I’ll be honest, you guys. After a few weeks without green garlic in our baskets, I was starting to get pretty bummed. It’s one of my favorite spring veggies! If you’re not famliar with good ol’ green garlic, don’t fret! we’ve got some ideas below on how to use those along with the other veggies in this week’s basket. Here’s what you can expect this afternoon:

• Green Garlic
• Beets
• Lettuce
• Snap Peas
• Collards
• Kale
• Scarlet Turnips
• Broccoli

Green Garlic

Margie has mentioned green garlic before as a “sandwich binder.” Just chop up the white parts and the more tender parts of the greens and sautee them up to add some oomph to your sandwich. You will not be sorry!

If sandwiches aren’t your thing, grab some of those awesome greens! Green garlic is a perfect complement to kale or collards. Just chop up the green and white parts, chiffonade the kale or collard greens, and pan fry it all in a little olive oil for a yummy side dish. If you’re not familiar with chiffonade, don’t worry! It just means that you want to slice it into skinny ribbons. You can also just plain chop it up.

Beets

Beets can be a little tricky if you aren’t used to cooking with them, but these root veggies are super versatile! Here are a few ideas:

• Pickle them up with some of that green garlic
• Roast them in the oven with the turnips we got. You can eat them as a side dish or top a salad with them.
• Grate them up to make a delicious raw beet salad.

Lettuce

It’s lettuce season, so we will probably be getting a variety of lettuce pretty much every week for a while. You can whip up a nice salad with your lettuce, but if you can’t face another salad right now, here are some other possiblities.

Snap Peas

My favorite way to eat snap peas is right out of the bag. They’ve got the satisfying crunch of a chip or cracker but without all the salt and processing. Yum! If you want to do something more with them, though, here are some recipes:

• Spicy Stir Fried Snap Peas
• Sesame Roasted Snap Peas
• Raw Cardamom Sugar Snap Peas

Kale and Collard Greens

Not sure what to do with those collards or kale? Don’t despair! Collards take slightly longer to cook than kale, but you can really sub one for the other in most recipes. Here are some greens recipes for ya:

• Crock Pot Greens that will Rock Your Socks
• Raw Kale Salad with Root Vegetables (If you use collards, you might need to let it marinate for longer – just keep checking it until it’s nice and wilted.)
• Kale Chips

Turnips

Turnips are one of those veggies that I think don’t get enough credit. Their cooked texture is so nice, and they’re ever so slightly sweet. I just love a turnip!

• Roasted Pumpkin, Turnip, and Garlic Soup with Balsamic Vinegar
• Mashed Turnips and Potatoes with Turnip Greens (if your turnips don’t come with greens, you can use that kale we got! Just cook them for a little longer.)
• Couscous with Turnips and Sweet Potatoes

Broccoli

Chances are you know what to do with your broccoli, but just in case you want to try something new, here are a few ideas.

• Grill it – wrap in foil with a little olive oil and toss it on the grill for about 15 minutes on high.
• Caramelized Broccoli with Garlic (You could use the white parts of your green garlic for this recipe!)
• Broccoli with Sesame Seeds and Dried Red Pepper

As always, I’d love to hear what you guys have been cooking up with your veggie hauls. Share your recipe ideas in the comments!

Image Credits: Green Garlic. Photo by Becky Striepe; Snap Peas. Creative Commons photo by JMacPherson