The Rural Voice, 2019-04, Page 37Editor’s Note: The Rural Voice
is excited to announce the
recipes column will now be a
rotating column between three
esteemed chefs/cooks and bakers: our
very own Anne Mann who will be
focusing on gluten-free recipes;
Nancy Fisher, an engaging blogger
and instagrammer and Dorothy
Henderson who has enjoyed a variety
of careers: music teacher, mental
health worker, writer, Christian
educator, leadership developer and,
until her retirement, minister of
Caven Presbyterian Church in
Exeter. Dorothy grew up on a farm
near Kilsyth, Ontario, which
contributed to her life-long interest in
growing and cooking. Since moving
to South Huron 10 years ago, she has
taken a keen interest in locally
sourced foods, gardening, Kirkton
Horticultural Society, Communities
in Bloom and running an annual
Culinary Camp for Children. She is
the author of two recent books:
Loving it Local: Enjoying fresh local
foods (gardening and cookbook) and
The Season for Strawberries (a
novel); a sequel novel is due to come
out this month.
The fresh edible greens of April
are a welcome sign of spring.
Leafy greens, especially dark
greens like romaine lettuce, spinach,
swiss chard and kale are considered
super-foods. They offer colour, a
variety of flavours and are packed
with nutrients.
Take swiss chard for instance.
One cup of steamed swiss chard
provides 214 per cent of your daily
needs for vitamin A. This promotes
heart, lung and kidney health. The
same cup of swiss chard provides 53
per cent of your daily vitamin C
requirements. Vitamin C acts as an
antioxidant, reducing the risk of
chronic disease and battling high
blood pressure. The real hero is
Vitamin K (for bone and blood
health). There is a whopping 716 per
cent of your daily requirements in
one cup. (Source: www.nutrition
data.self.com)
Because vitamins are sensitive to
heat and water, it is important to
minimize boiling greens. The best
methods for nutrient retention include
eating them raw, in soups where the
vitamins are retained in the broth, by
stir frying or by cooking them
quickly in a microwave. Cut out thick
centre stalks to cook a minute longer
than the leaf.
If you find cooked greens too
bland, add herbs, a dash of hot sauce,
garlic oil or butter with salt and
pepper.
When spring greens are abundant
try this simple and delicious soup. It
may be made be spinach, young kale
or swiss chard as well.
Cream of Fresh Lettuce Soup
6 cups of lettuce (approximately)
1 cooking onion
1 cup green peas (I use frozen)
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup milk or light cream
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
• Wash the lettuce thoroughly and
leave to drain in a sieve or on a clean
tea towel. Save a few leaves for a
garnish.
• Chop the onion and add it with
the peas and broth to a large cooking
pot.
• Bring to a boil and add lettuce.
• Turn the heat down and cook,
slowly bubbling, for 15 minutes until
the vegetables are very soft.
• Purée in small batches (so it
Recipes by Dorothy Henderson
Green, fresh and so very healthy for you
Curried chicken salad (top) combines chicken and greens for a light supper.
Fruits and greens also pair very well as in the salad (above, right) or topped
with tikka (above, left) which are little strips of meat marinated in spice or sauce.
February 2019 33