Light local and luscious:

earth day dinner

(Family Features) The food on your dinner plate has a story. But can you explain where the food was grown, how it was processed, and how it ended up at the grocery or market where you purchased it?   The trend towards buying, eating, and cooking local is alive and well in Western New York.   We are fortunate to live in an area of great agricultural activity and diversity.  This recipe highlights that trend, with a crop you may not have thought of as being important to our area.

The recipe for Souffléd Twice-Baked Potatoes featured here would make a great conversation piece for an Earth Day Dinner on April 22. The earthiness of the potatoes is married with the richness of organic butter, milk, and eggs -- and further enriched with the addition of nutrient-rich kale or spinach for a hearty side dish or light main entrée.

Potatoes are a vegetable crop of great economic importance in New York, and not just on Long Island. They are important in our area as well, with Livingston County being a big producer.  The crop ranks number one in economic value among vegetables produced in the state and is grown in several major production areas. Potatoes are used for fresh market, processing, and for seed.

These vegetables are seasonal, of course, but even if you can’t find locally grown and raised dairy products or kale or spinach for the recipe, you can opt for organic products, which were grown without the use of pesticides or chemicals and which have not been treated with additives or preservatives .  In season, all these ingredients can be found locally produced in Western, NY

Souffléd Twice-Baked Potatoes with Kale or Spinach

Makes 6 Servings

6 large baking potatoes (about 3 pounds)
3 tablespoons organic butter, softened
1/2 cup 1% organic milk, heated
2 large organic eggs
3/4 to 1 cup cooked and finely chopped kale or spinach
2 to 3 tablespoons minced fresh chives or parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 375°F. Scrub potatoes; prick each one with a sharp fork in 2 to 3 places. Bake until fully tender when pierced with a fork, about 1 1/4 hours.

Cut a 1/2-inch slice lengthwise from each potato. Scoop out flesh from top slices and from inside the potatoes, to make shells with 1/4-inch thick “walls.”  Pass the still-hot potato flesh through a potato ricer. (You can also mash the potatoes with electric beaters, but don’t overdo it, or the spuds will become gluey). Use a rubber spatula to fold butter and hot milk into potatoes.

Separate the eggs, placing yolks in a small bowl and whites in a clean, medium bowl. Beat egg yolks; fold yolks, kale or spinach, chives, salt, and pepper into potatoes. Use clean electric beaters or a large whisk to whip egg whites until firm but not stiff. Fold a quarter of them into the potato mixture, then gently fold in the rest. 

Heap mixture into potato shells. Place on ungreased baking pan; bake until potato mixture is brown-tipped and heated through, about 25 minutes.

Calories  230, Total Fat  5g, Saturated Fat 2.5g, Cholesterol  80mg, Sodium  105mg, Total Carbohydrate 39g, Dietary Fiber  5g, Protein 8g.

For more delicious organic recipes, visit www.organicvalley.coop.