9.01.2012

Summer Dinner - Veggie Style

Even though it is September, the farm stands will continue to offer delicious, fresh, clean food for many more weeks. I made a stop to one today and picked up corn on the cob, tomatoes, a bunch of green onions, and some peaches. Everything there looks beautiful and delicious, how can you put up with grocery store "freshness" in comparison?

Mission #1 - have corn on the cob for dinner. I am a big fan of this stuff. Loved it all my life. When I was growing up, we used to have that for our entire meal from time to time. This was easy for us since we grew acres of the stuff and didn't want it to go to waste. My cravings for it begin early, usually before it is ready for harvest. I get a dozen ears, steam half of them today, and save the other half for another day. Doesn't it look fantastic? Oh, my mouth is a-waterin' just looking at it! It tastes so good as it is, we keep it clean without butter or salt.



Eating corn alone doesn't fly in my house. It can certainly be the main attraction on the plate, but I have to come up with a side dish to go with it. I vamped up a recipe I found from Engine 2; they inspire me! Striving to eat clean is so worth the work. Everything tastes great and the health benefits are phenomenal. Here's a vegetable dish you can make and serve hot or cold.

Gnocchi with Veggies
Serves 6

In a non-stick pan, cook a diced onion with broth or white wine until it begins to be tender. Add 4 chopped carrots and 4 chopped celery stalks. Stir and cover for a few minutes until the veggies begin to soften slightly. Add 16 ounces can of no-salt added chick peas and a cup of green peas. Stir and cover to steam everything until hot. Sprinkle with Mrs Dash and ground black pepper. Set aside.

Cook the potato gnocchi (frozen kind for the low sodium factor) until done. Add to veggie mixture and serve topped with parsley.

This is a gorgeous meal. Colorful and healthy. You almost don't want to eat it, until you try the first bite, that is! Pour some seltzer in a glass and drop in some frozen fruit for flavor. You may want to include a swizzle stick so you can get every last berry out of the glass.



Clean summer eating at it's best! Try it; I bet you'll like it!