I went out to the garden on December 4th and asked “What’s for dinner?” You might be surprised to learn that even in the northeast the choices were numerous and I could decide which veggies to pick. The mustard greens (several colors) are going strong. I harvested those along with arugula and chard for a salad. The row of carrots is filled with sweet, orange roots that are ready to pull. I yanked out those in one foot and had enough for several days. And by the way, these late-season carrots are sweeter than any you will pull in the summer, or (heaven forbid!) buy in the grocery store.

As always, the Tuscan kale was producing new leaves so many of those were picked for salad and other dishes.

A five minute trip into the veggie garden yielded enough produce for three or more meals.

I used the arugula and mustard for a fresh salad, of course. The kale and carrots got combined with an organic red cabbage and some fresh ginger root into a mayonnaise-free slaw.

This slaw used carrots, kale, a red cabbage, and fresh ginger. The dressing was made from walnut oil, white vinegar (I would have used rice vinegar but I was out), agave syrup for sweetening, Sarachee hot sauce, soy sauce and some sesame oil. I also added some chopped cashews and this proved to be what put this dish over the top.

Serve your December garden greens salad and the winter cabbage/carrot/kale slaw with the protein of your choice. Whether you use a cheese, tofu, fish, chicken or meat dish, these fresh, tasty veggies remain the star of the show.

A garden based meal in early December? You CAN grow that!