After a perfect sunny Saturday at the farmers market, Sunday is a day for cooking up all the veggies we brought home. For me, that means the veggies I brought but didn’t sell. For you, perhaps it means the veggies you purchased. This week I find myself with an abundance of microgreens. Normally I enjoy my microgreens in simple preparations that really let their flavor shine. I sprinkle them on top of scrambled eggs, baked potatoes, sandwiches, and soups. I make salads with them, or add them to big leafy salads combined with other greens. Today, I was in the mood for something a little more celebratory for the family Father’s Day Barbecue. Mediterranean flavors were calling to me, and the basil in my garden needed a little trim. I came up with two variations on a fresh-flavored summer dip featuring pea tendrils and buckwheat microgreens.

Mediterranean Microgreens Bruschetta

This version is heart-healthy, vegan, and completely delicious. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 box buckwheat microgreens (1/2 pint)
1 box pea tendrils (1/2 pint)
1 bunch fresh basil leaves (1 cup, gently packed)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 12oz jar roasted red peppers, drained
1 14.5oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained

Add buckwheat microgreens, pea tendrils, and fresh basil leaves to a food processor and pulse a few times to roughly chop and combine. Add artichokes and red peppers to the food processor. Pulse again until ingredients are uniformly chopped and combined.

Add salt, black pepper, and extra virgin olive oil to taste if desired. Serve atop toasted baguette slices or on your favorite crackers.

Creamy Microgreens and Artichoke Dip

This dip is a little more indulgent than the bruschetta, and perfect for a celebration. It feels like a treat, but is secretly packed with nutrients!

Ingredients:
1 box buckwheat microgreens (1/2 pint)
1 box pea tendrils (1/2 pint)
1 bunch fresh basil leaves (1 cup, gently packed)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 12oz jar roasted red peppers, drained
1 14.5oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained
1 package unflavored cream cheese
5oz Parmesan Cheese, grated

Add buckwheat microgreens, pea tendrils, and fresh basil leaves to a food processor and pulse a few times to roughly chop and combine. Add artichokes and red peppers to the food processor. Pulse again until ingredients are uniformly chopped and combined. Add cream cheese and parmesan and pulse just enough to combine the ingredients.

Add salt and black pepper to taste if desired. Serve cold or warm with tortilla chips, or spread on a sandwich with your favorite vegetable fillings.

Further Reading

You may also enjoy some of my other articles about microgreens:
A Micro-Farm for Microgreens
Two Summer Dips: Recipes Featuring Microgreens!

A Personal Note About Artichokes

Both of these recipes also feature artichoke hearts. Artichokes are a special food in my family. My parents lived in California at the beginning of their marriage, before I existed. They lived in one of the regions where most of the country’s artichokes are farmed, and they learned to love this edible flower bud. It became a family tradition that endured even after they moved to Indiana, where artichokes are less common. I grew up loving them and I’ve tried time after time to grow them in my garden, even though that is challenging here. I’m getting better at it, and I continue to try every year, though I’ve never succeeded. Maybe this year will be the year I get to harvest a fresh artichoke from my garden. I hope so. Meanwhile, I buy them once in a while. They’re available from most grocery stores in cans and jars, and sometimes you can find them frozen or even fresh. During both two years living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I attended the annual Castroville Artichoke Festival. I once took third place in an artichoke eating contest (which is all about strategy rather than stomach capacity). I always dressed up for the occasion.