Adventuring

This was a weekend full of adventuring. If that's not a legitimate word, it should be.
Saturday morning began when I rediscovered Portland's amazing Farmers' Market. I've been wanting to experiment with various greens, so I figured I'd pick out some fresh options and then test them out for dinner Saturday.

I went home with
kale,
collard greens,
mustard greens,
and Swiss chard...

...along with these peonies and some fresh mint, asparagus, and rhubarb.

I might have gone overboard,
just a little bit!

After the farmers' market I went hiking with a friend in Forest Park. I will fill you all in on this Portland gem tomorrow or Wednesday.
When I came home from the hike it was time to start experimenting with all of these fun new ingredients.

Let's start with the kale.

Baked Kale Chips
Inspiration from The Little Red House

Ingredients:

one bunch of kale, washed, dried, and torn or chopped into 3 inch pieces

lemon zest and a little bit of lemon juice if you'd like

1 T olive oil

sea salt and pepper

Directions:

Toss your kale in a bowl with the other ingredients. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 mins at 250 degrees. (Light and crispy is the goal, no soggy pieces!)

I ran a little experiment by putting a bowl full of these next to Jeremy while he was working on an assignment.

He devoured them and then asked for more!

Looks like I'll be buying kale from now on.

A few hours later it was dinner time. Here comes experiment #2.

I found a recipe via foodgawker.com for Collards, Bacon, White Beans and Quinoa.

A pretty safe rule of thumb...anything with bacon will be good.

Collards, Bacon, White Beans and Quinoa
Inspired by Vita Nostra

Ingredients:

6 slices maple bacon

1 yellow onion, diced

1 and 1/4 C low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 C apple cider vinegar

2 T granulated sugar

1 bunch of collards, remove stems and coarsely chopped

1 can Northern White Beans, drained

1 C quinoa

2 C low-sodium chicken broth

Directions:

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crispy. Set aside on a paper towel.

Saute the onions in the bacon grease until translucent. Add 1 and 1/4 C chicken broth, vinegar, and sugar. Stir over low-med heat to dissolve sugar.

Add the collard greens and stir until slightly wilted. Add bacon. Reduce heat so the mixture is just simmering and then let it simmer for 30 minutes. Stir every couple of minutes.

Add the beans and simmer another 30 minutes. The goal is for most of the liquid to cook out.

In a separate sauce pan, boil 2 C broth and then add the quinoa. Stir. Cook for 20 minutes, until liquid has mostly disappeared. Quinoa will absorb all the broth.

Serve quinoa in a bowl and add the collard/bacon/bean mixture on top.

Delicious!

Another major kitchen success using interesting ingredients.

Stay tuned. Tomorrow I will fill you in on my trip to Seattle Sunday to see my Momma and little sister. I will also be experimenting tonight with the chard, so if that goes well I'll be sure to share.

Happy Monday!