Hello, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and we tried a yummy dish I saw on facebook. It didn't turn out quite like the video but i was still tasty so I thought I'd share it here.
But first...
We found purslane! Mary shared a post on purslane a few months ago and I'd never really seen it around. Or so I thought. But after reading her post, I looked it up and realized that we have a Western version that's more of a succulent than a leafy green.
We had a Cub Scouts bike ride around a lake near us and while we were there we saw piles of it, so we had to bring some home to try. :) The Boy Scout troop leader was very impressed with our foraging skills and I told him it all came from a great cooking blog post. So, now there is a troop of Cub Scouts who know they can eat pig weed if they get lost (and here it's called pig weed, btw).
I saw a recipe on facebook that looked so delicious! Probably because it's fall and in fall my thoughts turn toward POTATOES.
Choppity chop with help from small people exercising good safety... Boil the potatoes half way. This is important. Don't overboil, like I did. We almost ended up with mashed potatoes, which was still good, but not like the recipe. While the potatoes are boiling (but not too much), mix one tsp garlic powder, one tsp salt, and one tsp paprika to 1/2 cup ranch dressing. I'm not a huge fan of prepared salad dressings, and even less if they're heated up, but I took a risk and decided to try it.
Anyway, drain the potatoes, toss with the mix, add two cups of sliced sausages (recipe called for bacon) and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and add a cup of shredded cheese an a cup of chopped green onions. The recipe called for Pepper Jack but I added sharp cheddar. Let sit for five minutes as the cheese gets a little melty, and then serve.
My husband's plate. Everyone liked it a lot!
And one last picture of our ambitious hen who keeps laying double eggs. Overachiever!!
Be sure to stop by my facebook author pages Mary Jane Hathaway or Virginia Carmichael, or on my blog at The Things That Last! Until next time!
A weed - that constant source of annoyance to gardeners and homeowners alike - is, if claims are to be believed, possibly the most nutritious food on the planet.
But let me backtrack -
Last weekend I was at the farmer's market. I knew I was going to have to unexpectedly head out of town for a few days (which is why you're not getting beets and kale this week either), so there wasn't much I needed. I was just wandering as my daughter shopped.
I was scanning the greens on the table when I overheard a conversation behind me. A woman was asking her friends if they'd ever eaten purslane. She said she had learned about it from some cooking show and that it was one of the healthiest foods in the world. It looked to me like a mini Jade plant.
I took a closer look. The label said it was the richest plant source of omegas. So I bought some.
Now, I think reading Shakespeare may be the only other time I've heard of purslane. Or it may have been in a Shakespeare garden I visited.
Since I'd be at my mother's house and not really able to cook, I thought I'd explore a little more for today's post.
The first thing I did when I got home was Google Purslane.
The results gave me words like "Exceptionally nutritious," "Edible
supergreen,"
WEED
Yes, purslane is a common weed.
But somewhere in my researching I came across a discussion about how most
research done on weeds is how to eradicate them, but the best way to do that is
to simply eat them!
Purslane may be a common plant, but it is uncommonly good for you. It
tops the list of plants high in vitamin E and an essential omega-3 fatty
acid called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Purslane provides six times
more vitamin E than spinach and seven times more beta carotene than
carrots. It’s also rich in vitamin C, magnesium, riboflavin, potassium
and phosphorus.
Studies investigating the remarkable longevity and low rate of
cardiovascular diseases among people living on the Greek island of Crete
suggest that the high dietary intake of ALA from foods like purslane, walnuts, figs, and stamnagathi might be a key contributor to Cretans' exceptionally good health.
(If you're wondering, stamnagathi is a wild green that grows on Crete.)
I love this video because he's playing ball with the dog while he talks about purslane.
I found this video that I thought was fascinating – especially for us as writers wanting to understand different lives people choose
I loved this video - part of a series called Eat the Weeds:
I don't really recommend picking purslane in the wild because there is a look-alike that's actually poisonous. This video does a really good job of showing the difference between the two.
So, how do you feel about eating weeds? Are you ready to give purlane a try? Or do you already eat it?
