Heard it Through the Cukevine

By Kerstin Renner

Cool crops are some of the first produce you can harvest.

These include all sorts of leafy greens, such as lettuce, kale and spinach. They are early to come up and you can even sow them late in the season and get another crop when other plants have long faded away. It is the long summer days with warm evenings and hot afternoons that they really do not like. To show their annoyance, they will wilt, they will bolt, they will fail to germinate and just overall look like some very unhappy plants.

If you want some luscious, homegrown greens on your table, despite the hot weather, you can turn to a new garden companion, the Malabar spinach.

Malabar spinach is actually not a true spinach at all, although the shape of the leaves is quite similar. It is a fast-growing, soft-stemmed vine, widely available in tropical Africa and Asia where it is part of many traditional dishes.

Malabar spinach can grow up to 12 feet long in our climate. It needs a bit of climbing support, but aside from that it is extremely low maintenance, especially when the weather gets hot. It thrives in full sunlight, growth slows down as temperatures drop and the plant cannot take any frost at all.

Typical of leafy vegetables, Malabar spinach is high in Vitamins A and C as well as Iron. It is also low in calories and high in protein. The texture of fresh Malabar spinach leaves is more fleshy and juicy than regular spinach, and their taste is mild and crisp with notes of citrus. Due to their somewhat sturdier structure, the leaves do not wilt as fast when cooked and hold up quite nicely in stir-fries and soups. When cooked, though, Malabar spinach does look and taste a lot more like regular spinach.

Malabar spinach can be used just like its common namesake. It can be eaten raw in salads and sandwiches or cooked all sorts of different ways.

It goes really well with soups and since we are crazy for soup at my house, I will use my first harvest this year for my knock-off of Italian wedding soup.

Mock Italian Wedding Soup

Combine three-quarters of a pound of ground meat (whichever you prefer), half cup of bread crumbs, one egg, half cup of grated Parmesan or Romano cheese, about one tablespoon chopped fresh oregano (or other herbs you have around the house), one teaspoon of salt and about half teaspoon pepper in a bowl.

Mix thoroughly, then form the mixture into about one-inch balls.

You should have 20 to 30 meatballs, depending on how large you form them.

In a large pan, heat two tablespoons olive oil over medium high heat. Add the meatballs in batches and cook, turning, until browned all over, about five minutes. Set aside on paper towel to drain off excess oil. It is alright if the meatballs are still a bit pink in the middle, they will cook through in the soup.

Dice one onion and one to two sticks of celery and sauté in a large pot with 1 tablespoon of olive oil until softened slightly. Add one minced clove of garlic (more if you want) and two to four carrots (depending on size and your preference), cut into rounds, and sauté for another few minutes.

Add eight cups of chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add half package of noodles (I like orzo, rotini or spaghetti broken into smaller pieces) and cook until almost al dente. Add the meatballs and 1 bunch of spinach (about five loose cups) and cook for another five minutes.

Serve the soup, finished with a generous helping of Parmesan cheese.

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