Spring comes on fast and furious. One minute (or month), it seems, I am scratching seeds into half-thawed ground and the next I am watching Red Russian kale and arugula flower and spinach go to seed.
I have watched crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, lilacs, forget-me-nots and dandelions bloom, and now am into rhododendrons, lupines, alliums, columbines and irises. The bees are happy at work, while ants are partying on my peonies.
I’ve been relishing my time in the garden with a different rhythm, since COVID-19 interrupted life as we knew it. I sleep later, work during off hours when the kids are outside, and stay up at night watching videos about growing things. I drink coffee in the morning, but often forget to eat until later in the day when my hangry panic sets in. Thankfully, we are moving out of months of buying greens at the store into eating our own home-grown.
This is the salad I wolf down in the afternoon these days:
Get yer greens salad
Ingredients
- Large bowl of greens (mine included kale, arugula, spinach and spicy mesclun greens today. Sometimes, I’ll add dandelion leaves. And my kids prefer romaine mixed with the darker wilder greens.)
- Radishes, if you have them
- A few green onions or chives
- Herbs, if you have them (parsley, dill, cilantro or basil)
Dressing
- Large heaping tablespoon of grainy mustard
- Large heaping spoon of tahini
- A couple of tablespoons of hemp seeds
- Splash of apple cider vinegar (mine is infused with dandelion flowers)
- Splash of flax seed oil
- Tablespoon of nutritional yeast
- Splash of maple syrup or fresh local honey
- Chopped garlic, if you have some (we’ve run out of last year’s garlic, so I used a sprinkle of garlic, hot pepper salt flakes instead)
Directions
- Wash greens thoroughly and chop or cut with scissors into bite sized pieces; Dry in salad spinner.
- Whisk dressing ingredients in a large bowl, adding more or less tahini depending on how thick you want it.
- Add greens, radishes and onions to the bowl with salad dressing and toss vigorously or massage with your hands.
Add extras if you like. Try chickpeas, roasted yams, pumpkin seeds, toasted sesame seeds, smoked tofu, grated carrots or ginger, or red peppers.
Resist the temptation to eat the whole bowl if you offered to make lunch for your partner. Enjoy ’til the next ravenous feast!
Traced Elements 