Collard Greens and Roasted Beets in a Balsamic Reduction

Whisked Foodie

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Cook Time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

1 cup balsamic vinegar

1 bunch of beets (about 5), peeled and chopped into 1” chunks

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 green bell pepper, seeds, stem and veins removed, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

1 bunch collard greens, chopped

Directions:

Start your reduction several hours before you plan to serve, or make ahead of time. Bring 1 cup of balsamic vinegar to a boil in a saucepan and reduce to low heat, simmering until thickened and reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 1 ½ hours.

To roast beets, preheat oven to 375˚F and line a sheet pan with foil. Arrange beet pieces in an even, single layer and roast until slightly shrunken and bubbly, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Heat oil in a large, high-edged skillet over medium heat. Saute onion, garlic, and green pepper until soft, about 7 minutes. Stir in roasted beets, salt, and pepper. Add chopped greens, tossing to combine. Cover and cook until wilted and tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Drizzle individual servings with balsamic reduction before serving.

Cauliflower Pizza Bites

Guilt-Free Pizza Bites (Cauliflower Pizza Bites)
Amy Layne Paradigm Blog Visit site for more recipes!

I have only recently started enjoying cauliflower and this recipe is one of the reasons! Granted, we may need more cauliflower to make these, but they're worth it!

Guilt-Free Pizza Bites (Cauliflower Pizza Bites)

Prep time: 10 Minutes - Cook time: 25-30 Minutes
Yield: Makes 24 Cauliflower Pizza Bites

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Grated Cauliflower (washed, dried and grated using a food processor or cheese grater by hand until rice-like or thinner – Note – Approximately one head of cauliflower)
• 1/4 Cup Egg Whites
• 1 Cup 1% Cottage Cheese (drained)
• 1 Tsp Oregano
• 2 Tsp Parsley
• 1/4 Tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil (Optional)
• 1-2 Tbsp Frank’s Hot Sauce (Optional)

Directions:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 450 F.
2. Using a healthy cooking oil spray your mini muffin tin.
3. In a hot frying stir fry the “cauliflower rice” until the cauliflower is slightly translucent (about 6-8 minutes). Place in a bowl and let cool.
4. Place all other ingredients the food processor and blend until smooth.
5. In a bowl combine both the “cauliflower rice” and blended ingredients. Mix completely.
6. Evenly spoon mixture into your muffin tin molds. Press pizza dough down evenly and firmly (*The pressing down firmly is very important to make sure these stick together).
7. Place in your oven and bake for 25-30 minutes.
8. Remove the pizza bites from the oven and let set until cool (This is also very important – let these pizza bites set in their pan for 5 – 10 minutes before removing – If you take them out while they are too hot they will break).
9. Once cool remove from muffin tin (either by tipping them out OR by running a thin knife down along the side and popping them out).
10. Use organic, natural pizza or pasta sauce for dipping (or make your own sauce)
11. Enjoy!

Dandelion Greens Salad with Strawberries and Balsamic-Caramelized Onions

Serious Eats

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, sliced into 1/4-inch-wide rings or half moons
10 ripe strawberries, sliced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, divided
1 bunch dandelion greens (about 4 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a medium frying pan. Add the sliced onions along with a good pinch of salt. Cook, stirring often, until the onions are soft, lightly brown, and reduced to about 1/3 of their raw volume. You may need to reduce the heat gradually as the onions shrink. This is a slow process that could take 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, toss the strawberry slices with 1 teaspoon of the balsamic vinegar. Wash the dandelion greens in several changes of water and dry thoroughly.

When the onions are nearly done, add the remaining 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar to the pan and continue cooking until it has thickened slightly, a minute or two. Remove the onions from the heat and stir in the Dijon mustard.

In a salad bowl, combine the greens, onions and strawberries with all their juices, scraping down the onion pan with a rubber spatula to incorporate all the oil and vinegar into the salad. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss. Divide between two plates and serve.

Roasted Garlic Cauli-Broccoflower

Taste of Home

2 tablespoons fresh minced garlic 
3 tablespoons olive oil 
1 head cauliflower (1 1/2 pounds), separated into small florets
1 head broccoflower (1 1/2 pounds), separated into small florets
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese 
Freshly ground black pepper to taste 
1 bunch chopped fresh parsley 

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Lightly oil a roasting pan or casserole dish. 

