asparagus that we can stomach.  Here's a picture of our first 5 pounds of asparagus.  Yum!

Here's some of our favorite recipes!

Asparagus Soup

**Thanks to Aunt Paula for the awesome white soup dishes!

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh asparagus
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt and pepper

• 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup greek or regular yogurt
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions

1. Place asparagus and onion in a saucepan with 1/2 cup vegetable broth. Bring the broth to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer until the vegetables are tender.
2. Reserve a few asparagus tips for garnish. Place remaining vegetable mixture in an electric blender and puree until smooth.
3. Melt butter in the pan that was used for simmering the asparagus and onions. Stir while sprinkling flour, salt, and pepper into the butter. Do not let the flour brown. Allow the mixture to cook only 2 minutes. Stir in remaining 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth and increase the heat. Continue stirring until the mixture comes to a boil.
4. Stir the vegetable puree and milk into the saucepan. Whisk yogurt into the mixture, followed by lemon juice. Stir until heated through, then ladle into bowls. Garnish with reserved asparagus tips.

Review:  This soup is so good that I wanted to lick the bowl when it was done.  Yes, it's that good (if you like asparagus).


ASPARAGUS GUACAMOLE

24 spears fresh asparagus, trimmed and coarsely chopped

1/2 cup salsa

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

2 cloves garlic

1/2 onion

Directions

1. Place the asparagus in a pot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook 5 minutes, until tender but firm. Drain, and rinse with cold water.
2. Place the asparagus, salsa, cilantro, garlic, and onions in a food processor, and process to desired consistency. Refrigerate 1 hour, or until chilled, before serving.

REVIEW:  Another fabulous recipe!  Two thumbs up!

GRILLED ASPARAGUS with RHUBARB COMPOTE

Place asparagus on aluminum foil, drizzle with olive oil and salt.  Grill on medium low for 10 minutes or until tender. 

Rhubarb compote:  rhubarb, balsamic vinegar, ginger.  Add to a saucepan and simmer until the rhubarb is soft.  Enjoy.

Review:  The compote was a bit bitter but asparagus on the grill can not be beat.  Delish!!!

Next recipe:  Asparagus Frittata

Ingredients

• 12 large eggs, shelled and beaten with a wire whisk
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, grated
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1/2 pound t asparagus, blanched in boiling water, chilled and diced
• 1/4 cup assorted fresh chopped herbs: thyme, chives, chervil, etc.
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat an oven to 325 degrees F.

In large bowl combine beaten eggs with the milk and Parmesan. Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan, until the butter is frothy. Add the onion and cook until the onion is translucent and golden, being careful not to burn them. Using a large wooden spatula, stir in the eggs and turn the heat down to very low. Stir the eggs to form a large flat omelet shape, fully covering the bottom of the pan. When the eggs begin to cook and take shape, stir in the diced asparagus and the herbs. Place the whole saute pan into the oven and continue to cook for 2 more minutes until the frittata is cooked around the edges and the center has puffed up.

Review:  Very good!

Next Recipe:  Asparagus Salad

I used the first of my Spring lettuce with some leftover grilled asparagus.  I added a hard-boiled egg and used lemon juice and balsamic vinegar for a tasty dressing. 

Review:  good

The final recipe:  Asparagus and Tomatoe Salad

Add leftover grilled asparagus, balsamic vinegar, tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper and chill.  This is a FANTASIC spring salad.  I made it about 5 times.

My review:  GREAT!

I'll end my blog with a few lilacs.  There's something magical about the first flowers in Spring. 

Here's an interesting article about asparagus: 

www.mayoclinic.com/health/urine-odor/MY00378

I was pretty sure I was dying (lol), but it was just the asparagus!