To Market, To Market

Tis the season for the return of the farmer's market here in Crystal City. Zoe and I took a walk down to see what they had to offer this Tuesday. I laid out a challenge for her: Find me a vegetable you have never eaten and we will eat it tonight. She accepted the challenge and we were off.

Here is our favorite pic from the market:

I digress. Back to the challenge. Zoe actually found two ingredients that she wanted to try and who am I to cut short the passions of a budding foodie?

We came home with swiss chard and ramps.

Here is what we made.

Finely chopped ramps (bulbs and leaves)

Chopped Chard (leaves and stalks)

Saute until soft in a cast iron skillet with little bit of butter

Salt/Pepper

Paired with some leftover smoked brisket from Mother's Day and brown rice, Zoe proclaimed our meal delicious. Challenge complete.

And now the boring facts....

• Swiss chard is high in vitamins A, K and C, with a 1175g serving containing 214%, 716%, and 53%, respectively, of the recommended daily value.
• It is also rich in minerals, dietary fiber and protein.
• Swiss chard is an excellent source of bone-building vitamin K, manganese, and magnesium; antioxidant vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin E; heart-healthy potassium and dietary fiber; and energy-producing iron.
• It is a very good source of bone-healthy copper and calcium; energy-producing vitamin B2 and vitamin B6; and muscle-building protein.
• Swiss chard is a good source of energy-producing phosphorus, vitamin B1, vitamin B5, biotin, and niacin; immune supportive zinc; and heart-healthy folate.

Nutritional Value of Ramps

• Ramps are a fat free and low calorie food.
• One half cup of ramps, boiled and chopped, contains only 16 calories.
• As part of the Allium family, ramps, like leeks, onions and garlic have been shown to reduce total cholesterol and LDL or "bad" cholesterol.
• As little as two or more servings per week of Allium vegetables has also been shown to lower the risk or prostate and colon cancer. Like onions, ramps also offer some fiber.
• One half cup of ramps offers five percent or less of the daily value of manganese, iron, folate, vitamin B6 and vitamin C.

Quinoa: I thought everybody knew you

A post about quinoa may not be advanced enough for some of you, but on the off chance that you have not been introduced to this tasty seed, let me formally introduce you.

Quinoa is a gluten free seed, related to dark leafy greens like chard or spinach. It can be used in place of rice or potatoes in the "starch section" of your plate. It crushes rice and other grains in the protein department, yielding 8g per 1 cup serving and adding 5g dietary fiber. Make it like you would any grain by adding in herbs, veggies or enjoying it plain for dinner. It's always tasty but for me, its most delicious first thing in the morning.

Morning Quinoa Delight

Make a bunch of quinoa the night before. Serve some for dinner and then set some aside in the fridge.

In the morning, melt a bit of butter in a saute pan.

Chop up one apple and one carrot into bite size chunks

Saute in butter until slightly soft. I like them browned but still crunchy.

Toss in a cup of the quinoa and some chopped pecans or other nut of your choice.

Stir until quinoa is warmed.

Sprinkle with cinnamon and eat.

This is a tasty breakfast porridge. Full of protein, fiber, minerals and nutrients- this kicks your oatmeal's ass. And my kid loves it, yours may too.