I was thrilled to look out upon my plants this morning and see that I have a ton of spinach ready to pick. Nothing beats the satisfaction of having grown my own food, in my own backyard. It’s like my own private Farmer’s Market! I eat a lot of spinach so growing my own is going to help me streeeeetch my budget this spring and summertime! Oh! And you know what else helps to save money when planting? Using these big wine barrels to plant several different types of lettuce and reusing them over and over instead of spending money on pots!
Spinach is super easy peesy to grow, especially from the seed. I planted five seeds about a month ago and I now have handfuls upon handfuls of fresh cut spinach, and I literally forgot to water them for days at a time and they still grew! It can survive winter temperatures (at least here in California) and even those blimey little snails in my yard! And what’s not to love about the nutritional benefits of spinach? It’s extremely rich in antioxidants, especially when fresh, steamed or boiled quickly. It’s also ridiculously rich in iron and calcium so eat up! My favorite way to enjoy fresh spinach is of course in a BIG homemade salad with a lovely citrus dressing, but I also love to mix it in with eggs in the morning for a Green Scramble. And since there’s like no calories or fat in spinach, the more you eat, the better and fuller you’ll feel! Check out the recipes below!
Speaking of feeling full, I had a full weekend, if you know what I mean! Andy and I started dating 11 years ago on May 1st so there was plenty of celebrating to do and rich food and wine to consume! Happy Anniversary to us, a couple who enjoys the finer things in life! We had a yummy dinner at The Gardens of Avila located on the property of Sycamore Springs and then we took a soak in one of their hot tubs while sipping Rose! We also attended Waves, Wine and Beyond in Pismo Beach on Sunday, an event that included a surf contest and a VW classic car show, which was awesome! All the proceeds from the event benefit the Association of Amputee Surfers (AmpSurf), a non-profit organization. I am obsessed with VW’s so this was one of the coolest car shows I had ever been too!
This 1954 VW Bus was used in the war to carry injured soldiers away on these stretchers!
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Green Egg Scramble- serves one
Ingredients:
-2 eggs
-2 cups fresh spinach
-salt and pepper
Directions:
1. Spray down a frying pan (I love this Trader Joe’s Coconut Spray) and add the spinach. Cook until the spinach shrinks and turns dark green.
2. Scramble two eggs and when spinach is ready, pour on top.
3. Lightly season with salt and pepper and enjoy! Guilt free eating!
Beet and Blue Cheese Spinach Salad- serves one
Ingredients:
– 2 cups fresh spinach
-1/2 cucumber
-5 radishes, sliced
-1/2 yellow beet, sliced
-salt and pepper
Directions:
1. Chop up all the vegetables, wash the spinach and add to a large bowl.
2. Lightly sprinkle some blue cheese on top, salt and pepper.
3. Toss and enjoy with my favorite Citrus Dressing!
For this Citrus Dressing, all you’ll need is 1 T olive oil, 2 T each of rice and apple cider vinegar, the juice of one lemon and a dash of salt, sugar and pepper. Mix well!
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I’m currently reading Captive Queen by Alison Weir and when I’m through, I plan to start Thirty Girls by Susan Minot. I have read EVERYTHING that she has ever written and I suggest you do to! My favorites of her’s include Evening, Rapture and Monkeys.