Great Salad Recipe for Kohlrabi

Remember my post on the Slate article "The Locavore's Dilemma?" I promised I would follow up with a report on my grated Kohlrabi seasoned with soy sauce and sesame oil, and I am here say that it was a success! I paired it with a seared Ahi Tuna salad of mixed greens with wasabi vinaigrette (courtesy of Rachel Ray) with a few alterations of my own. Here is the recipe:

Grated veggies
Finely grate 1 large carrot and 1 medium sized kohlrabi and place them in separate prep bowls
Add about a teaspoon or more of soy sauce to fully coat the veggies
Add 1 - 2 drops of sesame oil (very strong stuff, so be very careful when adding!)
Mix and set aside to marinate

Fava beans
I might end up doing a separate post on fava beans, because I love them, but here is the gist on preparing them:
Remove them from the pod as you would any other pea
Add them to boiling water until just tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and shock in ice water. Drain again and remove outer skins by ripping off the tip and squeezing out

Dressing
1 teaspoon wasabi paste (more or less to taste)
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3 tablespoons virgin olive oil

Toss the dressing with a mixture of greens, add a forkful of grated carrots and kohlrabi and sprinkle the fava beans on top. Season with a few sesame seeds.

Grilled Ahi
When purchasing, make sure to confirm with the butcher that it is sushi grade so that you know it is safe to eat raw
Season Ahi steak with salt and pepper (or spice mix of choice)
Grill for a few minutes on each side to your preferred level of raw on inside
Slice and serve on top of the salad

This was a hit in my house. Hope you enjoy!

What to do with beets

A girlfriend of mine who started her first CSA subscription this year recently emailed me for help with what to do with her beets. I thought I would share my response here, as I suspect many people can find the purple veggie a conundrum.

The most basic way to prepare them is to season with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake them for a long time till they can be easily pierced with a fork (depending on how thick, up to an hour). You can throw either them in a roasting pan or just wrap them up in tin foil. Once they are cooked, immediately get them into a sealed plastic bag till they have cooled to the point you can handle them. That is how you can more easily remove the peel. However, expect to have your fingers stained for a few days regardless. And be careful of getting them on anything - it is a very strong color die!

Here are some recipes that while I haven't made myself, sound like a unique use of the beets:

1. If you have a way of slicing them real thin, this sounds good: Sweet Potato and Beet Chips with Garlic Rosemary Salt (Giada De Laurentiis)
2. If you have lots, you can pickle them: Pickled Beets (Alton Brown)
3. Here is a nice recipe without roasting them: Sweet Beet Dressed Slaw (Rachael Ray)
4. For a nice fall day, or would probably be good served cold: Beet and Fennel Soup (Cooking Light)

Also, if you ever get the beet greens, they are so tasty! Cook them like you would spinach or Kale - I love them!