We are having a bit of a lazy Sunday evening with another rainstorm moving through Colorado tonight (hooray!!) I was just thinking about this lovely gem I made one day; a purple artichoke. It was so pretty sitting on the shelf that I just couldn’t leave it. I think artichokes are great to begin with. They are a lot of work to eat and present a challenge to get a little reward, but so worth it. Artichokes are one of the few foods that we actually use the microwave to cook (even if it seems like sacrilege.) Let me tell you, it is super easy and you will be enjoying your artichoke in mere minutes. In our experience, this method is more consistent than boiling.

First, wash and clean the artichoke. Trim off the top to remove most of the points at the tips of the leaves. (You can trim the leaves you miss with scissors if you feel like it, though when it is just us we don’t.) Wrap the whole artichoke in plastic wrap and place in the microwave on high for 4-6 minutes or until the leave easily pull away from the artichoke. You can test it after four minutes, but be careful when removing the plastic wrap because that is some hot steam! After the artichoke is done, allow to cool while you melt a couple tablespoons of butter. Add a pinch of salt, fresh cracked black pepper, a bit of thyme, if you like, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to the melted butter for dipping. Serve immediately or cold later, it will be delicious either way!

PS – If you have never cleaned an artichoke, once you have eaten all of the leaves, remove the soft center leaves and you will see the fibrous choke. Take a spoon and carefully remove the spiney part and enjoy the heart.

I was sitting in the house this morning, hungry for a smoothie. Found no frozen fruits and no FRUITS at all! So instead I took this weeks CSA food and BLENDED it into my morning drink! YUM!

I took:

4 full carrots, 4 small radishes and 1 beet and finely chopped them.

What PRETTY colors!

I added Coconut Milk and some Orange Juice to get the goods to blend. I also added a scoop of Vega Sport Recovery Accelerator for an added boost.

Tossed everything in the Magic Bullet (*As Seen on TV) since I still don’t have the JACK LALANNE POWER JUICER and the juicing began!

This turned into a beautiful orange smoothie juice drink with lots of nutritional value! I don’t think I added quite enough liquid, but I like the thicker consistency of this drink. Plus its a vegetarian delight!

Now I am enjoying my juice and listening to Jimmy Buffet

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0—Q97pG4

What a good morning/afternoon!

*no animal biproduct was hurt during the making of this drink.

**inspired by Juicing Vegetables http://www.juiceupyourlife.tv/ 

UPDATE:

This is SO much better when you use an actual juicer. While this was “drinkable” since getting a juicer as a wedding gift in 2016, juicing has been a breeze! I also keep the pulp to add to our homemade dog food!

~ALI

Looking for something quick and easy for dinner? Look no further! By combining some of this week’s CSA items with some extra veggies and lovely shrimp, we got an easy stir fry. I found a bottle of sweet chili sauce in the fridge and thinned it with a little wine and fresh orange juice.

We used our CSA garlic scapes for some fragrance and bite, some amazing CSA sugar snap peas (I wish I had a whole bushel!), organic red bell pepper, some CSA greens, an artichoke heart, and an orange left over from a race goodie bag.

Try to keep the veggies the same size. Cook on medium high heat starting with the garlic, then larger veggies, then shrimp, then greens. Toss in sauce when you add the shrimp. Try not to overcook, it shouldn’t take more than a few minutes. Serve over rice or on its own and enjoy!

Kelly

As we told you earlier this week, we got our first CSA box of the season! Participating in CSA is amazing for so many reasons: it means fresh local food all summer, you get to support local farmers, and you get a surprise in a box every week! Because we don’t know what is coming each week, it presents a challenge of creating something out of what you bring home. This week’s box included braising greens…LOTS of greens. I have wanted to make white bean and escarole soup for a while, so was born my CSA version. Fresh greens + spring onions + spring garlic + a few pantry items = healthy bean and veggie soup! Great for a cool spring evening. Add whatever veggies are your favorite for some variety. You can make this a day or two ahead and it makes great leftovers for lunch. J

Kelly

White Bean and Braising Greens Soup

Inspired by Bon Appétit via Epicurious

1 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

2 large carrots, cut into small dice

6 spring garlic bulbs, peeled, finely diced (or 5 cloves of garlic flattened to be removed after sauté)

4 cups (packed) 1-inch pieces braising greens

4 cups (or more) canned vegetable broth or low-salt chicken stock

2 15-ounce cans cannellini (white kidney beans), rinsed, drained

1 14 1/2- to 16-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese (for garnish)

Heat oil in heavy large Dutch over medium-low heat. Add onion, carrot and garlic and sauté until onion is golden and tender, about 7 minutes.

Add braising greens; stir 3 minutes.

Add 4 cups broth, beans and tomatoes and bring to boil.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until escarole is tender and flavors blend, about 20 minutes. Thin with more broth, if desired. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve with an arugula salad dressed with lemon and enjoy!