March {Cooked Greens}

In 2009 Nathan and I took the “eat local challenge,” a nationwide campaign that aimed to encourage households to commit to as much local food as possible.  Some folks committed to a meal a week or even a day. Being an all or nothing kind of gal, I went all in, every meal for a month. That quickly became every meal for the summer until fall.  As winter approached I wanted to continue, but, at the time, there were no winter markets and in fact very few options for locally, seasonally grown produce.

When Community Farmers Market opened their year-round doors in 2011, we found ourselves in a haven of winter options just as we as farmers started extending our season.  A staple on the seasonally sourced winter menu is cooked greens.

Nathan learned how to grow as many different varieties as possible and out of necessity I've learned how to cook them.  I love surprising folks with my favorite mustard green recipe because it quickly becomes one of their favorites too.

Sautéed Mustard Greens
Mustard greens (several large handfuls)
Bacon
Onion
Balsamic vinegar
Salt to taste

Brown bacon in skillet removing bacon once crisp (I often use bacon fat from the morning’s breakfast), then sauté onion in the same pan.  Wilt as many greens as will fit in your pot or pan over the hot grease and onion. Add bacon back in as garnish and drizzle with your favorite balsamic vinegar.  We love the fig balsamic from Stuarto’s Olive Oil Company (locations in Bowling Green and Lexington, KY,).