Nutrition Information

Green (spring) onions are rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, calcium, phosphorous, folate (folic acid), and potassium. These onions are naturally low in calories, fat and sodium.

Planting and Harvesting Green Onions

The ideal time to plant green onions in Central Texas is January to February in the spring and August to October in the fall. Harvest of green onions will occur April to June in the spring and October to December in the fall.

Storing Green Onions

Store green onions in the refrigerator and use within 6-7 days of harvest.

Choosing and Freezing Green Onions

Choose green onions with fresh, crisp, green tops. When they are harvested, snip the upper part of the green top leaving two to three inches up from the root end. Avoid the green onions that show yellowing, wilted, or decayed tops (indicating flabby, tough, or fibrous condition of the edible portions). However, bruised tops will not affect the eating quality of the bulbs, if the tops are removed.

Green onions should be prepared by chopping the bulb and green portion. It is not required to blanch this vegetable before freezing. It is only necessary to place the chopped onion in the appropriate size freezer bags and freeze. Be aware that freezing this vegetable changes the texture (after thawing out) compared to the texture of fresh onion. Therefore, this frozen product should not be used in recipes that need to have a good, fresh onion texture. A good use for frozen onions is casseroles or soup broths.

The following recipe is given for your enjoyment. Bon appétite!

Spinach Vegetable Dip
Makes 1 1/2 cups (Serves 24; 1 tablespoon per serving)

Ingredients

• 1 10-oz. package frozen chopped spinach
• 5 green onions with tops, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 c. cilantro, large stems removed
• 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, large stems removed
• 8 oz. plain lowfat yogurt
• 1 avocado, peeled and chopped
• 1 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp. salt (optional)
• 1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. hot pepper sauce, or to taste
• 1 purple cabbage (optional)

Directions

1. Cook spinach, drain and wring out all juice in a clean paper towel.
2. On a cutting board, finely chop spinach, onion, watercress and parsley, or chop with a knife until well blended. Place in a colander and press down to drain excess liquid. Set aside.
3. Place remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat with a wire whip wntil well mixed.
4. Combine vegetables and yogurt mixture. Mix toblend well. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours to allow flavors to blend. Hollow out purple cabbage to use as a serving bowl. Serve with a variety of fresh vegetables.

Nutritional Analysis (per serving): Calories:25; Protein:1 gm; Carbohydrates:2 gm; Total Fat:1 gm; Cholesterol: <1 gm; Dietary Fiber:<1 gm; Vitamin A:107 RE; Folate:23 mcg; Calcium:43 mg; Potassium:129 mg; Sodium:31 mg;
Diabetic Exchanges: 1/5 Vegetable, 1/4 Fat