Beet Greens!

Fresh Spearfish beet greens from Gage's Gardens

Popped these beet greens on top of pasta.  Delicious!

Don't toss your beet greens!  This recipe from www.simplyrecipes.com and is so delicious (I changed it just a bit).  My beet greens came from a huge pile of greens at Gage's Gardens and most of the stems were small and totally usable in this recipe.  Make sure to ask for them.  Any woody stems and those leaves that needed to go, went into my compost pile out behind the shed in the backyard.

Beet Greens

1 lb beet greens (I used one very packed plastic grocery bag full) - you can use the stems if small
1 tbl bacon fat and one piece of crispy bacon
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 large minced garlic clove
3/4 cup water
1 tbl sugar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/6 cup cider vinegar

1.  Wash greens in sink filled with cold water, drain and do it again.  Cut into bit sized pieces.
2.  In a large skillet, cook bacon until lightly brown with the bacon fat.  I know, this sounds weird but makes it extra good.  Add onion, cook over medium heat about 5-7 minutes, stirring a bit until onions start to brown.  Stir in garlic and add water to hot pan to loosen any brown particles from the bottom of the pan (really scrape).  Stir in sugar and red pepper. Bring mixture to boil.
3.  Add the beet greens, gently toss in the onion mixture so the greens are well coated.  Reduce to low, cover and simmer about 10 minutes until the greens are tender.  Stir in vinegar.

Add this mixture to pasta and wow, a full meal!

Eating Locally in Winter

This is a great excerpt from a book I am reading, Outstanding in the field; a farm to table cookbook by Jim Denevan:

"The goal is to build a tasty, satisfying meal primarily with what is local and seasonal, supplementing with ingredients from farther afield. The reality is that it's tricky to eat strictly locally and seasonally all the time, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to find a good deal of our foods from close to home when possible. There are an increasing number of ways to do this: Purchase local chickens at a farmers' market instead of industrial ones shipped cross-country and enjoy domestic berries from late spring to early fall instead of buying imported berries in January."

It's extra challenging here in the Black Hills but I am convinced it can be done.

So here's what was on my plate for Sunday. Sorry, no photo.

A potato dish that included Yukon Gold potatoes (stored from Gage's Gardens). It was so good, I have to share the recipe:

About 5 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 onions, cut in wedges (mine came from Safeway)
1/2 tbl dried rosemary (from my summer garden -- still fragrant)
3 tbl olive oil (this was from World Market (their own label) in Sioux Falls -- EVO and it's really good)
Salt and pepper

Throw everything in a baking dish and mix together so the potatoes and onions are coated. Put in a 375 pre-heated oven for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are done and a little crunchy. Every 15 minutes, mix it up. Yum!

We also had stuffed hamburgers. The burger came from a local cow (RIP) that we purchased from the Butcher Shop in Spearfish.

Here's that one:

For four burgers / one pound of ground beef.

Stuffing mix: Finely chopped onions, peppers (from my garden last year), a piece of pastrami (from the Butcher Shop) and a piece of Swiss cheese (I think from Sam's Club), dried oregano (from my summer garden), salt and pepper.

Mix together the chopped onions and peppers, set aside.

Divide beef in 8 sections. Take one of the sections and flatten it out so it's very thin (I put it on a cutting board) but still thick enough that it won't fall apart when you pick it up with a spatula. Put a small piece of the pastrami on top of the burger and make sure to leave about an inch from the edge. Then scoop on the onion / pepper mix, salt and pepper and top with a small piece of Swiss. Roll out another section of burger so it's flattish and put it on top of your burger with pile of stuff on it. Seal the edges like you've made a little pie. Try to really seal it or stuff inside (like the cheese) will really ooze out and it won't be as cute.

I use a little spray oil and cook the burgers in a big frying pan with a lid over medium high heat. Be careful when you turn them over so they don't come apart. These are really good and a nice surprise when you bite into them . No bun needed.

Oh, and we had some broccoli too. From Sam's I think.