Happy Earth Day

In celebration of Earth Day, I'd like to share 3 of my favorite "green" recipes with everyone. The first recipe is from The Sneaky Chef cookbook. At first, I thought there was no way the kids would ever drink green milk shakes. But they loved them! Well... Amanda, Avery and Isaac loved them. Samuel, not so much... I was a little disappointed the first time I made these, because they weren't green, go figure. So, I actually added green food coloring because the kids were a little disappointed too. And I will admit, I was nervous to try it myself the first time, thinking that the "green juice" was going to overpower the other ingredients. But I couldn't taste the green juice at all.

Earth Day Milk Shakes
2 cups frozen vanilla low fat yogurt
4 - 6 tablespoons green juice (see below)
1/4 cup low fat milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract


To make green juice, cook 1 small package of frozen chopped spinach according to the package directions. Let it cool, then squeeze out all of the liquid from the spinach, making sure to save the liquid. The liquid that you squeeze out is the "green juice." Blend all ingredients together in a blender until smooth. Makes 2 servings.

2 out of 3 "big kids" give the Earth Day Milk Shakes a big thumbs up!!!

So, now that you've had dessert first, The 5 Aces style, what are you going to do with the spinach you just cooked to get the green juice from? Well, this second recipe is from my friend Robin's blog. I believe it is a Rachel Ray recipe, although Verde Bread is not the original name of the recipe. Here again, I never thought my kids would eat this, but they did! And every time I serve this to guests, they are shocked at just how simple it is to make. And as my step father discovered when he and my mom were visiting for dinner one night, Verde Bread tastes great on its own, but it tastes even better when it's dipped in Ranch salad dressing. :-)

Verde Bread
1 small package of frozen, chopped spinach, cooked according to the package directions
4 cloves garlic, cracked from skins
1 stick softened butter
salt and pepper
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (more than likely you'll find this in the Deli section)
1 loaf Italian bread


Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place the spinach in a food processor with garlic, butter, salt and pepper, and cheese. Process, then scrape the mixture down if necessary and process again until smooth. Cut the bread in half lengthwise, then spread it with the spinach butter mixture. Broil or bake to crisp; 3 minutes under broiler, or 6 to 7 minutes in hot oven. Cut into large cubes and serve with pasta.

Serve with what? Oh yea, pasta... If you don't know what Wacky Mac is, I highly recommend that the next time you're in a grocery store, you take a stroll down the dry pasta aisle and find it. It's made by the same company that produces the ever-popular No Yolks egg noodles. Not only is it fun, it's good. I personally prefer the veggie spiral Wacky Mac, although the wagon wheels come in a close second place. This recipe is a spin on a classic dish that I grew up eating (Goulash). And even though the entire dish is not green, it has green pasta in it, and it is by far one of The 5 Aces favorite family meals. You've never seen kids (or a husband) gobble up pasta so fast! :-)


Wacky Goulash
1 package WACKY MAC Veggie Spirals
1 can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
2 teaspoons oregano
1 large onion, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large clove garlic, minced
Velveeta cheese slices

Cook the WACKY MAC according to package directions; drain. In a large skillet, add the oil and saute the onion and garlic until soft. Add meat and brown; drain off fat. Return to heat, then add tomatoes, oregano, salt and pepper. Simmer 10 minutes. In a large casserole pan, add the cooked WACKY MAC and top with the tomato and meat mixture; stir. Cover the top with Velveeta cheese slices. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and starts to brown.