SNOW DAY - MARKET CLOSED

Due to the winter weather, City Greens Market will not be open today.  Sorry for the inconvenience! 

In the meantime, if you are feeling adventurous and have some pure maple syrup hanging around the house, use this winter weather to try something new – Sugar on Snow, a Vermont and New Hampshire favorite!  (You have to use the real stuff for this!)

Bring 8 ounces (1 cup) maple syrup to a boil – heat to between 235-240 degrees Fahrenheit.  Dribble small amounts, about the size of quarters, of boiling syrup onto snow.  As soon as it touches the frozen surface it should solidify, making a maple taffy.

Enjoy the snow!

Image: Sugar on Snow

Post-Valentine's Day

Although Valentine’s Day was yesterday, it’s never too late to show someone you care about them.  One of the best ways to express your appreciation for loved ones is with the gift of fresh, local, preservative-free food!  It just so happens that City Greens is open today from 10-5 at 1202 South Boyle to help you out. 

This week we have potatoes!  If you're in a pinch for a quick side dish, here's a super fast way to prepare a baked potato - the perfect side dish to some meatloaf featuring City Greens' ground beef!

Super Fast Baked Potato

Ingredients

• 1 large potato
• 1 teaspoon butter or margarine
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 teaspoons sour cream 

Preparation

1. Scrub the potato, then prick several times with the tines of a fork.  Place on a microwave-safe plate.
2. Cook on full power in the microwave for 5 minutes.  Turn over, and cook for 5 more minutes.  When the potato is soft, remove from the microwave, and cut in half lengthwise.  Season with salt and pepper, and mash up the inside a little using a fork.  Top the open sides with butter and with sour cream.
3. For a healthier, local twist, substitute Windcrest Dairy's plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream.  

Images: Heart of Veggies

            Baked Potato

Beet-utiful!

This week at City Greens we are featuring the best of what is still growing in season.  Our Dietitian-in-Training will be making samples of a recipe that was in the New York Times in an article, "Beet Recipes Even a Beet Hater Can Love."  We'll be open today and every Friday all winter long from 10-5, and today our chef will be serving up samples around 11:45 so get them while they last!  Unsure if you'll be able to make it?  Check out the recipe below!

Grated Raw Beet Salad

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound beets
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoon minced chives, mint or parsley (or a combination)
• Salt to taste
• Leaves of one Romaine lettuce heart (optional)

Preparation

1. Peel the beets with a vegetable peeler, and grate in a food processor fitted with the shredding blade.
2. Combine the orange juice, lemon juice and olive oil. Toss with the beets and herbs. Season to taste with salt. Line a salad bowl or platter with romaine lettuce leaves, top with the grated beets and serve.  (Or serve in a bowl!)

Yield: Serves four.

Advance preparation: The grated beets can be dressed and kept in the refrigerator, covered well, for a couple of days. They become more tender but don’t lose their texture, and the mixture becomes even sweeter as the beet juices mingle with the citrus. Toss again before serving.

Recipe Courtesy of NYTimes.com

Super Healthy Super Bowl Tips

As the culmination of football season is upon us, here is the start of our Super Healthy Series to help you prepare for the Super Bowl coming up this Sunday!  Not sure where to find local ingredients this time of year?  Be sure to check out City Greens Produce on Friday, Clayton Farmers Market on Saturday morning, or Local Harvest Grocery any day of the week.

Here are some tips, courtesy of SparkPeople to help you have healthier party fare at your Super Bowl bash!
Check out the recipe at the end to apply some of the new tips to the dip! 

Ditch the Chips

• When serving dips, try a more nutritious option instead of greasy, fried potato chips. Some ideas:
• Grilled chicken or tofu chunks (Try local St. Louis Chef Dan Brewer's tofumade with non-GMO, Missouri-grown soybeans!)
• Broccoli or cauliflower, steamed or raw
• Bite-sized chunks of crusty, whole-grain bread
• Small whole-wheat pretzels
• Pita chips
• Baby carrots
• Bell peppers, sliced into strips or cut into triangles
• Inner leaves of Romaine lettuce

Dip Tips: Substitute!

• Instead of using store-bought or traditional homemade chip dip, try some new substitutions that will help cut some of the bad stuff, without compromising flavor.   
• Use light mayo instead of regular, neufchatel cheese instead of cream cheese, skim milk instead of whole milk, and plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.
• Swap pureed white beans for half the mayo in creamy dips.
• Use regular or low-fat mayonnaise for half of the recipe, and replace the other half with reduced-fat sour cream (or Greek yogurt!).  One cup of lower-fat sour cream will provide all the flavor and texture of mayonnaise but cut 1,300 calories and 150 grams of fat from the whole batch.

Don't Leave Dip Pair-a-dice

Even if you have healthier dips available, keep in mind when you're perusing the snack table that one serving of dip is about 1 ounce (about 2 tablespoons) - about the size of a pair of dice.  Just remember with dips to stay in the pair-a-dice rule and you won't over indulge. 

Creamy Spinach and Feta Dip 

Ingredients

• 6 ounces nonfat, plain Greek yogurt
• 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 2 ounces neufchatel cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup low-fat sour cream
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh spinach
• 1 Tablespoon fresh dill
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation

1. Place yogurt, feta cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, and crushed garlic clove in a food processor; process until smooth.  Spoon yogurt mixture into a medium bowl; stir in spinach, fresh dill, and black pepper. Cover and chill.  

Recipe courtesy of Cooking Light via MyRecipes.com

Happy February from City Greens

Good Morning City Greeners!

Happy February and Super Bowl weekend!  Come on over to the market to get all of your Super Bowl party needs.  Today we have:

Mushrooms

Mustard Greens

Swiss Chard

Spinach

Squash, squash, squash

Mushrooms

Limited quantities are available, so come in early to get your greens!

Our meat freezer is chock full of pork products, ground beef (fresh delivery!),  and some whole chickens.  And of course, we have lots of eggs, jams, honey, pasta, yogurt, and cheese. 

Also, stop by the market today and try a taste of our dietitian-in-training’s healthy Super Bowl samples.

We’re open today from 10-5 on 1202 South Boyle. 

See you soon!