This Week's Plan

So I see that we will be getting the mysterious alien vegetable Kohlrabi in our boxes. Now before you immediately chuck it into the swap box today, consider all the wonderful possibilities this veggie has to offer. As a rule treat it like you would a turnip, so it can go into soups or vegetable mashes, or mix it with some potatoes, onions (and maybe even this week's zucchinis, and roast in the oven with some olive oil, thyme and garlic for a wonderful side dish. Still not convinced? Heres a recipe that, if you replace the cream with Mayonnaise, will make a tangy variation on a waldorf salad.

Personally, I'm a radish Fiend so I cant wait to eat them raw, in a salad, or like they used to do it in the old country, dipped in a salt cellar. Braising them in butter is also a great way to mellow them out.

If you've never had the chanceto roast peppers, this week is your chance to go for it! just place them directly over the grates of a burner and rotate them with tongs every once in a while until the skin turns 90% black. Let them cool, and then use a paring knife to scrape the skin off leaving nice soft peppers than can be used in hundreds of ways. I put them in quinoa to make a nice salad, or simmer them in tomato sauce for a flavorful pasta sauce.

Finally, while peaches are great on their own, I've been halving them brushing them with a bit of honey, and then putting them on a very hot grill for just a minute until there are grill marks. This adds a really nice smokiness and makes for a wonderful dessert, alone, topped with cream or a simple mint syrup.

Any more ideas? leave them in the comments below!

Salad Ideas from Mark Bittman

Need some salad inspiration? Check out Bittman's latest article from the NY Times, "101 Simple Salads for the Season, " (July 21, 2009). There really are 101 ideas!

Green Bean Salad Nicoise

This is a great way to use your green beans even if they're starting to look not-so-great. The light steaming gives you a second chance.

Make the base of the salad:

• Wash and trim green beans. Steam them lightly (a few minutes? I never count but just watch and test with a fork to make sure they’re not too crunchy). Submerge the beans into an ice bath so they retain their bright green color.
• Cut new red potatoes into quarters (or halves, depending on size) and boil them until they are just fork tender but not mushy. Drain and cool.

Choose your toppings for the salad:

• Sliced hard boiled eggs
• black olives
• tomato wedges
• cucumber chunks
• sliced red onion
  
• a can of salmon or tuna or maybe just a can of chickpeas

Arrange the salad elements individually on a large platter.

I know there are specific Nicoise dressings, but I usually swish around some combination of olive oil, Dijon mustard and apple cider vinegar and find I’m happy. Sometimes I add some chopped fresh oregano to the mix for a very summery flavor.