Mary Beth Johnson is a wife and mum to four schooners, as she’s dubbed her children. On a normal afternoon, you would find her in moccasins, skinny jeans and a comfortable tee, camera in hand. Recently moving to the suburbs of Atlanta, Mary Beth spends her days homeschooling, sneaking away to the bookstore, trying to act the part of a southerner, and sifting through recipes in The Vegetarian Times. Food is her love language.

Spring is so close I can taste it. I’m anticipating longer days and (hopefully) the schooners sleeping in past 6:30am. Homeschool books are winding down just as we’re beginning to get burnt out. I think God knew we really needed spring.

I say every spring that I’m going to make an herb garden, but I think it’s for real this year. We always seem to be moving around this time and the idea of keeping yet another thing alive ends up sending me over the edge. But this year…I don’t know. We’re not moving, and I’m feeling it.

I use parsley, basil, and cilantro weekly in my kitchen. It’s a bit more work to chop and keep them stocked in the fridge, but the taste is incomparable so you never really want to go back to dried once you’ve started using fresh.

This emerald salad is full of alllllll the green things with heaps of fresh parsley. I’m a textures person so the crunch of the almonds was AMAZING. The recipe calls for feta sprinkled on top, but I had to give up dairy several months ago and even though I can have it now I don’t really miss it. So I photographed this dish without it, but if you can have cheese, I would tell you to go for it! It’s a true mix-and-match recipe and those are the ones that stay on rotation in my house. I made this for dinner last night and served it over plain rice and salmon on the side. But it would also make an amazing stand-alone lunch!

//EMERALD SALAD with FETA & ALMONDS 

 Serves 4 

1 lb. Broccolini 

1 lb. Broccoli

 1 Lemon, zest and half of it for juice 

1 Large Leek 

3 tbsp. Olive Oil

 2 tsp. Black Pepper 

3 Cloves Garlic 

6 oz. (about 3 Cups) Fresh Spinach, roughly chopped 

3/4 Cup Flat Leaf Parsley, Chopped 

3/4 Cup Sliced Almonds, toasted 

1/2 Cup Feta Cheese, optional 

A couple drops Young Living lemon essential oil, optional 

 Oven set to 475′ 

 1. Cut the broccoli and broccolini into roughly two inch chunks, on a bias. Using the white and light green parts of the leek, slice length wise and rinse out the dirt. Slice thin. Toss the veggies with the olive oil, pepper and lemon zest.
2. Slice the garlic cloves as thin as possible, no mincing. Add the broccoli mix to a large roasting pan. You don’t want to cram them in a dish as they will end up steaming in their own moisture. Give them space. Sprinkle the garlic slices on top so they feel the direct heat in the oven.
3. At this point, you could cover and wait until you’re getting ready to eat. Or, pop that pan on the top rack of the oven for 12 minutes.
4. Pull out the baking pan, and toss in the spinach, almonds, parsley and lemon juice + YL lemon essential oil. Toss in the pan so the heat wilts the spinach and the dressing it’s created, distributes. Put in your serving dish and crumble the feta cheese on top.

SO good. 

 
Source: Sprouted Kitchen

*All photography is my own.

***  Any suggestions made on this blog are very specific to Young Living essential oils and should not be used with oils from another source. Statements made on this website about Young Living Essential Oils have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products and information are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Anyone suffering from disease or injury should consult with a physician. If you are currently on medication, please DO NOT STOP. This is just how I make & do things. you must make informed decisions for yourself and your own family. 

“We are starting our journey with Essential Oils and have done our own research on the purity of oils.  I am confident in using oils in our recipes because we only use Young Living.  They are  beyond organic and never use pesticides, herbicides or any harmful chemicals. Their soil has never been exposed to them as well.  I don’t suggest ever using any other oil for ingestion because I don’t know of their purity. “