Saturday, July 21, 2012

win "wild about greens" ::
contest and recipe



I decanted the dressing to a recycled salad dressing bottle and made the tag in an extremely rare, Martha-Stewart-esque moment.



Nava Atlas is certainly one of the most prolific, plantalicious cookbook authors I know. And she's also one of the most gracious people in the vegan community – always there to give an encouraging word to aspiring herbivores, plug other cookbooks, and share her infectious positivity. Oh, and she's a visual artist and also writes non-fiction books, too. [Clearly this woman does not sleep!] Nava's newest cookbook, Wild About Greens, focuses, as you hopefully have deduced from the title, on recipes made with kale, spinach, chard, and the like. Gorgeous photos were shot by the lovely and popular blogger Susan Voisin.

I think this is a simple yet brilliant book concept. I don't know about you, but I am so over the "vegan series" of cookbooks: vegan this, vegan that, and vegan the other  [and I am allowed to say this because I wrote The Urban Vegan and Celebrate Vegan]. Using the word "vegan" in a cookbook title is definitely a trend that's past its prime. I love how Nava has chosen to focus on an impossibly broad-yet-narrow area of cuisine. And Nava's 125 recipes give you plenty of inspiration and cover the spectrum from salads to smoothies, and just about everything in between.
Wild About Greens contains 8, count 'em 8 recipes for Massaged Kale Salads. I made the Kale Salad with Dried Fruits and Nuts.



Contest:
Nava's publisher is giving away a copy to one lucky winner [US residents only, please]. I'll announce the winner sometime next week. All you have to do is tell me your favorite green veggie in a comment. To gain additional chances to win, do any or all of the following:

1. Like VegKitchen.com on Facebook.
2. Follow @navaatlas2 on Twitter.
3. Follow @theurbanvegan on Twitter.
4. Like The Urban Vegan on Facebook.


Recipe: Green Goddess Dressing
As if the book giveaway is not cool enough, Nava has kindly allowed me to reprint her Green Goddess Salad Dressing Recipe. I whipped up a batch this afternoon – it's light and the perfect dressing for summer salads. It looks like pesto, and that made me think it would taste great as a pasta sauce or even atop a baked potato. I'll definitely be making this again...


I used this dressing over Trader Joe's Healthy 8 Veggie Mix 


  • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 cup peeled, seeded and chopped cucumber
  • 1/2 cup firmly packed fresh parsley
  • 2 good handfuls of baby spinach leaves
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons white or red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill, or 1 teaspoon dried dill
  • Freshly ground pepper to taste

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Place all ingredients in the container of a food processor. Process until all that remains of the parsley is tiny flakes. Refrigerate the unused portion in an airtight container. Use within two days. [Besides using this as a salad topper, Nava also suggests drizzling it on lightly cooked or cooked veggies.]


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190 comments:

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

Arugula is my all-time fave green, but it seems few people share my passion!

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

I follow VegKitchen on FaceBook...

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

Annnnd I follow Nava on Twitter :D

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

Annnnnnd I follow VegKitchen on Twitter...

Tofu Mom (AKA Tofu-n-Sprouts) said...

Annnnnnnnnd I like the Urban vegan on Facebook... (ANNND I really want to win this cookbook, can you tell? Heh!)

urban vegan said...

Marti: I LOOOOVEEE arugula :)

radioactivegan said...

My favorite is Brussels Sprouts. they're so delicious!

Anonymous said...

oh my gosh that dressing's making my mouth water!

Tina. said...

I love arugula, too! :)

In fact, I love so many greens, I can't decide on the favorite. Kale. Wait, no, Swiss chard. Wait, no, spinach.... OK, maybe Kale would win.

Tina. said...

I also liked Urban Vegan on FB.

Beth said...

Tuscan (dinosaur) kale is my favorite! :)

Tina. said...

I liked VegKitchen on Facebook, too.

Space.Clown said...

