Learn to use what’s in season

I belong to a CSA, a Community Supported Agriculture farm, here in Boynton Beach.

Every Friday morning I go to Green Cay Farms to pick up my box of freshly picked vegetables, herbs and fruits that grow in my area.

That’s the best moment of my day.

I feel truly connected to the earth that nourishes me and the people who work the earth.

I believe that healthy eating is based on eating the foods that grow where I live as much as possible.

When I get home, I put everything in the box on my table and there and then I create my menu for the week, based on what I got.

This is this week:

I decided to make for one of my lunches, spinach with butternut squash sautéed in a mirepoix of chopped fennel, celery and ginger root.

Black eye peas, an excellent source of plant-based protein

For protein I added black eye peas which I get in the frozen section at Publix. I had that on a bed of round brown rice.

I love rice, but I prefer the round type to the long grain one.

Whole grains are an excellent source of nutrition, as they contain essential enzymes, iron, dietary fiber, vitamin E, and the B-complex vitamins.

Because the body absorbs grain slowly, they provide sustained and high quality energy.

But you can switch brown rice for any of your favorite whole grain!

What’s a mirepoix?

A mirepoix is a mix of herbs and spices that give your meal amazing flavors. You can create as many types of mirepoix as you wish.

Since I had these beautiful fennel bulbs I decided to put them to use!

Another way to incorporate legumes is in a soup, here’s the link to my white bean and rosemary soup

What’s your favorite whole grain? What do you think of my Black Eye peas with Butternut Squash and Spinach? Let me know in the comments below!

Black Eye Peas with Butternut Squash and Spinach
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Ingredients
  1. 1/2 cup of round brown rice, cooked
  2. 1/2 cup of black eye peas, cooked
  3. A handful of finely chopped fennel (half of a fennel bulb)
  4. A handful of finely chopped celery (1 celery branch)
  5. 2 Tbsp of peeled and finely grated fresh ginger root
  6. 1 tsp of ground cumin
  7. 3 handfuls of spinach
  8. 1/2 cup of cubed butternut squash
  9. 1 Tbsp of sunflower oil
  10. Salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Cook brown rice with 3 cups of water and boil until soft, then drain.
  2. Cook frozen black eye peas with water and salt until the peas are soft. Then drain and keep some of the liquid.
  3. In the meantime, chop one fennel bulb finely. Chop one celery finely. Peel a piece of ginger root and grate it.
  4. Warm up a pan first on medium-low, then add oil.
  5. Add a handful of celery and fennel and a pinch of salt and sauté for a few minutes.
  6. Then add the ginger, cumin powder and a little bit of the black eye peas liquid and cover your pan so your mirepoix can become soft without burning.
  7. Once it's soft, add the chopped butternut squash. Add a pinch of salt and a little more liquid if necessary.
  8. Then add about half a cup of black eye peas. Put the cover on and let cook until the butternut squash is soft.
  9. Add three handfuls of spinach at the end as the spinach will melt quickly.
  10. Adjust salt to taste.
Laure Carter Ayurveda https://www.laurecarter.com/
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