Radish Salad

Kathleen brought a radish salad to the 4th of July picnic at the Ashford's. It was fan-tab-u-lous. I told Kevin how good it was, but he doesn't like radishes, so I didn't think he would try it. He took a big handful (there's no use bothering with a plate) and took a bite. His face went from really happy to grossed out in a split second. Then he looked down at his hand - he had the whole rest of his hand filled with radishes. Hehe. I got to watch him put it all in his mouth and swallow as quickly as he could.

So when I made a batch of the salad and brought it on a camping trip, I was shocked to see him walk over, try it, then dish himself a huge helping. Uhhh...what are you doing, Kevin? He said he liked it. The mustard and vinegar really cut the 'hot' of the radishes.

This was the start of a love affair with vegetables. Never before in my very shielded life have I sat down with a bowl full of vegetables and ACTUALLY ENJOYED eating them. Sheesh....I'm gettin' old.

Radish Salad

2 medium shallots (or a couple of shakes of shallot salt)

2 t Dijon mustard

3 T rice vinegar

1/2 C extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

4 cups thinly sliced radishes

1 C arugula (or mustard greens or parsley), stems discarded

4 hard boiled eggs, chopped small

Use a hand blender to make the dressing from the shallots, mustard, vinegar, and oil. Then in a large bowl, slice the radishes, chop the arugula, and chop the eggs. Mix in the dressing, and serve. This lasts a long time in the fridge.

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Garlic Scape Pesto

Several weeks ago Marla brought me to the farmers market. She likes to do fun stuff like that, and even though I am a stick in the mud, sometimes she brings me along. And for that I am eternally grateful. Bless her heart - it takes a lot to get me to have fun.

While we were at the market we saw some weird curly thingies.

What are those? They were weird enough to draw us in and I left with a few stuffed into my basket. They are garlic scapes - the top part of the garlic plant. They smell like...well...garlic. Cut off the 'hat' at the top, and use the rest just like you would a clove of garlic.

It just so happened that Kevin and I had been watching "Into the Woods" and I couldn't get the witch's song about greens out of my head.

"Rooting through my rutabaga,
Raiding my arugula and
Ripping up my rampion
(My champion! My favorite!)"

So I also bought some arugula. Not from the witch. She terrifies me. In fact, I plan to spend the rest of my days OUTSIDE of the witch's garden.

The pesto recipe called for parsley, but arugula is a spicy green, and it was in the fridge, so that is what I used. The recipe is pretty good and I don't think I need to worry about vampires for awhile. You know how sometimes food with garlic sticks around for days, hiding in between teeth, daringly dodging every strand of floss...coming through your pores when you exercise, and basically settling in to a cloud of garlic scented musk that follows you everywhere you go? Yep - this pesto is like that.

Garlic Scape Pesto

1 dozen garlic scapes

1 C arugula or parsley

1 1/2 C walnuts or pine nuts

1 C Parmesan cheese

1/2 t sea salt

1/2 C olive oil

1 T lemon juice

Process scapes and arugula in food processor. Add walnuts and pulse until desired consistency, then add Parmesan, salt, olive oil, and lemon juice. Pulse a few more times. Serve over pasta or on a sandwich. Freeze leftovers in an ice cube tray for single servings.