I promised you we’d return to healthy eating this week. And we are – sort of. Abby Dodge has delivered a delicious and wholesome bran muffin that is possibly the easiest baking recipe I’ve ever made. These moist snacks can take on fresh or dried fruit as well as chopped chocolate, toasted coconut, toasted nuts or grated carrots. They’d be great for breakfast on the go or in the lunchbox. Read Baking Together #31: Mixing a Batch of Quick and Delicious Bran Muffins before you start to bake.
The only trick to making these Quick and Delicious Bran Muffins is having the ingredients on hand. Pick up the bran flakes, oat bran, and wheat germ (optional) when you’re next at the grocery and add them to your pantry. Once open, oat bran and wheat germ keep longest in the freezer.
One muffin deserves another (and another), I figure. I know, these other two are not quite so healthy, but look at it this way: Any homemade muffin is far better for you than a store-bought one, which is apt to be filled with preservatives and/or be the size of a baseball. Abby’s Chocolate Banana Muffins (like the bran muffins, made as a small batch of six) are a great destination for over-the-hill bananas (fruit=healthy!).
My fragrant Strawberry-Ginger Muffins would be delicious with apple or pear instead of the strawberries. But these beauties could just as easily be dessert as breakfast.
Now here’s something that’s seriously good for you. It’s called Noble Jade and it’s a variety of Chinese broccoli (also called Gai Lan). The best part is that Beetlebung Farm grows it in such a way that the stems are long and slender, the florets are opening up, and every part of the green is edible — perfect for the stir-fry pan.
Beetlebung opened their farmstand for the weekend and my husband and I enjoyed driving up to Chilmark, stopping in, and chatting with farmer Nick Doherty, who was opening one of the hoop houses (aka high tunnels) to let heat out. On a sunny day, even an unheated tunnel can get to be 80 degrees F inside. We bought party mix (salad greens), arugula, and a lovely bunch of Noble Jade. The carrots and radishes looked wonderful, too.
At home, I decided not to blanch the Noble Jade at all, but to cut the tender tops off and slice the stems on the bias into 2- to 3-inch pieces. I stir-fried the stems first (with slivered garlic) and added the tops and leaves (with red pepper flakes) towards the end. The browned garlic chips lent the cooking oil and the mildly mustardy greens (less bitter than broccoli raab) an earthy dimension.
The side dish, Stir-Fried Noble Jade Chinese Broccoli with Garlic Chips, was delicious but we could also have turned it into a light supper by using it in place of the broccoli in this Curly Pasta with Broccoli, Sundried Tomatoes, Garlic-Chile Oil & Goat Cheese.
Just a reminder to anyone buying local carrots, we have plenty of ways to use them, including these Pomegranate Honey Carrots.
And if you splurge on a whole chicken, tuck your carrots into this Roast Chicken with Pan-Roasted Vegetables.
Hope you can balance your vegetables and muffins this week, and we’ll see you on Instagram @cookthevineyard. Be sure to follow us if you haven't already.
What's Open, What's Happening
If you're looking to make a dinner reservation or wondering which farm stands and markets are open, visit What's Open on Martha's Vineyard for regularly updated listings.
Yesterday, Linda Jean's Restaurant in Oak Bluffs reopened with a festive ribbon cutting by new owners Lisa and Winston Christie - and a long line of customers waiting to get in.
