Any regular reader of Wednesday’s foodie posts already knows I’m a kale fan. Garden kale that is. I love Tuscan kale in particular and this week’s weekend project is to get you growing this great plant. Yes, I’m calling it a plant, not a vegetable, because Tuscan kale is desirable for much more than mere garden greens.
Here’s the case for kale:
- Tuscan kale is beautiful. As the summer and fall go on, it just grows more and more lovely. Even as autumn turns to winter, the kale becomes more blue in color and striking in form.
- This variety of kale is mild and delicious. Whether it’s picked as young, fresh leaves early in the season or the older, mature foliage cut from the bottom of the stalks in the fall or winter, these greens never get bitter.
- Kale is a most versatile vegetable. You can eat it raw in salads or steam, bake, stir-fry, saute, or grind it into pesto. Kale will work with any ethnic seasoning, so get as creative or cross-cultural as you like.
- There aren’t many vegetables that will sail through many frosts in the fall and early winter, but Kale is one of them. We’re talking LONG period of harvest!
- It’s good for you. OK, not just good…kale is really beneficial. I just saw my opthamologist yesterday and she told me that one of the best ways to prevent macular degeneration is to eat an abundance of dark green, leafy vegetables. In other words, K-A-L-E.
Beautiful, versatile, delicious, and good for your health. What are you waiting for? Plant this.
