@m.k.nutrition - "I'd make a Veggie Joke, but no one would CARROT at all"

What comes to mind when you think of a carrot? Orange, bunnies, baby carrots?

At Mother Earth Farm the carrots grown by these soil sisters are a variety of color, shape, size, and full of dirt loving nutrition!

The color of vegetables and fruits come from antioxidant compounds and all have a special part in promoting good health. Check out my infograph below to see what carrots are good for and why we should be adding them to our diets.

Like many root vegetables, carrots can be enjoyed in many different ways. From salad toppings to a hummus sidekick, to the grill, and all the way down to being used as a sweetener in a sauce. Sometimes we just have to look outside the box. Scroll down to see a summer friendly recipe for carrots.

Carrot Apple Coleslaw

Ingredients:

1 head of cabbage

4 carrots, peeled and shredded

2 sweet apples, finely chopped

2 cups swiss chard, finely chopped

1/2 cup parsley

1 tbsp honey

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

Add all liquid ingredients and seasonings to a bowl and mix well.

Toss all veggies/fruit into a large bowl and mix around.

Pour dressing over the veggies/fruit and stir well.

Refrigerate for about 20 min and enjoy!

@m.k.nutrition Dutch Oven Chicken with Mashed Turnips

Focusing on what is offered in each week’s share and coming up with a meal that uses most of the ingredients is always a challenging task. Don’t worry, I got your back! When creating meals I also like to utilize local meat or wild game to provide a meal full of nutrition.

Dutch Oven Chicken

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken (Mother Earth Farm Raised)

3 tbsp butter

2 garlic cloves - peeled

1 Garlic clove - minced

1 cup carrots - chopped

1 cup celery - chopped

1/2 cup scallions - diced

2 tbsp rosemary

salt and pepper to taste

About 2 cups of water (or broth)

Instructions :

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Melt2 tbsp of butter in a dutch oven (or cast iron skillet) on the stove top over medium high heat. While the butter is heating up rub the other tbsp of butter along with the minced garlic, rosemary, scallions, salt and pepper on the chicken.

Once the butter starts to crackle, brown the chicken, about 4 min each side.

Add the carrots, celery, and peeled garlic cloves to the pot.

Pour enough water (or broth) to cover the bottom of the pan, you might need to check this half way through and add a little more. Adding water will help to keep the vegetables from burning and will help create more drippings.

Cover the pot with a lid (or cast iron skillet with a foil tent) and transfer to the oven.

Bake for 20 min per lb or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.

Save the drippings for a gravy if you’d like!

Mashed Turnips:

Ingredients

4 cups of peeled and chopped turnips

Enough water to cover turnips

2 tbsp butter

milk

2 garlic cloves - minced

1 cup kale - chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Bring chopped turnips and water to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender. About 10-15 min.

Toss in the kale for the last 7-5 min.

Drain water then transfer the turnips and kale to a mixing bowl.

Add in butter, garlic, salt, pepper, and milk. Mix until the turnips look like mashed potatoes. Add the milk as you’re mixing to create the perfect consistency. I like mine chunky!

Asian Green Stir Fry

Ingredients: 1 medium onion, 1 turnip (top included), 2 cloves garlic, 2 cups mustard/Asian greens, 1-2 carrots, ¼ - ½ c. soy sauce, 1 T. honey, dash of red pepper flakes, vegetable oil, butter, brown rice, pork chops (optional).

Steps: Prepare rice as directed. Combine soy sauce, honey, 1 smashed garlic clove & pepper flakes. Chop carrots & turnip (excluding greens) into bit-size pieces and place in marinade, sit 10-20 min. Sauté onion and garlic in oil for a few minutes. Add marinated root vegetables. Continue to cook until slightly tender. Chop and add all greens. Throw in a chunk of butter & a little more soy sauce and serve on top of cooked rice.

If using pork chops, marinade in same marinade used for the root vegetables and cook in fry pan.