Volunteer Spinach

I was going to collect seed from my spinach last year but got sidetracked and it didn't get done.  I ended up feeding the old plants to the chickens.  They love fresh greens of any kind.

This spring, I noticed I had some volunteer spinach growing along the sidewalk.  I left them for Lulu to nibble on as she wandered past.  I also thought it might keep her away from the other plants growing in the garden.  Wrong!  She'll eat a side of spinach before moving over to the tiny cabbage and bok choi plants for a leaf or two - unfortunately for those plants, a leaf or two is most of the plant.  :(

Since the spinach has been doing so well, I decided Lulu could share her bounty with us.

I recently got a steamer and decided to try cooking some spinach.  Yum!  It was so tender and much easier to cook than boiling it in a pot and having to try to turn the spinach so it all gets done at the same time.  We ate it straight from the steamer with a drizzle of vinegar.  (Sorry no pics as I forgot to snap some before we ate it all.)

I also made a spinach salad that I regularly made in the past.  Again no pics but it is not hard to make.  Chop 1/2 pound of bacon and fry until done.  Boil several eggs, peel and slice.  Slice some mushrooms.  Wash spinach and rip into bite-sized pieces.  Place spinach in bowl and sprinkle on bacon bits.  Add egg and mushroom slices.  Drizzle on ranch dressing.  Enjoy!





Salmon Patties

I first ate Salmon Patties at my dear aunt's dinner table years ago.  They were simple, quick and yet tasty.  She used canned sockeye salmon to make hers.  I have sometimes used canned salmon but this time we baked a whole salmon and had leftovers so I decided to make salmon patties.

Ingredients (since this is a throw-together recipe exact amounts aren't given)
salmon - canned sockeye or leftover cooked salmon
egg
crackers - soda crackers or cheese Ritz crackers
onion, celery, green pepper or carrots
parsley and/or dill weed


If you don't start with canned salmon. you need to remove all the bones.

Mash the salmon with a fork.

I add a sprinkle of dried parsley and some dried dill weed.  You can also add pepper or other seasonings if you wish.

Auntie Ruby added finely chopped onion to her patties.  She also sometimes used finely chopped celery.  I have seen some recipes use chopped green pepper as well or instead of the onion and/or celery.  I decided to try grated carrots.  The choice is totally yours.

Add an egg or two depending on the amount of salmon you use.  Canned salmon usually is moister so you would only need one egg.

Add some crushed crumbs and mix together well.

I used regular soda cracker crumbs but you can also use cheese flavored Ritz crackers for a slightly different taste. 

Form the salmon mixture into patties.

Coat both sides with cracker crumbs, pressing slightly into the surface of the patty.

Fry in butter at medium to medium high heat.

Flip when browned.  Serve warm.

Since I have lots of carrots this year, I whipped up a quick carrot slaw.  To grated carrots add chopped apples and raisins.  In the past, I have also added chopped celery and/or nuts.  Again totally your choice.

Mix some mayo with a bit of milk and pour onto the slaw.  Stir until well coated.

We ate the salmon patties with a seafood cocktail sauce and carrot slaw.

Enjoy!  ;)

Greek Salad

I love Greek Salad.  Since my cukes and tomatoes have been ready in the garden, I've eaten this salad at least three or four times a week.  Even when only my cucumbers were ready, I ate a modified version with only cukes on a regular basis.

There are a number of different ingredients that you can use for Greek Salad but I'll show you my version.  You can use this as a starting spot and add, subtract or change whatever you like to make it your own.

I start with three or four cucumbers, depending on the size and how many people I am serving.

I used a bunch of cherry tomatoes that grew 1 1/4" to 1 1/2" in diameter.  I don't know the variety because I had quite a number of volunteers this year from the produce chipped from the grocery store.  I had tomatoes, squash, melon and pumpkin that grew on their own.  Some got pulled out but many were left to see what they produced.

Peel and slice the cukes.  Some people like wedges or very thick slices.  I like mine about 1/2" thick.  Some people also remove the seedy centres but I like them. 

