A new use for kale and a good laugh!

At yesterday's Ypsilanti-Downtown Farmers' Market, a young girl and her mother walked by our garlic table, with the girl proudly carrying a bag of beautiful kale. I asked if she needed some garlic to cook with her kale when she got home. She looked a bit confused, then looked up at her mother, at which point her mom responded that they did not actually eat kale themselves, but the kale was to feed her daughter's lizard! Well, my boys had all kinds of pets while growing up, but somehow I don't remember that we ever had lizards, so that was a new one for me! I laughed and laughed and asked if I could share this story on my kale blog while my husband handed the daughter a small (baby size) head of garlic just in case her lizard wanted to try some great tasting kale with garlic like we eat. He added the caveat that the lizard should not be eating better than they were, so they should try kale with garlic, too! This time the mom laughed and laughed, the daughter looked pleased instead of confused, and I think they went home with a new appreciation for kale and maybe garlic, too. :-)

Where kale is much more than decoration (or lizard-food) on our plate!

Diana Dyer, MS, RD

Kale and Garlic - Garlic and Kale

I'm so sorry that farming and selling our multiple varieties of organically-grown garlic at 3 local farmers' markets has reduced my kale blogging time to zero! Of course I have had a few other good things taking up my time, too, like my younger son's wedding in early August and all the continuous work of repairing and remodeling the house at our farm so we can eventually move in.

So it was such GREAT pleasure to hear one of our customers who has purchased garlic from us at Ann Arbor's Westside Farmers' Market tell me that she could eat stir-fried kale with garlic (or was that garlic with kale?) every night of the year and never (never!) get tired of it. Oh, such music to my ears.........I couldn't agree more! :-)

In addition, Amy Heath, farmer at Living Stones Community Farm in Ann Arbor now recommends my kale blog to all her customers who purchase her beautiful kale at the Ypsi-Downtown Farmers' Market and the Dearborn, MI Farmers' Market and then ask her for recipe ideas. Again, music to my ears. I always look forward to taking home a large bunch of LSC's kale each Tuesday night after the market closes. Our Tuesday night supper usually consists of, guess what, garlic and kale! So easy and so delicious. Add some whole grain bread, some cheese or eggs (cook on top of the kale), some other steamed or fresh vegetables, and fruit from your local market and supper is simple and done!

Then it's off to bed for us so we can get up before dawn (seriously!) in order to set up at the Wednesday Ann Arbor Farmers' Market that starts at 7 am.

Thanks to all the kale lovers out there who are enjoying the recipes already on my blog and not badgering me to get posting again. Don't worry.  I miss blogging. I never stop thinking about cooking and will be back at it (both cooking and blogging) as soon as possible. I promise!

Where kale is more than decoration on my plate and hopefully yours, too!

Diana Dyer, MS, RD