Happy 2023!! This year I have decided to change things ups bit...who doesn't want to see some changes in the new year?! I have a project I am working on in this new year, my intention is to include my blogs as a part of this project. For 2023 we are going to "Savor Your Soul Through the Seasons".

We will talk about seasonal foods, seasonal moods, seasonal decorating (table settings and your environment), seasonal entertaining...a lifestyle for the seasons. Seasons are a big part of our lives, how and where we live, how and what we eat, how we feel during each season. Quite a few of us have our favorite seasons, and our not so favorite seasons. My hope, is that through these blogs, I can open your eyes to the significance of each season and embrace them and in turn. bringing out the best in ourselves. Seeing the beauty in each season, the necessity of the seasons and actually LIVE in each season, in some of the ways our ancestors did, many many years ago.

Let us take this 2023 journey through the seasons together, and see if we can change our relationship with the seasons by understanding and appreciating each one!!

First nutrient dense vegetable I am sharing is kale (recipe to follow). On questions in growing it in your garden, kale is considered neither annual no perennial, basically biennial, along with carrots, parsley, leeks and hollyhocks. As biennials, in their first season in your garden, kale plants will put all their energy into leaf production, growing bushy and lush under the right conditions. Biennial kale will continue to produce edible leaves throughout the winter. While in colder zones, these plants will go dormant during the winter-which means their leaves may die back, but their root systems will remain alive. After the first winter, your biennial kale will begin to put more energy into reproduction, and less into leaf growth. Resulting in, the leaves not being as tender and better suited for cooking than eating raw. So it seems safe to say that kale can bee eaten year round, especially if it is looking hearty and healthy (but choose organic).

Health benefits of kale, rich in antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin K and beta carotene. It is one of the most nutritious leafy greens. We can all drive ourselves crazy reading pros and cons regarding the foods we eat, but in my education the facts are the facts when in come to the nutrients in our food. How we choose and it we choose to eat them is up to you, my recommendation is variety, kale is not the only nutritious vegetable.

Lemon Garlic Kale

Ingredients:

2 large bunches of kale, variety of your choice

2 tbsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic, sliced or mashed

pinch of red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

juice of 1 lemon

Directions:

Pull the kale from their stems rinse them and coarsely chop.

Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the garlic and rep pepper flakes, cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the kale, a few handfuls at a time, stirring the kale as it wilts. Stir in the salt and pepper, cover and cook stirring frequently until the kale is tender, about 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat and squeeze in the lemon, stir and serve.