Sunlight on... Cucumbers!

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The peak season for cucumbers is May-July, but they are available year round. In ancient civilizations, people not only used them for food, but for skin healing properties as well.

Nutrition
Cucumbers are a very good source of vitamin C and molybdenum, as well as folate, fiber, and potassium.

Simple Ways to Enjoy
Use cucumbers in various salads, as appetizers or snacks with veggie dips or hummus, or place slices in water for a refreshing drink! 

Cucumber Recipes

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Sunlight on... Cherries!

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These sweet little treats are in season June-August and I can't stop eating them right now! About 40% of the world's production of cherries is in Europe, and about 13% is in the U.S.

Nutrition

Cherries are great for fiber, vitamin C, and potassium. Studies show they help balance your blood pressure, and are packed with antioxidants to help fight free radicals. The riper the better! They produce more antioxidants as they darken.

Simple Ways to Enjoy

Add cherries to fruit salads, jam, cobblers, pies, or eat plain for a sweet treat!

Cherry Recipes

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Recipe Post Break

Taking a short break from recipe posts as we joyfully welcome our sweet baby girl into the world! The weekly Sunlight Sunday series will continue so please join me for that, and I'll be back in the kitchen again soon... with a mini garden grazer by my side!! :) In the meantime, check out some of the recipes we've been especially craving so far this summer:

Ultimate Greek Salad	Caesar Salad Wrap with Egg	Vegetable Panini	Salsa Fresca
Marinara Sauce	Garlic-Basil Balsamic Vinaigrette	Orzo Salad with Spinach, Tomato, Feta	Lentil Orzo Soup
Strawberry Lemonade Slush	Lentil Spinach Burritos	Mediterranean Flatbread	Tomato Balsamic Vinaigrette

Happy summer to you all!

~Kaitlin

Sunlight on... Spinach!

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Spinach is available year-round. It's been recognized as a vegetable ever since the Renaissance back in the 16th century.

Nutrition

As you can guess, this is one mighty vegetable! Spinach is heavily packed with numerous nutrients and antioxidants. To highlight a couple, it's an excellent source of iron, calcium, folate, vitamins A, C, and K and is also a good source of fiber and protein. Frozen spinach is nutritionally comparable to fresh cooked spinach, however it has a bit less flavor.

Simple Ways to Enjoy

Use in salads, sandwiches and wraps, smoothies, pasta, soup, eggs... endless possibilities!

Spinach Recipes

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Green Enchiladas

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Time for another recipe revisit. This is a unique twist on enchiladas, and it's oh so delicious. Edamame, cannellini beans, and corn join together inside the tortillas, coated with savory salsa verde. I absolutely had to post these again because the pictures on my previous post didn't do them nearly enough justice! (Although I still found them a bit tricky to photograph...)

Ingredients

15 oz. can cannellini beans

2 cups shelled edamame, fresh or frozen
1 cup corn, fresh or frozen

1 medium onion

3-4 cloves garlic

2 tsp. cumin

4 oz. diced green chiles (I use mild, fire roasted hatch chiles from Trader Joe's)

12 oz. salsa verde

8 large tortillas (flour, corn, or whole wheat)

Mexican shredded cheese

3-4 slices provolone or pepper jack cheese

Directions

Dice onion, mince garlic. Rinse and drain beans.
Place skillet over medium heat. Saute onion 5-8 minutes.

Add cumin, garlic, green chiles and cook 1 minute, stirring.

Add corn, edamame. Saute for another couple minutes.

Add beans, salt/pepper to taste. Stir to combine and turn off stove.

Preheat oven to 325. Distribute the mixture evenly down the center of tortillas. Top with shredded cheese, then roll up tightly tucking in both ends.

Place enchiladas seam side down in a lightly sprayed 9x13 inch pan. Coat with salsa verde.

Place in oven for 15 minutes. Remove and place strips of provolone or pepper jack on each enchilada.

Return to oven for 10 minutes.

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Egg & Veggie Breakfast Sandwiches

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To get more freezer meals stocked away before baby arrives, I turned to these awesome looking egg sandwiches from Macheesmo.com. I also added mushrooms and onions in addition to the spinach. Of course, my husband and I each taste-tested one before going into the freezer and they were awesome. I seem to have a recurring issue when making freezer meals... after spending all that time preparing the meal and being teased with delicious smells, I find it impossible to just stash it all away like it never happened. I consider eating only one of these a HUGE success. Can't wait to take them out of the freezer soon!

Ingredients
12 eggs
12 whole wheat english muffins
Shredded cheese
Veggies of choice: I used mushrooms, onion, spinach
Butter for spreading (I use vegan Earth Balance)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.
Scramble eggs in a bowl (I add a tiny bit of soymilk to ours).
Dice veggies. Lightly saute mushrooms and onions.
Butter a muffin tin, and add veggies.
Evenly distribute eggs on top of the veggies (filling about 3/4 full).
Bake for 20 minutes, checking center to make sure they're cooked through.
Split the english muffins in half, add shredded cheese, an egg cup, and lightly mash down to spread out the egg cup.
I let them cool before wrapping up in tin foil to freeze. Wrap each sandwich individually, then place all in a freezer safe ziploc bag.

To reheat: place sandwiches (still wrapped in foil) in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes, or microwave out of foil, in a paper towel.

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Sunlight on... Strawberries!

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The peak season for strawberries runs April-July. The first garden strawberry (as opposed to wild) was grown in the late 18th century. Today in the U.S., strawberries are the most commonly consumed berry.

Nutrition

Strawberries are exceptionally rich in antioxidants and a wonderful source of vitamin C and manganese. Health benefits are numerous, including cardiovascular, blood sugar, anti-cancer, and anti-inflammatory.

Simple Ways to Enjoy
Enjoy strawberries in fruit salad, smoothies, on mixed green salads, in parfaits, and a very common occurrence in our house: standing over the sink munching away!

Strawberry Recipes

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