SPRING GREENS Words: Daniel Nowland
W
e’re now approaching that euphoric time of year where you can turn the heating off, enjoy a cuppa in the sunshine and hopefully venture outdoors without a jacket. Certainly by the time this magazine comes out, I hope to be doing all three.
of olive oil, and a few pinches of sea salt crystals. Spend 4 or 5 minutes scrunching the kale in your hands, massaging the oil, lemon and salt into the leaves.
As we approach Easter, many of us also enjoy a change in our eating habits and start to use some of the produce which spring has to offer. Fresh leafy greens are some of my favourite things to eat, and I like to eat them at a level to compete with Popeye in terms of iron intake! Kale, watercress, spinach, rocket, and various lettuces all become available from the UK during the spring, and all of them are fabulous whether used in salads, soups, or pasta dishes. With many of these vegetables, the less you cook them, the more of their nutrients they will retain. I would love to share with you a few ideas for using these, and you’ll most likely find all of these on the counter at the deli over the coming weeks.
Finish with a sprinkling of crumbly white cheese such as feta, Wensleydale or Caerphilly, a sprinkle of pumpkin seeds, and a generous pinch of cracked black pepper.
WATERCRESS AND WALNUT PESTO
RUBBED LEMONY KALE
You’ll need:
Rinse off any grit or soil and strip the leaves from the stalk. Add to a large mixing bowl along with a squeeze of lemon juice, a glug
Bunch watercress (approx 80g), rinsed and chopped Juice of half a lemon 2 cloves garlic, peeled 80ml extra virgin olive oil 50g cheddar, grated 50g walnut pieces
Use green, purple, or black kale for this super quick healthy salad. It’s always better to buy the bunches of kale rather than the chopped and bagged type if you can.
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