Underrated Vegetables

that are worth their weight in gold

Cabbage
Your wavy layers! Your cruciferous charm! You last so long in my fridge and are always there to bail me out when I’m running low on fresh ingredients. Sliced or chopped you make a great salad or slaw, you shine when pickled and fermented, roasted at high heat you transform in the oven, what can’t she do? This Mark Bittman exemplifies your unassuming grace. After a quick simmer in salted water followed by a little butter and black paper, you taste like a slow braise even though you only need a few minutes on the stove. Velvety, buttery and melt in your mouth perfection. *Mark uses savoy cabbage but I just had a big ol’ green cabbage in the fridge and the wow factor is truly beyond.

Cabbage cooked briefly in butter with black pepper

Celery
Oh celery, I think you really just need better PR or something. You deserve more than ants on a log and you’ve been done dirty by the health obsessed juice junkies. I adore you for your crunchy stalks and salty earthy leaves. Bloody Mary’s need you to stand tall and proud and don’t get me started on celery in a stir fry or with eggs. Mostly, I love how dang refreshing you are in a salad. My shaved celery and fennel salad from IG yesteryear is a testament to that. (featuring a wittle baby Loosha).

This salad is great on its own but truly shines on a sandwich or alongside some hot grilled meat or kebab.

Shaved Celery & Fennel Salad

2 stalks celery
handful of young celery leaves chopped
1 head fennel
small handful of fennel fronds chopped
1/4 white onion
1 Persian cucumber
torn fresh mint
1/2 Meyer lemon
1/2 serrano pepper
salt and pepper (season with your heart)
healthy glug of olive oil

Thinly slice everything into a big bowl. I recommend using a mandolin if you have one and if not just try to get those nice thin slices as best you can. Dress with lots of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Radish

Happy little bobbles! Round or oblong, pink or purple hues, paired with butter and salt - the French know that you are indeed the perfect snack. I love you pickled to hot pink perfection, I love you roasted, I love you when you are spicy, and I love you when you are mild, too. Your personality is like somone you just want to be around - cool, chic, and a little silly. Udi taught me to throw you into vegetable soups and now you are soup component I cannot live without.

farm fresh radishes rolled in softened salted butter, sesame seeds, and smoked paprika

Kohlrabi

There are still so many who don’t know you by name and for that I am sorry. You don’t deserve to be ignored. If surveyed I would probably name you in my top five favorite vegetables of all time. Your protruding green leaves poking out every which way are just a silly reminder of how fresh and cute you are once peeled. Crunchy, sweet, and perfectly round I love you fresh and snacky, and roasted you are MY FAVORITE in a medley. Maybe your secrets will one day be revealed and you will become the trendiest vegetable in the whole neighborhood. But for now I’m happy to have you all to myself.

this rainbow pickle plate has some pink kohlrabi simply made by adding some beet slices to the pickling liquid

Iceberg Lettuce

You are an icon and a legend. I love you.