Happy St. Patrick's Day!  And Happy Spring because it's almost here, and it was a mild winter in the U.S.  Spring is a season full of personality.  There is blooming and bursting and reemerging.  It calls for moving away from heavy foods into foods that are fresh, vibrant and fun.   Foods that take advantage of spring produce and warmer weather and enhanced energy.  

This sauce is not a wallflower.  It is my combination of salsa verde and chimichurri sauce.  She has on her best party dress and is ready to mingle.  She has personality and verve and a little bit of kick.  No way is she shy.  For this reason, she is best paired with something that has a bit of sweetness to it as well as some heft, like steak or a grilled portobello mushroom.  She tastes great mixed with rice or topping potatoes.  In other words, she's versatile! Go ahead, invite her to the party that is mealtime at your house!

MOLLY'S GREEN SAUCE
Makes ~ 1 1/2 cups

2   large garlic cloves, smashed
1   small jalapeno, stemmed and seeded, ribs removed
3/4 cup   cilantro leaves, washed of sand and loosely packed
3/4 cup   Italian (flat-leaf) parsley leaves, washed of sand and loosely packed
1   lime, juiced
pinch of kosher salt
1   anchovy packed in oil, drained
2/3 - 3/4 cup   olive oil, extra virgin preferably
1/4 t.   red hot pepper flakes  (you may double this amount if you like KICK in your sauce)
1/2 t.     dried oregano

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.  The amount of oil depends on how thick or thin you want the sauce.  If you want it a bit thicker, add less oil.  If you want it thinner, add more oil.   The key to a good sauce is tasting as you go, so before you add more of a particular ingredient, taste it first and determine if it needs more.  This sauce is most potent on the day it is made and then mellows with time.  It will keep 7-10 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

Nutritional awesomeness: We would all do well to add a little more parsley to our meals as it is a nutritional powerhouse.  It's chock full of Vitamins A and C, as well as Iron and Magnesium.  Magnesium has been show to boost your brain function.  Cilantro is known for its amazing detox properties and helps remove heavy metals from the body.   

It pays to be kind.  This has become a theme for me in 2016.  The first day of the year, I was handed a Starbucks gift card while waiting in baggage claim upon returning home from spending the holidays in Texas with my in-laws.  On the flight, a mother, young baby, and father had sat in the row directly in front of us.  The flight was over three hours.  The baby did what babies do: it slept, it cried, it looked around.  When I spotted the mom in baggage claim I went over to say hi and say how lovely it was to sit behind them and how adorable their baby is.  All true.  I had no agenda.  I was just drawn to them.  She said it had been tough traveling with a five month old, not always being able to access the airplane bathrooms for a diaper change, and managing the bottle feedings.  Given I don't have children, I could only express compassion, not empathy.  Her husband showed up with their bags as did my husband with ours.  We said goodbye and took our leave of one another.  Then, she turned around, came back to me, and handed me a gift card, "You were so kind, and we appreciate it.  It's not much but it will buy you a latte."   It bought me coffee, twice, with my best friend in California all because I was kind to a stranger.

Yesterday, I looked up our itinerary for a trip we are taking later this spring.  The flight times had changed giving us an unacceptably tight connection for international travel.  I called the airline, and got Anna.  Anna apologized profusely as if she controlled airline timetables.  Her demeanor told me that probably more than one person had called and yelled at her for the exact situation that prompted my call.  I told her there was no need to apologize, and that I trusted she could fix the situation.  She was so grateful and thankful that I was kind, not only did she fix our itinerary, she improved it dramatically by cutting our layovers from two to one and putting us on what I consider better aircraft.  It pays to be kind.

This isn't to say that anger and I are not friends, good friends in fact.  My astrological sign is thoroughly Taurus and my Ayurvedic dosha is Pitta (fire).  I can do anger, and sometimes anger is called for, so this is not a post to spiritually bypass your anger.  My experience, though, especially as of late, has been to try kindness first and see what happens.  For me, kindness pays.

Kindness, it turns out, is also good for your health.  It reduces inflammation in the body, creates more robust emotional ties in relationships, and can improve your heart health.  It pays to be kind.