My favorite green veggie is broccoli, but I also really like Kale. :)

Space.Clown said...

I liked VegKitchen.com on Facebook.

Space.Clown said...

I liked the Urban Vegan on Facebook.

Space.Clown said...

I followed Nava Atlas on Twitter.

Space.Clown said...

I followed The Urban Vegan on Twitter.

Anonymous said...

I, personally, have a bit of a love affair with spinach. which is so un-original. ;) Also - not only does that dressing look fabulous, but your little tag for it is such a lovely touch. :) Thanks to Nava for the dressing recipe!!

Anonymous said...

I just liked VegKitchen on facebook!

Anonymous said...

Also liked Urban vegan on facebook. Thanks for sharing the book & the giveaway!

Stealth Avenue said...

I don't know if Bok Choy counts as greens, but it's one of my faves!

Chef Amber Shea said...

I consider cauliflower a green veggie (well, it's a crucifer at least!), but if that doesn't count, I genuinely do love broccoli, too!

Chef Amber Shea said...

I consider cauliflower a green veggie (well, it's a crucifer at least!), but if that doesn't count, I genuinely do love broccoli, too!

Anonymous said...

Really excited to learn about your website and to like you on FB!

Chef Amber Shea said...

I like Veg Kitchen on FB

Chef Amber Shea said...

I follow Nava on Twitter

Chef Amber Shea said...

I follow you on Twitter

Chef Amber Shea said...

And I like you on FB.

Amy said...

I have really grown to love kale.

Geebs said...

My fav green is rainbow chard! And I follow VegKitchen on FB.

Anonymous said...

My favorite green is the versatile spinach that can go from smoothie to salad with the blink of an eye.

Kamila said...

I love spinach and kale simmered with onion, garlic, nutritional yeast, and oregano in a bit of soymilk, served over pasta... :)

Unknown said...

My favorite green has to be kale...especially love it lightly steamed with a little sea salt and sesame seeds! I love Nava Atlas, I follow VegKitchen on FB and now I will follow Urban Vegan on FB too (sorry, I don't twitter). Thanks for running the contest!

Rachel said...

Curly kale!

PatC said...

My favorite green is the versatile spinach that can go from smoothie to salad with the blink of an eye.

Jennifer Arent said...

I abso-smurf-ly LOVE spinach. It's been my favorite for as long as I can remember!

Taylor A Mason said...

This was harder than I thought!!! My favourite green veggie is...bok choy! (followed on FB, found you through VegKitchen.com's FB, don't use Twitter.)

SallyT said...

I'd have to say collards. I never had them growing up but when I found them, it was love at first bite.

teepee said...

It's kale for me! I love, love, love kale in any form: raw, braised with garlic and olive oil, chips, the list goes on. I liked Urban and Nava on FB. Thanks for the opportunity to win some goodies.

ollie said...

Kale is my favorite green. Perfect for this southern girl!

ollie said...

I "liked" Urban vegan on Facebook

ollie said...

I "liked" vegkitchen on facebook

Anonymous said...

My favorite green in spinach. I want to like kale but haven't found a way to fix it that I like yet.

Anonymous said...

I love avocado & spinach. I follow all four on Facebook & Twitter too!

Amanda Burton said...

I know...everyone loves kale. It's so versatile and nutritious though so it can't help being so popular!

Amanda Burton said...

I liked the vegkitchen on facebook.

Amanda Burton said...

I liked the urban vegan on facebook as well. :)

jackie said...

My favorive gren veggie is definitely kale!!

Kerry said...

Pea Shoots!!!!

tofucute said...

I <3 napa cabbage. Raw, cooked, pickled (kimchi!).

tofucute said...

Like VegKitchen.com on Facebook.

tofucute said...

Follow @navaatlas2 on Twitter.

tofucute said...

Follow @theurbanvegan on Twitter.

tofucute said...

Like The Urban Vegan on Facebook.

christine said...