Since the tomatoes were too large for one bite, I sliced them in half.  I do you large tomatoes cut into chunks on occasion but am saving them for canning this year.

I like to use pitted black olives and cut them in half.  Some people use whole olives with pits.

Crumble on some feta cheese.  Many people also add onion slices - either white or red but raw onions don't agree with me so I leave them out.  My sister-in-law also adds green peppers chunks.

Sprinkle on crushed oregano leaves.  I like oregano alot so I crush two large pinches of it.

I then drizzle on olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  My mom uses regular vinegar but to me the taste is lacking the flavor of the balsamic.

There you are all ready to go.  Again I didn't give amounts because I find more or less oil and vinegar is all a matter of taste.

Toss the salad to mix and coat it all with the oregano, oil and vinegar.  Add salt and/or pepper to taste if you wish - I don't.  Enjoy!  ;)



Sui Choy Salad

I love Sui Choy Salad.  Sui choy is also known as Napa Cabbage or Chinese Cabbage.  I grew some successful two years ago so we pigged out regularly on it.  Last year my cabbage bolted and went to seed before it made heads.  This year is was very slow and seemed to rot off at the base of the plant.



I got the recipe from here http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=31446 .

Ingredients

1 head Sui Choy

1 c slivered or sliced almonds
1 package instant noodles - broken (not the flavour packet)
1/8 c sesame seeds

Dressing:
1/2 c oil
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c apple cider vinegar (I used Balsamic and regular mixed instead)
2 tbsp soy sauce
Bring dressing to a boil and then let it cool. Make sure sugar is dissolved.

In a frying pan, place the almonds, noodles, and sesame seeds. Cook them on medium heat, stirring them around in the pan until they are toasted. I found it is better to add the sesame seeds a bit later as they are so small and have a tendency to burn before the other bits are browned.

Wash and dry the cabbage. 

I usually slice mine in half before chopping it up.

It works quicker if you pile a number of slices together.

Slice the cabbage.

Place in a large bowl.

Stir the cooled dressing to mix and pour it on.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Mix well and refrigerate.

Dish out and enjoy.

This salad is a good keeper.  It is tasty for several days.  (If it lasts that long)  ;)

Red and Green Jellied Salads

I usually make these two jellied salads for Christmas.  The green one is called Colleen Vegetable Mold and is taken from Jean Pare's Company's Coming Salads.  The recipe for the red one is from my mother-in-law and it is to die for.

Ingredients - Green Salad
1 small pkg lime gelatin
1 c boiling water
1 c crushed pineapple with juice
1/4 c salad dressing
1 c cottage cheese
1/2 c chopped celery
1/2 c shredded carrot

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water.

Add pineapple and cool slightly.

Stir in salad dressing until all lumps dissolved.  I found if you cool the mixture too much, the salad dressing does not dissolve and remains lumpy.

Stir in cottage cheese.

Add celery and carrots. 

Chill until set.  I serve this salad in a bowl and spoon it out instead of putting it in a mold.

Ingredients - Red Salad

1 small pkg cherry gelatin

1 small pkg raspberry gelatin

1 1/2 c boiling water, separated

1 c cranberry sauce

1 c crushed pineapple with juice

1 10 oz pkg raspberries, thawed  or 1 c fresh

1 c whipping cream

125 gm pkg cream cheese

1/2 c sugar

1st layer:  Dissolve cherry gelatin in 3/4 c boiling water.  Add pineapple and cranberry sauce.

Pour into 9x9 cake pan and chill until set. 



2nd layer:  Beat together whipping cream, cream cheese and sugar until firm and fluffy.

 Spread onto first layer and chill again.

3rd layer:  Dissolve raspberry gelatin in 3/4 c boiling water.  Mix in raspberries.  Chill until mixture has thickened but not set.

 Carefully spread on cream layer.  Chill until set.  Cut into squares.

Enjoy them both!  They are favorites around here.  :)