Happy Boy Produce

Baby Salad Greens

    A True Salad Bar

  • 1

SEASON: Year-round

 

KEEP YOUR GREENS FRESH: Rewashing our salad can shorten its shelf life, as any water left over starts spoiling the leaves. Putting a dry paper towel into your bag or spinner of greens can help absorb water, and keeping the bags sealed with an amount of air in them also keeps the greens from getting clumped, squished and water-logged.

Salad Greens

Something for Everyone

Posted by Tent

Before Happy Boy, I, like many, was familiar with about three kinds of salad. And then, one fateful Wednesday, I came across a bustling market stand selling bags of unique, varied leaves to customers literally knocking one another over to get their fix. These devotees displayed a passion for the stuff that resembled some kind of baby-green-induced-feeding-frenzy, but they - and those irresistable edible flower petals - were reasons enough to finally venture forth into the world of baby salad greens.

One bag and I was hooked, and after working for Happy Boy for several years now, I have come to understand the very real factors behind the quality and deliciousness of our salad mix. We have a climate that allows us to grow many varieties year round, because our coastal fields are fortuitously a little more moderate in the winter and less ablaze in the summer. The marine layer protects the delicate leaves from both the sun AND the frost, which means we can harvest them at perfect tenderness, size and flavor - usually when they are young, or "baby". We also hand harvest many of our salad greens, which keeps them from being damaged by large clunky equipment and allows us to cut them young and in the prime of their flavor.

Additionally, the hardest part of enjoying salad is already done for you - all of our salad greens are thoroughly washed and spun dry to ensure ultimate freshness and ease, even our bulk greens. Harvesting them right before market and spinning off any excess water allows them to last at least a week in the fridge - usually more. One Thanksgiving I brought some peppery arugula to garnish my winter greens with and more than two weeks later I used the remainder in a beet salad for my parents' Christmas Party.

I'd argue, however, that our multitude of unique varieties, as well as our carefully thought out mixes, are the factors most responsible for our salad's exuberant following. We search out interesting, viable varieties of greens, even those falling outside of the traditional "salad" spectrum, like radicchio, baby red chard and curly endive, to create mixes that exhibit a wide range of flavors, all of them exciting and delicious. We also aim to offer customers many different salad options that interest the taste buds without tons of dressing, hold their own next to other dishes and also work with a variety of other foods, cuisines and cooking techniques.

Storage

Keeping our salad cold and preventing excess moisture build-up is the key to extending its crisp freshness. Try to put it in the fridge as soon as possible.

Nutrition

Our varieties of salad have good amounts of folate, iron, vitamin C and antioxidants.

Recipes & Pairings

    5 Total Recipes

Happy Boy salad greens can be enjoyed raw, steamed, juiced, braised and even grilled. Oh yes, grilled. They can also be combined with tons of other Happy Boy produce to create a multitude of seasonal flavors. Check out the individual varieties for a plethora of different recipes and pairings, or just start the most simple way - throw a handful into a bowl, top with a dash of olive oil and balsamic, and enjoy.