At the moment my favorite green is kale. This book looks fantastic!

Alyson said...

Liked both Facebook pages. My favorite green veggie is peas! For years, the only green vegetable I would eat. Now I love them all but peas remain number one.

Gramma Mary said...

It's so hard for me to stop at naming just one favorite green! I have always loved vegetables and anything green. I guess at the moment bok choy is slightly ahead of everything else. I even put it in split pea soup recently! And it regulary goes into smoothies at our house.

Kim said...

Pretty boring here....spinach!

Kim said...

Liked urban vegan on FB

Kim said...

Already like veg kitchen on fb

Kathryn said...

I adore arugula!

olyheather said...

My favorite green veggie is kale. Our family discovered it after signing up for a local CSA program...they gave us a bushel of it every week and we needed to learn how to cook it.

Years later, we make tons of amazing, delicious things with kale, all the different kinds, and I reall think that it improves our health. I swear it's the best thing vegans can eat! I always hated that dumb question "How do you get your calcium?" Now I have an easy answer: "Greens--kale and collards!"

Anonymous said...

My favorite green veg is avocado - oops, that's a fruit. My real favorite is spinach.

Anonymous said...

I like VegKitchen on facebook.

Anonymous said...

I like Urban Vegan on facebook.

Valerie said...

I followed everyone everywhere, heh. And my favorite green is kale.

Erica said...

My favorite green is either Broccoli or Brussels Sprouts. I can't decide!

johanna said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
T.M. said...

My favorite is dinosaur kale. Raw or cooked I love it all!

Veganmaman said...

Greens are a staple of the French diet and I absolutely love watercress, which is fantastic in salads and soups!

Vegan Fazool said...

I adore arugula, too (Hi Marti & Dynise!) and put it on everything from pizza to pasta. I just buy it and throw it in things. Have got to try harder to grow it next year...

Thanks for the giveaway!

Vegan Fazool said...

Liked VegKitchen on FB! Actually didn't know about it, so that's cool.

Vegan Fazool said...

Followed Nava on Twitter, yeay!

Vegan Fazool said...

And followed VegKitch on Twitter!

Thanks again for a great giveaway (of course, I already "like" the Urban Vegan!)

Hannah said...

I don't know how I could have missed this recipe the first time around, because cucumber + dill = SOLD. My kind of flavors alright! Even more than that though, I love the label you created. It's so beautiful!

PS, if you'd be interested in a review copy of Vegan a la Mode, that could possibly be arranged. Email me you address if so! <3

fondducoeur said...

My favorite green is kale!

fondducoeur said...

And I liked the Urban Vegan on Facebook.

Bobbie {thevegancrew} said...

Brussels sprouts! Love 'em!

Michelle said...

Arugula is the best!

Kate said...

My favorite green is lacinato kale. Yummy raw and cooked, and a long season of local availability even here in Wisconsin.

Jessica Cameron said...

My favorite green is kale. Love it! I also follow The VegKitchen and the Urban Vegan on Facebook and Twitter.

Kate said...

...And begkitchcen.com liked on FB.
Nava Atlas followed on Twitter.
Urban Vegan followed on Twitter.
Urban Vegan liked on FB.

All good things!

Kate said...

I mean "vegkitchen" liked on FB. Sheesh, with the typos. Need more coffee...

Amy said...

My favorite green veggie - that's tough! I think it'd have to be Kale, though because it's so versatile.

Amy said...

I like VegKitchen.com on Facebook.

Amy said...

I follow @navaatlas2 on Twitter via my RSS feed.

Amy said...

I like The Urban Vegan on Facebook.

Thanks for hosting the giveaway!

Unknown said...

I am a new fan of kale. In fact, I am a new vegan!! So happy for my decision.

Heather B said...

Kale is totally my favorite. Even before it achieved it's celebrity status of today.

Heather B said...

vegkitchen is now liked on facebook

Heather B said...

