Asparagus and Watercress

There are refreshing signs of spring in my latest lunch box: two beautiful vegetables from my first trip to the local Farmer's Market.

It was exciting to be back at the market after a long, cold winter, and I was especially thrilled to find bags of fresh, green watercress there for the first time ever. Raw watercress greens are much, much too bitter for my taste, like trying to eat paint chips. But stir-fried in a touch of toasted sesame oil and drizzled with miso dressing and almonds? Heaven and a half! I found this luscious recipe at watercress.com (click on recipes, then on "Stir fried Watercress with Ginger and Almonds in Miso Dressing").

Next to the cup of watercress is lightly steamed asparagus, another springtime favorite from the market.

The triangle of rice underneath is a musubi (aka onigiri, see Vegan Lunch Boxfor the recipe). The rice is topped with a sprinkle of nori komi furikake (a seasoned mixture of nori flakes and sesame seeds).

Tucked alongside are bright cherry tomatoes, lightly steamed cauliflower, and edamame skewers. I packed it all in my "Let's Do Lunch" bag and I was ready to go.

Go where, you ask? To work! That's right, I finally made good and got a real job. I'm still homeschooling James during the day, but on evenings and weekends I work at a little shop that sells smoothies (the real kind, made with fruit and 100% juice, not powdered sugar gunk). So of course I filled out my little lunch with one of my favorite smoothies: 1 cup grape juice, 2/3 cup frozen blueberries, 1/3 cup frozen pineapple, and a scoop of ice.

Verdict: It was all delicious!

P.S. Not only am I working at a job, I'm also working on an entire series of posts for this summer, starting next week. So stay tuned!