Place the garlic and olive oil in a very large glass, ceramic or metal mixing bowl (if you use plastic, the garlic scent will permeate the bowl). Add cauliflower and broccoflower and stir to mix well, using 2 large spoons. Add Parmesan and black pepper and stir again to mix well. Pour into prepared casserole dish.

Bake for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through. Garnish with chopped parsley if you like. 

Serves 6. 

Lavender-Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan)

Farmer Jim suggested this week's lavender would be excellent in a chocolate chip cookie, so I went looking for the best recipe I could find. Doesn't this sound truly amazing? 

Pretty Parcel

Vegan Lavender-Chocolate Chip Cookies (Chewy)

1 ½ - 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (use the extra ½ if batter is too wet)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt (I used coarse pink Himalayan salt)
3/4 cup Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Spread, melted (I used about 1 Tbsp less than this) 
1 1/2 cups of raw sugar
1 teaspoon molasses
1/2 teaspoon agave nectar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
1 1/2 tablespoon EnerG Egg Replacer + 3 Tbsp water, combined
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips 
2 tablespoon+ dried lavender 

1. Preheat oven to 325°F and prep your cookie sheets with parchment paper. Sift together the flour and baking soda. Add the salt separately if it is coarse, otherwise sift it too. Set aside.
2. Combine the melted Earth Balance with the sugar, molasses and agave in a mixing bowl. I don't have a mixer and so I make sure to beat this well, doing it by hand. There should be no separation between the sugar and melted margarine or you will get oily cookies.
3. Add the vanilla, cinnamon and EnerG mixture and give them a good beating, again, if you're doing this by hand.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix just until combined (don't overmix, flour doesn't like that.)
5. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips and the dried lavender. Taste the dough (which you can do because there are no eggs!) and add more lavender if you like.
6. Measure 1/4 cup per cookie and give them a few inches to expand on the tray. Bake for approx 15 minutes and then remove and allow to sit on the pan another 10 minutes or so. These cookies are crisp on the outside, dense and chewy on the inside: a perfect chocolate chip cookie with a twist. The sweetness makes the lavender taste amazing, and no one will know they're vegan.

Check this recipe out if you're not up for vegan baking.

Lavender is also fantastic in tea. The dried flowers soothe digestive upsets and contain constituents beneficial in hypertension, cardiac disorders, insomnia, melancholy, dizziness and asthma. For sufferers of headaches, anxiety attacks, rheumatic pain and distension, try a cup of hot lavender tea (1tsp per cup of boiled water) or put several drops of the essential oil on your pillow at night.

Kohlrabi Slaw

from Tasty-Yummies

Kohlrabi Slaw with Dried Cranberries and Walnuts – gluten-free + veganserves 4-6

Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon stoneground mustard
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Salad:
4 small green or purple kohlrabi, cleaned, peeled and cut into matchsticks, about 2 cups
1/4 head of savoy cabbage, sliced as thinly as possible, about 1 cup
1 stalk of celery, thinly sliced
2 garlic scapes, very thinly sliced (you could also use green onions)
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup raw walnuts, roughly chopped
Salt and black pepper to taste

In a small bowl, mix together the vinaigrette ingredients with a whisk until well combined. Set aside. In a large serving bowl, add all of the salad ingredients except the cranberries and walnuts. Toss gently to combine, the pour over some of the vinaigrette, you may not need it all, go conservative to start, you can always add more. Toss well to coat the entire salad with the vinaigrette. Sprinkle the cranberries and walnuts on top, salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Strawberry and Sorrel Smoothie

This will surely cool you down on a hot day. Plus it uses two of this week's shares in this easy to digest smoothie of strawberries and sorrel from Green Lemonade.

1/2 cup sorrel leaves

1/2 cup baby spinach leaves

3/4 cup strawberries, frozen (or fresh but add more ice cubes)

1/2 banana, frozen

1/4 cup coconut or almond milk

1 cup filtered water

a few drops of stevia (or a little honey)

1-2 ice cubes, to thicken

Blend and love it!