@navaatlas2 followed on twitter

Heather B said...

@theurbanvegan followed on twitter

Heather B said...

The Urban Vegan liked on facebook.

Angela said...

I ran across your contest while eating a (huge) bowl of steamed broccoli. Let's go with broccoli!

Angela said...

(I also liked The Urban Vegan on Facebook. Thanks!)

Unknown said...

Asparagus is my all-time fav green veggie. Unless it's been boiled to death.

Morphine said...

It's a tie between spinach and kale. Yum.

kjmillionie(at)gmail.com

Morphine said...

I "like" Veg Kitchen on FB
(As Keya Millionie)

kjmillionie(at)gmail.com

Morphine said...

I follow @navaatlas2 on Twitter
(As @MissMorphine)

kjmillionie(at)gmail.com

Unknown said...

Liked vegkitchen.com on facebook.

Morphine said...

I follow @theurbanvegan on Twitter
(As @MissMorphine)

kjmillionie(at)gmail.com

Morphine said...

I "like" The Urban Vegan on Fb
(As Keya Millionie)

kjmillionie(at)gmail.com

Terri Cole said...

That dressing looks lovely! I adore swiss chard & mustard greens, okay, pretty much all greens!

gaia (at) cinci (dot) rr (dot) com

Terri Cole said...

I like VegKitchen on FB

gaia (at) cinci (dot) rr (dot) com

Terri Cole said...

I like The Urban Vegan on FB

gaia (at) cinci (dot) rr (dot) com

Unknown said...

Liked urban vegan on Facebook.

Anonymous said...

I love kale! It's the best!

Rebecca said...

Kale is my favorite green veggiee!

Rebecca said...

I am following vegkitchen.com on facebook!

Rebecca said...

I am following Nava Atlas on twitter! @rebeccaablock

Rebecca said...

I am following the urban vegan on twitter!

Rebecca said...

I "like" The Urban Vegan on facebook

Anonymous said...

Asparagus makes me happy :)

Carrie said...

Asparagus makes me happy :)

Anonymous said...

I just finished a bit kale salad, so I'll go with kale :-)

Anonymous said...

I like VegKitchen on facebook!

Anonymous said...

I like Urban Vegan on Facebook too...

shira said...

My favorite is kale!

shira said...

I like Urban Vegan on Facebook

shira said...

And I like Veg Kitchen on Facebook.

Anonymous said...

I live for spinach! Cooked or raw, I'll take it any way!
--Tara E.

Ana said...

Amazing giveaway!
My favorite green is Bok Choy, love it!
Ana

Ana said...

I already like VegKitchen on facebook!
Ana

Ana said...

I also like Urban Vegan on facebook!
Ana

Ana said...

I already follow Nava Atlas on twitter!
@KitchenspaceAna
Ana

Ana said...

I follow Urban Vegan on twitter!
Ana

@KitchenspaceAna

Bethany said...

My favorite green is baby arugula. I love how it's super flavorful and spicy!

VeggieLow said...

yummmm greens. i totally need to get this cookbook! my fave green veg of all time is kale, but at the moment i am LOVING beet greens... i am just so surprised at their versatility!

VeggieLow said...

and now i follow nava on twitter

VeggieLow said...

obvi follow you on twitter:)

Geeta said...

Nero di Toscana kale - preferably wilted and mixed with olive oil and lemon juice - love the bubbly look and texture

RochelleK said...

Wow... to pick just one green as a favorite?!? I grew mustard greens, collards and kale this past winter. But, I guess I could go with my husband's favorite and say "KALE!"

RochelleK said...

I am following VegKitchen on FB!

Rachel said...

I love spinach!

RochelleK said...

I'm following Nava on Twitter! =)

RochelleK said...

I'm following VegKitchen on Twitter!

RochelleK said...

Last, not least, I liked the Urban Vegan on FB!

Emily Hunt said...

KALE!! Especially massaged with lemon juice and olive oil. Yum!

