Photos by Edward Pond
Food styling by Ashley Denton
Prop styling by Sabrina Linn
##Menu##
* Spring greens with pink grapefruit
* Swiss and spinach soufflés
* Smoked salmon canapés
* Blueberry streusel muffins
##3 great greens to grow##
**Arugula** Known as “rocket” because it’s fast-growing, arugula is a cool-season green, so sow seeds or plant seedlings in spring (and/or fall) in rich, moisture-retentive soil in full sun or light shade. Keep the bed weed-free. Arugula will be ready to harvest in about 40 days. Pick young tender leaves for salads as the bigger leaves are tough and bitter. Arugula’s peppery-mustard flavour resembles its relative the radish. Typically used to jazz up a mild salad, arugula is also delicious when cooked. Its small white flowers are edible, too, and make an eye-catching addition to any salad. Packed with vitamin C and potassium, it’s a flavourful match for beets, figs, goat cheese, mozzarella, nuts, olives, pancetta, roasted peppers and tomato.
**Spinach** Available year-round, there are two main types of spinach: flat-leafed, which is mild and tender, and curly savoy, which is bitter and crunchy. Spinach grows best in cool conditions (spring and/or fall), light shade and fertile, uniformly moist soil. For salads, harvest small leaves with thin stems early in the season (for cooking, you can harvest later, but do so before it bolts, i.e., forms a seed stalk). Spinach is rich in vitamins A, C, B2 and B6, as well as folate, iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium. It pairs well with aged cheeses, chicken, cream cheese, egg noodles, garlic, mushrooms, nutmeg, onions, shallots and sour cream.
**Swiss chard** Also known as leaf beet, chard has large, round, pocketed leaves and thick, colourful stems. Although more heat tolerant than spinach, it likes cool weather in rich soil and full sun. The small, tender leaves are salad-worthy while larger, rougher leaves are best cooked—chard’s earthy-tasting leaves gain depth as a bitter green. The often-discarded stems have a mellow flavour. Chard contains potassium, iron and high levels of beta carotene and vitamin C. Its flavour works well with anchovies, capers, cured meats, olives, garlic, hot chili peppers, olive oil, onions, citrus zest, raisins, and sweet spices.
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