A couple of years ago, I grew tired of my breakfast routine and tried starting my day with smoothies. Fruits, Greek yogurt, almond butter and red kale growing in my tiny garden patch – all went in the blender, with the occasional toasted nut and seeds.
Anyone who enjoys a good tabbouleh can attest to the importance of parsley in this hearty salad. Poor parsley is usually relegated to garnish status, limply lurking at the side of your dinner plate in restaurants and turning to grey flakes in your spice cabinet. So easy to grow in pots on your deck, or in the ground once summer sun kisses the earth, parsley (and I am referring to the meatier Italian flat parsley) makes a wonderful addition to your salads, dressings and pestos.
Sometimes the best lasagnas are made without pasta. Pick a season, choose something that can be sliced as thin as a noodle, and off you go. Summer brings eggplant and zucchini squash and fall/winter brings butternut squash. For me, lasagna was always about the cheese and sauce, so take out the pasta and I’m a happy diner.
Brussels sprouts. You either hate them or love them. If you are in the former camp, perhaps you were coerced as a child into eating those mushy green orbs, straight from the freezer bag to the vigorously boiling water. Cooked into submission, they reeked of stale cabbage.
Some of the best meals are eaten with a spoon. Pureed soups are great, and thick chunky chowders are even better. I make so many soups that I rarely order them in restaurants, but if a well populated chowder presented itself, I would reconsider. Especially if it contains cheese.
Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and the dreaded pumpkin shortage trumpeted in the news recently has not affected supplies in local grocery stores.Yet. I planned this dessert as an antidote to said shortage, but if you are like me, you enjoy an array of desserts at the holiday table, and having your pumpkin pie in addition to a creamy apple dessert is not considered a conflict of interest.
Farmer Teal Brooks of Pine Fork Farm told me she likes her French breakfast radishes roasted. Hmmm….never made them like that and sounds delicious, I said. When I tasted them for the first time, I was most pleasantly surprised at their sweetness and texture. They lost their radish “bite” and transformed into something close to young turnips.
French breakfast radishes from Pine Fork Farm and the Sunday Carytown Farmers Market
With a deconstructed vinaigrette of fresh lemon, dijon mustard and brilliantly hued extra virgin olive oil, this salad is art on a plate,
and can be a starter or entree with the addition of roasted (as long as you have the oven hot) or grilled meats and seafood. The addition of poached farm fresh eggs would make this a light brunch entree.
We have all tried the common red globe radish found in grocery aisles (called Cherry Belle), packed in cellophane bags, but the other beauties will blow your mind with flavor, especially if locally grown. French breakfast radishes have a nice peppery bite raw in salads, and an even stronger zing can be had with black radish . Area farmer’s markets deliver all types each spring and then again in fall.
roasted French breakfast radishes
Loving their crunch in salads will not keep me from enjoying their incarnation as roasted vegetables, now that I have been awakened. Thanks, Teal.
recipe by Michele Humlan, The Good Eats Company
serves four
ingredients
two bunches French breakfast radishes, cleaned and trimmed*
best quality extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
four cups baby arugula
strained juice of one large lemon
one level tablespoon Dijon mustard
one half cup shaved pecorino romano cheese
coarse ground black pepper
flaky sea salt (I like Maldon)
*save greens for another salad if desired
directions
During this week’s Saint Patrick celebration (why just one day?), some folks enjoyed green beer. Here is a recipe for broccoli apple ale soup that provides your serving of greens in a more natural manner, with locally brewed beer for good measure.
There are good reasons to covet pie fillings without the fuss of crust. The making of a good, flaky pie crust is time consuming and, if you’re like me, you may find premade pie crusts lacking in quality and flavor. Lots of folks are foregoing extra carbs in grains, making a homemade grain free crust (made with ground nuts) attractive, but also time consuming.
Living close to the Chesapeake Bay means access to fresh seafood all year long and when the flounder are running, go with the flow and thank your lucky stars.