"Only two things that money can't buy, and that's true love and home grown tomatoes," sings country troubadour Guy Clark. I'm inclined to agree with Guy (about most things he voices, actually) , though at the moment our tomatoes are just spindly starts and I'm singing the praises of one other thing that money can't buy: home grown salad greens.

Unlike the notoriously dreadful store bought tomato, store bought salad greens (especially the overpriced baby greens that I buy) are edible. However, the texture of homegrown greens is noticeably different: crispier, more delicate. Homegrown lettuce has thin, silky ruffles and homegrown spinach evades the leathery texture that mars, say, Popeye's Spinach Salad Mix. This year I'm growing butter lettuce, mustard greens, spinach, and rocket (which sounds infinitely cooler than arugula, does it not?). Having a pleasing array of fresh salad greens on hand is definitely an incentive to eat salad.

Not the gardening type? More of a cigar smoking libertine? Find salad totally boring even when it's crafted of the most meticulously harvested locally grown microgreens? This post is crafted with you in mind, too.

Yesterday I discovered that lettuce is better with single malt scotch. Don't ask me why I happened to discover this. But no, I wasn't just going around indiscriminately pouring scotch on things and then sticking them in my mouth.


Scotch Salad Dressing

You will need:
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of granulated garlic
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons of warm water
1/2 teaspoon of honey
1 teaspoon of scotch (I used Abelour)
4 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil

Mix soy sauce, granulated garlic, and balsalmic.
Add honey.
Add warm water and scotch.
Stir.
Add olive oil.
Close jar and shake.
Cool before applying to salad.

I didn't grow up eating beef stew (it wasn't exotic enough for my Dad's tastes), but I've developed a liking for it in my advanced old age, and I've been perfecting this recipe for awhile. I get a great deal on quality stew meat from my butcher in Pike Place market, and I vary the included vegetables depending on the season.

Adding vegetables such as carrots and celery twice during the cooking process (once at the outset, and again 15 minutes before serving) gives the dish a more complex flavor and texture: the long-cooked vegetables thicken the consistency and provide a mellow base note; the vegetables tossed in toward the finish give fresh bursts of color, crunch, and flavor. (Adding cabbage, greens, carrots, and celery 15 minutes before serving also ups the stew's nutritional content.) Naturally (and this is the great thing about stews, I think) the ingredients can be varied or minimized, depending on what you have on hand. I generally cook the day before serving (as described below). It's not necessary (obviously), but it definitely improves the flavor.

You will need:
3+ quarts of stock or water
2 lbs of beef stew meat
1/2 cup of flour
3 tablespoons of olive oil or bacon grease
1/8 cup of wine (both red and white work; sherry is also good)
1 onion (coarsely chopped)
1/2 leek (green and white portions, chopped) (optional)
1 tablespoon of fresh garlic or onion chives (chopped) (optional)
5 cloves of garlic (chopped)
2 turnips (chopped)
3-4 potatoes (chopped)
3 stalks of celery (diced)
3-4 mushrooms (chopped) (optional)
2 carrots (diced)
1 tomato (when in season)
1 cup of seasonal greens such as kale (optional)
1/4 cup of cabbage (optional)
1/2 cup of corn (fresh or frozen)
1/4 cup of parsley (diced)
1/2 serrano chile (optional)
2 teaspoons of Marjoram
3 teaspoons of smoked paprika (regular paprika will do, but smoked is better)
2 teaspoons of coarse black pepper
sea salt to taste

Serves 6

1. Mix flour, 1 teaspoon of pepper, 1 teaspoon of paprika, and salt in a bowl. 2. Dredge stew meat in mixture.
3. Heat olive oil or bacon grease in a large pot (preferably cast iron).
4. Brown meat in oil.
5. Temporarily remove meat.
6. Add the onion, leeks, potatoes, thyme, salt, chile, the rest of the paprika and pepper, 1 tablespoon of stock or water, and wine.
7. Cook until the onions are translucent.
8. Add corn, 1 carrot, 1 stalk of celery, Marjoram, garlic, turnips,
and mushrooms.
9. Add the rest of the stock or water and bring to a boil.
10. Add browned meat. Turn down to simmer and cook for 3-6 hours.
11. Turn off and allow to sit, preferably over night. (optional)
12. Resume cooking for 40 minutes.
13. Add cabbage, greens, parsley, chives, and the remaining celery and carrots.
14. Simmer for 15 minutes.
15. Salt to taste. Serve. (It's good with grated sharp cheddar or Parmesan or both.)