Kolhrabi !!

How many different ways can they modify the mustard plant ?? What ?? Cole crops or those that belong to the Cruciferae family come in so many different forms:  Brussels sprout, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, mustard, broccoli, turnips, watercress AND kolhrabi, the subject of this post.

I have seen kohlrabi in the farmer's markets for years but was never brave or interested enough to try them. My brother grew them and raved about them ( actually his wife did the raving), nope still didn't try them. It took a friendly  and enthusiastic farmer at the nearby u-pick garden and offer of free samples to convert me.

Here's what they look like in the ground.

They are amazing, sweet and crisp and very versatile. I love to eat them raw, they remind me of jicama although they are unrelated. They are a great addition to any salad or veggie platter.

To prepare kolhrabi for eating raw or cooked, after removing the leaves, you must first peel off the fibrous outer layer.

Grilling them is my favorite way to eat them cooked, so far.
I slice them in thick slices ( 1/4 to 1/2 inch), coat them with olive oil, then dust with salt, pepper and the dried herbs of your choice.

I grilled them for 4-5 minutes each side depending on the heat of your grill. Yum !!

I have also added them to Laurie's Potatoes,

 

 my kale and white bean soup, 

and to our stir fried veggies.

Give kolhrabi a try !

Aubergine...

Aubergine is  French for eggplant, it's also a color, a shade of purple as you can imagine, a word that rolls off the tongue nicely...
Our farmer's market finally has those small long Japanese eggplant that are so tender and tasty.
Last night I made that wonderful stir fry with eggplant that I blogged about last summer.

This time I sliced the eggplant ahead of time, tossed them in some olive oil and salt ( about a teaspoon) and let them sit for about a hour. I was surprised by how quickly they cooked in my wok and how tender they were. I have salted eggplant in the past to remove the moisture from them but never before a stir fry. I didn't drain them or anything. I will definitely do this to all future eggplants for stir fry. Yum !!

Baked Carrots

I used this photo of fresh carrots since the baked ones are not as attractive.

Bob loves baked or roasted carrots, he can wax poetic about them if you ask.
Baking brings out all their natural sweetness.
He likes to have them leftover in the fridge as snacks. Lately I have been indulging him ;-)

One vendor at our farmer's had the fancy carrots shown in the photo above. In fact those are the only ones I could find last week at the farmer's market so that's what I used, any fresh carrots will work.

1) Preheat the oven to 400 F.
2) Line a rimmed baking  sheet with foil and spray with olive oil.
3) Wash and stem the carrots.
4) Place them on the baking sheet and spray lightly with more olive oil, salt and pepper them.

5) Bake for 45-60 minutes depending on the size of the carrot. Part way through the baking time, I roll them over with tongs. They should be soft when pierced with a fork.
6) Serve warm or store in the fridge as snacks or use them in other dishes, like soups or curries.

They aren't terribly attractive once they are baked...but they sure taste good !!