Emily Hunt said...

I like Urban Vegan on FB!

Emily Hunt said...

I like VegKitchen.com on FB.

Becca said...

My fave is definitely kale!! Especially green curly kale. :) I ove your blog! And would love this book too - 8 massaged kale recipes you say?!

FoodandLoathing said...

I've liked Urban Vegan on facebook, and also, kale is my favorite leafy green!

moonsword said...

My favorite is edamame. Cheers!

Katie said...

My favorite green is lacinato kale!

Katie said...

I followed Nava on Twitter...

Katie said...

I follow YOU on Twitter!

Katie said...

I liked VegKitchen on Facebook...

Katie said...

And I like Urban Vegan on Facebook!

tarah said...

Kale of course!

tarah said...

Kale of course!

Anonymous said...

Collard greens. While i deeply love ALL green foods, nothing beats some garlicky steamed collards, black eyed peas, and a slice of corn bread. Yum!

Unknown said...

HEY this is working on Chrome again! HOORAY! ~erica in portland aka gawky

Unknown said...

My favorite green veggie is spinach!

Audrey said...

Kale, collards, broccoli

Audrey said...

I like VegKitchen on FB

Audrey said...

I follow Nava on Twitter

Audrey said...

I follow you on FB

jenna@good-good-things said...

Kale...definitely kale!

jenna@good-good-things said...

I follow you on twitter!

jenna@good-good-things said...

I also like you on facebook!

ErinS said...

Kale :)

colleenn said...

Brussell Sprouts-- fo sure!!!!!!!!

Jody said...

My favorite green is kale of course!

Michael Busch said...

Green Beans

Unknown said...

Oh man, how can I pick one favorite green?

Well, ok...kale! It holds up better than spinach and it comes in so many pretty shapes and colors.

And I like urban vegan on facebook!

Dennis said...

My favorite green is mustard. I love their strong flavor.

MonsterAteMy said...

Last year I would have said kale, but I think this year swiss chard is my favorite.

MonsterAteMy said...

I "like" Urban Vegan on FB.

MonsterAteMy said...

I "like" VegKitchen on Fb.

Unknown said...

oh YEAH i forgot to tell you my favorite green vegi... definitely cucumber. i never get sick of them and doubt i ever will, and they're one of the few foods i always buy out of season (bad me!). ~erica in pdx

Lolly said...

I LOVE spinach but have started to really dig kale!

Lolly said...

And I just liked The Urban Vegan on FB

Lolly said...

And I just liked the Vegkitchen on FB

Anonymous said...

Kale...mmmmm!

Anne S said...

My fave green is red russian kale!

Anne S said...

I like VegKitchen on Facebook!

Anne S said...

I like The Urban Vegan on Facebook!

Lisa from western Mass said...

I love kale ... but often add a handful of arugula to leftovers as part of lunch (it's great "wilted" when lunch is reheated) ... and broccoli has been my go-to winter vegetable for decades. Sometimes, though, I think my favorite green vegetable is the one that's fresh and ready to be picked from the garden or brought home from the farmers' market!

Cat said...

Oh, kale. I can't stop eating it!

jenni said...

kale is by far my favorite leafy green.

Unknown said...

Lacinto kale is my favorite green!

Unknown said...

I follow Nava on Twitter (@CultofKale)

Unknown said...

I follow the Urban Vegan on twitter (@CultofKale)

Unknown said...

I follow VegKitchen on FB

Unknown said...

I like Urban Vegan on FB

Sara said...

Kale is my favorite!

Michelle said...

I would love to have this cookbook so I can incorporate more greens in my diet.

Monica said...

How I love bok choy!

dreaminitvegan said...

That color dressing is beautiful. I'll have to get my hands on that book.

cyrus said...

the mizuna being grown in my garden right now!

spicier than spinach... more approachable than arugula.. can there be anything more perfect and prettily spiky? Mmm.