Apricots

Kohlrabi Carpaccio

Though Kohlrabi remains popular in many European and in Chinese and Indian cuisines, this vegetable does not appear on the tables of many North American homes. In "The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth,” the nutritionist Jonny Bowden describes kohlrabi as "a cross between an octopus and a space capsule." My husband's remark was "it looks like a tea kettle."
The German word "kohl" meaning cabbage and "rabi" meaning turnip is a close relative to the brassica family which means they are related to broccoli and cabbage. This vegetable is also referred to as "turnip cabbage". Kohlrabi comes in green and a purple variety; White Vienna and Purple Vienna respectively

This vegetable is nutrient rich with vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, potassium, calcium and is a good source of antioxidant properties.

Raw kohlrabi is crunchy and sweet and is excellent in a toss salad. Vietnamese use this vegetable in Goi, a raw salad tossed with a sweet fish sauce. In Kashmir, it is called "monj" or "knol knol" and  it is made into an aromatic curry with its leaves, called Ganth Gobi. This dish is served with rice.

In order to slice it paper-thin, I have used a French mandoline. I made a lemon vinaigrette using olive oil and Pekmez.

Ingredients:

2 small, young kohlrabi
3 young radishes

a few slices of cucumber

3 cherry tomatoes

5 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice

2 tsp rice wine vinegar

1 Tbsp Pekmez or honey
salt and pepper

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Method:

Cut tops and bottoms. Peel the skin then using a mandolin, cut the bulbs into paper-thin slices. Do the same with the radishes. Arrange the kohlrabi and radish slices, cucumber, cherry tomatoes on a plate.

Whisk the olive oil, rice wine vinegar, salt and pepper with pekmez or honey together in a small bowl.   Drizzle the dressing over the slices. Season well with salt and pepper and serve

Dandelion Pasta

Considered a noxious weed and a nuisance in residential and recreational lawns in North America, Dandelion in my next vegetable in my cooking repertoire.

Taraxacum, its botanical name, was introduced to North America by early European immigrants for the colonial pharmacopoeia rather than for culinary uses. "Healing bitter herbs" as it name suggest, is touted for its medicinal properties and its medicinal properties.
It is used as a diuretic. It is believed that unlike traditional diuretics, dandelion does not leach potassium from the body since it has high potassium content. Also it contains as much calcium as half a cup of milk.  It is also believed  to help balance blood sugar. It is also a good source for calcium, Vitamins, A, B, C, D.

All parts of the dandelion are edible. Roots can be eaten raw, steamed, or even dried, roasted and ground into a coffee substitute. 

The flowers are often used to make wine and they can be added to a salad, made into jellies or dipped in batter to make dandelion fritters.

Dandelion greens can be eaten raw, steamed, boiled, sautéed or braised.

 Ingredients:

3 cups dandelion – stems removed, chopped into 1 inch pieces

1/2 onion, diced finely

1 small Japanese eggplant, sliced into 1 inch pieces

1/2 cup mushroom, sliced
4 cloves garlic – peeled and grated
1 cup tomato pasta sauce
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
½ cup freshly grated parmesan or Romano cheese
 Linguine pasta for 2 people
dried red pepper
salt to taste

While cooking pasta in boiling salted water, in a large heated saute pan, add some olive oil and saute onions and chopped garlic until translucent. Add dried red pepper. Add the eggplant and cooked until almost done. Then add the mushroom and the dandelion greens. Wilt the vegetables and add the tomato sauce. Season well.

Once pasta is cooked combine greens and tomato mix. Sprinkle some grated cheese and serve warm.

Fish cooked with Fennel

 Fennel is my choice of vegetable for today's cooking. Both the bulb and the feathery fronds( similar in shape to those of dill) are edible. When eaten raw, fennel bulb  has a crunchy, refreshing, celery-like texture with a sweet licorice flavor. The bulb  can be tossed in salad, sauteed, stewed, braised, fried,  added to risotto or grilled and can even be made into desert. Whereas, the leaves can be added to fish sauce,egg omelette, soup or vegetable dishes e.g  mashed potatoes or potato stir fry etc. or it can be eaten raw as a salad.  Some people even steep the leaves in hot water to drink as tea. 

I braised the 1/4 inch sliced fennel in stock and then, added baby eggplants and shallow fried fish to it. Sprinkle with some lemon juice.

Braised fennel with eggplants, tomatoes and fish

Braised fennel with eggplants, tomatoes and fish

Braised fennel with eggplants, tomatoes and fish

Avocado Pesto

One way to use up your ripe avocados is the make a pesto out of them. This pesto was delicious with bread and also with fish. 

Vegetables

Stir Fry Taiwanese Noodles