​It's the time of year on the farm where we have almost every vegetable imaginable ready for harvest, the most daylight of the year, and more work than we'll ever have enough time to complete. At the end of one of these long days, I often end up throwing together a salad kind of like this to accompany a simple protein or eat it on its own. 

As Devin and I take our final walk of the farm before leaving for the evening, I regularly cherrypick a random pile of veggies from the field as the nightly question of "What on earth am I going to make for dinner?!" begins to rattle through my brain. You'd think being around our veggies all day long, the cooking inspiration would be endless, but quite frankly, at the end of the day all we want to do is get home, shower, eat, and sit down!

The texture and slight bitterness of the frisée is complemented well by the sweetness and crunch of the sugar snap peas and fennel and it all comes together with nice brine-y hits of olive and bright acidity from the dressing. The crunchy, torn bread gives it a little heft and in a matter of minutes, you've got yourself a darn good salad. 

One of my favorite parts, which was completely unintentional, is the fact that everything in this salad (except the bread) is green! I am not surprised this salad ended up this way, seeing as how the hot summer days have us constantly craving crunchy, hydrating greens for our end of the day meal, but I really loved how this salad looked when I finished it. Every shade of green imaginable and a whole spectrum of lush, green flavor to boot. 

As with all salads and recipes I like to share, it can be interpreted, switched around, and served however is most convenient to you, but it should always feel easy to throw together, taste incredibly fresh, and get you from standing, to sitting and eating as quickly as possible! (In true summer-farmer style) 

​-Kristi 

There is nothing more beautiful than the first veggies of spring.

On the farm, we are typically so busy planting and planting this time of year, that the thought of cooking, let alone putting together a recipe, has felt out of the question. But after a day of picking sugar snaps and zucchini and then weeding the onion field for a few hours, a massive bowl of pasta with crunchy green veggies and the creamy, bright yolk of a Horse Shoe Ranch egg sounded like something I needed immediately.

Lucky for me (and you) this recipe whips up super fast and will give you plenty of left overs depending on how hungry you are! One of my favorite things about this recipe is, all I have to do is pull everything out, chop the veggies, boil the water, and in one fell swoop we've got a pile of spring goodness on our plates.

If poaching your eggs feels like a little too much work, feel free to fry them sunny-side-up! Whichever method you choose, I highly recommend doing something to keep that yolk a bit runny. It makes the most amazing "sauce" mixed into the pasta and cheese. You really will miss it if you omit it!

Notes on the recipe: I have included most dry ingredients with both volume and weight measurements. I prefer to measure by weight as often as I can, since it yields the most accurate results, but if you do not have a kitchen scale, not to worry! The volume measurements are there too.

I have not tried this recipe with anything but almond flour, so if you opt to use another gluten-free flour or regular flour, I can not guarantee good results. Let me know how it goes if you do experiment!

This recipe is adapted from Bon Appetit. 

INGREDIENTS
1 # red beets
1 ½ cup or 170 g super-fine almond flour (I like Bob’s Red Mill)
½ cup or 43 g cocoa powder (be sure to use Dutched cocoa powder)
½ t. Baking soda
½ t. Cinnamon
1 t. Espresso powder
2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 t. Apple cider vinegar or white vinegar (which ever you have on hand)
1 t. Vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cup or 194 g light brown sugar
2 T. Or 42 g coconut oil
Heavy pinch of salt

METHOD

• Boil or steam 1 lb. or 4 medium-large sized red beets until very soft.
• Run under cold water to cool off and remove skin and any roots or nubs.
• Put into a blender with 1 T. of water and slowly puree. Add an additional Tablespoon of water if beets get a little stuck while they break down. I had to use the plunger a few times in our blender before things really got going smoothly. Puree until very smooth, the consistency will look similar to apple sauce.

Once your cake is cool, you can mix up your glaze!
GLAZE*
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely
22g or 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
*Note: This is cake is lovely with just a simple dusting of powdered sugar and  served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Additionally, a simple raspberry compote or similarly sweet and tart fruit accompanies this cake very well!. In other words; The glaze is not a necessity if you don't feel like making it, but it is very good!

• Either in the microwave or over a double boiler, gently melt your finely chopped chocolate and coconut oil until it is mixed into a smooth consistency. Add vanilla and mix.
• Place your cooled cake upside down on a serving plate and remove the parchment from the bottom (which will now be the top). This will give you a nice flat surface to pour your glaze on.

• Begin pouring your glaze starting at the center of the cake and gently tilt your plate in a circular motion to distribute the glaze to the edges or feel free to let your glaze drizzle down the sides! It is up to you how hardcore you want to make your glazing experience.
• Finish with a generous sprinkling of flakey Maldon sea salt, chocolate curls, edible flowers, fresh fruit, whatever floats your boat!
• Slice and enjoy.

You can refrigerate this cake in a sealed container for up to a week or less, since it is a challenge to not polish this one off rather quickly!