St. Patrick’s Day is coming up next week. In the spirit of the holiday, I’ve been feeling inspired to create green themed recipes. When I lived in Chicago, the days leading up to St. Patrick’s Day were always very exciting. Parades would take place throughout different neighborhoods of the city. Restaurants would serve traditional Irish and green themed foods. Crowds would gather in hoards in the days leading up to St. Patrick’s Day. The river in downtown Chicago turns into a bright, beautiful shade of green from being dyed with a green powder. The atmosphere in the city becomes filled with welcoming festivities. During the few years I lived in Chicago, I would wake up early on the weekend before St. Patrick’s Day, take the El (or L) downtown to meet up with friends, watch the parade downtown, stroll through the Riverwalk to catch a glimpse of the green river, snap a few photos of the scenic Chicago views, and stop by a local restaurant or pub downtown to enjoy a specialty dish. Strolling along the Riverwalk was always my favorite part about Chicago. I especially loved seeing the bright green river and all of the excited people gathering together downtown. When I moved to Ohio. I especially missed the unique Chicago festivities around this time of the year. Instead of eating out on St. Patrick’s Day, I started whipping up my own tasty treats to celebrate the holiday. Usually, I would blend up my favorite ingredients to make minty matcha chocolate shakes to share with Kevin. This weekend, in the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, I prepared a green themed crudités platter filled with tons of green vegetables and served with a creamy avocado dip for a late afternoon snack. The transition from colder weather to warmer weather has motivated me to prepare lighter, brighter meals. Crudités are an easy way to up my servings of vegetables and enjoy a tasty afternoon snack along the way. If I’m feeling more indulgent, I may make one of my trusty minty matcha chocolate shakes. Lately, outside of work, Kevin and I have been spending more time at home. Kevin tends to spend his weekends catching up on gaming or board games. It’s his way of decompressing after a long week of work. I tend to spend my weekends testing and developing new recipes in the kitchen. Oftentimes, I don’t even notice how much time has passed by the time I’m done cooking. Trying out new recipes or food is my way of decompressing after a long week. The very green themed crudités platter with avocado dip was definitely the afternoon snack I needed to reenergize me after a long week at work. Over the next few weeks, Kevin and I will both be teleworking from home. We used the opportunity over the weekend to stock up on all of the essentials we need to last us through the next few weeks.
For the crudités platter:
· 4-6 cups water
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· 5 stalks of celery, cut into large sticks
· 1 cucumber, sliced thinly on a diagonal
· 1 broccoli crown, cut into florets
· 10-15 Asparagus spears
· 20-25 green beans
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the cilantro lime avocado dip:
· 2 small avocados, pits and skins removed
· 6-8 sprigs fresh cilantro, stems trimmed
· 1 lime, juiced
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Directions:
1) Heat a large pot on medium high heat. Fill with 4-6 cups of water. Once water begins to boil, add the kosher salt. Toss the broccoli in the boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove onto a plate. Add the asparagus sprigs in the water for 30 seconds. Remove onto a plate. Add the green beans in the water for 30 seconds. Remove onto a plate.
2) On a large platter, arrange the blanched broccoli, asparagus sprigs, and green beans evenly across the platter. Arrange the raw celery and cucumber slices across the platter. Set aside.
3) In a food processor, blend together the avocados, cilantro, lime juice, kosher salt and black pepper. Pulse for 30 seconds. Scoop the dip into a serving bowl. Place the serving bowl on the platter and serve.
Takeaways: Any edible raw veggies can be included in a crudités platter. Other great vegetables to fill a crudités platter include carrots, peppers, and cauliflower all cut into smaller pieces. A variety of dips can be served with the platter. I love to serve my platter with a cilantro lime avocado dip. The cilantro adds a freshness to the dip. The lime juice adds a tang and keeps the avocados from browning. Plus, the dip goes with the color theme of the platter.