Not that long ago arugula was a fairly exotic item, known only to a select few, maybe those who had traveled to Italy and knew it as “rugula” or “rockette.” Occasionally, you’d find it in a specialty store marketed as “rocket."
Now arugula is available at every local farmers’ market and offered on menus from the local burger joint to your favorite spot for fine dining.
Paula Guilbeau of Heirloom Gardens in Cumming finds arugula so popular that she grows it year-round in her “salad house," the hoop house she devotes to tender greens. Guilbeau says arugula is so popular with her customers at the Dunwoody Green Market on Wednesdays and the Peachtree Road Farmers Market on Saturdays that at least a third of that hoop house is devoted to arugula. By the way, next week, Nov. 18, is the last Wednesday for the Dunwoody Green Market until next April.
Guilbeau gardens in the ground on three of her leased 16 acres and has five hoop houses as well that enable her to keep things growing throughout the year. When her usual markets are closed, she sells online at the Cumming Harvest at locallygrown.net and to restaurants. In the ground right now, there are fall greens like bok choy, mustard greens and turnips. The hoop houses are filled with vegetables like Swiss chard, beets and heirloom tomatoes. And arugula.
She sows arugula every six weeks to keep a new crop coming. Arugula always has a peppery bite, but it gets bitter as it gets older. Guilbeau harvests the young leaves, bagging them for her customers, and touts the fact that the greens are high in vitamins A and C. She occasionally will slip in a few flowers, which she says are delicious.
Most of her customers are buying arugula for their salads. Guilbeau likes her arugula tossed with a dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and grated Parmesan. She also likes it wilted into cooked pasta or to make a pesto. “I love arugula. With only 2 calories in a half cup serving, how could you not love it?” she says.
What’s happening at local farmers markets
Fruit: apples, pears, persimmons
Vegetables and herbs: arugula, Asian greens, beans, beets, broccoli, butter beans, cabbage, carrots, chard, collards, cucumbers, edamame, eggplant, garlic, ginger, kale, leeks, lettuce, micro greens, mizuna, mushrooms, mustard greens, southern peas, peppers, potatoes, radishes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips, winter squash
Wednesday, Nov. 16. Last day for 2010 Dunwoody Green Market. For information: www.dunwoodygreenmarket.com
Cooking demos this week
9:30 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 13. Chef Marc Summers, Parsley's Custom Catering. Morningside Farmers' Market, Atlanta. For information: www.morningsidemarket.com
10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 13. Chef and author Virginia Willis. Peachtree Road Farmers Market, Atlanta. For information: www.peachtreeroadfarmersmarket.com
From local reports
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Arugula pizza
Hands on: 10 minutes
Total time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4
Using a thin crisp wrap like lavash makes this recipe as easy as possible. It goes into the oven only long enough to crisp the base, then is immediately topped and served. The wedges would go well alongside a bowl of soup or as a simple first course.
Calling it a “pizza” might be a stretch, but you could substitute pizza dough for the lavash for a more traditional base. Not a fan of tapenade? Substitute a pesto of sundried tomatoes or basil. Be sure you taste your arugula leaves; only the youngest sweetest ones should be used here.
4 sheets whole wheat non-fat lavash or sandwich wrap
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1/4 (quarter) teaspoon salt
1/8 (eighth) teaspoon black pepper
2 cups baby arugula leaves
4 tablespoons prepared tapenade
4 tablespoons crème fraiche or sour cream
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
Brush each lavash with 1/4 teaspoon olive oil per side. Place lavash on prepared baking sheet and heat 3 minutes or until it turns crisp and begins to brown. Remove from oven.
In 1-pint screw-top jar make dressing by combining remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt and black pepper; shake to mix thoroughly. In a large bowl, toss arugula with dressing.
Spread 1 tablespoon crème fraiche evenly over lavash, leaving a 1-inch border. Spread 1 tablespoon tapenade over crème fraiche. Top with dressed arugula and grated Parmesan.
Per serving: 360 calories (percent of calories from fat, 69), 7 grams protein, 21 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 27 grams fat (6 grams saturated), 21 milligrams cholesterol, 414 milligrams sodium.
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