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Oven Roasted Beets

2 cups topped and washed beets (leave the skin on, it tastes great)
-cut big beets to the same size as small beets
1 Tablespoon butter, olive oil, or sesame oil
1 teaspoon cumin seed
½ cup chopped walnuts
salt
pepper

Preheat oven to 375. Bring beets to a boil in enough water to cover for 8 minutes and drain water. While the beets are still hot add oil, cumin, walnuts, salt and pepper and toss until all are coated in oil/butter. Add to a baking dish and bake, turning a couple times, until beets are soft all the way through. Serve hot. Try adding goat cheese as they come out of the oven.

Cauliflower with Mustard Butter and Greens

1 head of Cauliflower, quartered and then separated into florets
a handful of fresh arugula or steamed kale or chard
1 garlic clove, minced
1 stick of butter, room temperature (1/2 cup olive oil can be substituted)
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
salt and pepper

Boil water in two pans, one for cauliflower and another for kale/chard if you are using them over arugula. Whisk together garlic, butter/oil, Dijon, parsley salt and pepper. Steam cauliflower for 4-6 minutes until softened but not soft. Steam greens for 3 minutes and ay them out on a platter. Toss cauliflower in a bowl with a couple tablespoons of mustard butter to coat and adjust for taste with more butter or salt/pepper. Lay Cauliflower over the greens and enjoy.

The L.A. Pantry’s Famous Coleslaw

3/4 cup mayonnaise
3 Tbsp sugar
1-1/2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp dry mustard
1/8 tsp celery salt
dash black pepper
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup half and half
1 large or 2 small heads cabbage, shredded fine

Blend together mayonnaise, sugar, vinegar and oil in bowl. Add onion and garlic powders, dry mustard, celery salt, pepper, lemon juice, half and half and the salt. Stir until smooth. Pour over shredded cabbage in large bowl and toss until cabbage is well coated. Adjust flavors with salt and pepper.

Chinese Cabbage Salad

4 cups thinly chopped Chinese cabbage
¾ cups diced radish
1 ¼ cup noodles (Asian, old pasta, crispy chow mein, whatever)
1 cup crushed peanuts
¼ cup toasted sesame seeds (the black ones look cool if you can get them)
2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
4 Tablespoons sesame oil
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon dry mustard (*not essential)

Combine cabbage, radishes, noodles, peanuts, and sesame seeds in a bowl. Mix the remaining ingredients and toss with the vegetables a little at a time. Add only enough of the wet mixture to suit your taste.

Steamed Cabbage with Poppy Seeds

Half to three quarters of a cabbage head, quarter the head, remove the core and chop coarsely into half inch lengths
2 to 4 Tablespoons melted butter or toasted sesame oil
3 to 4 Tablespoons poppy or sesame seeds
salt and fresh pepper

Steam the cabbage until tender but not mushy, 5-10 minutes. Remove the cabbage to a bowl and blot quickly with a clean towel. Add in the butter, seeds, salt, and pepper and toss to coat.

Spring Radish Salad

Fresh, simple and spring.
This recipe is great for cucumbers too.

6 radishes, sliced thinly, chop the greens if they are in good shape
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
toasted sesame seed
salt

Toss radishes in vinegar and oil and chill for ½ hour. Add the greens and toss again with a pinch of salt and garnish with sesame seed.

Spicy Kale

1/2lb. Red Russian Kale (about what you are taking home today)
1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4-5 Garlic Cloves, minced
Crushed Red Pepper
1/3-1/2 Cup Chicken or Vegetable Stock

Boil 2 quarts salted water. Add kale and simmer for 4 minutes.
Drain and immediately rinse in cold water to stop the cooking process. Squeeze water out of the Kale (between 2 dishtowels). Heat olive oil in the same pan and add garlic and red peppers flakes to taste. Sauté for a minute then add the kale and broth and simmer for 3-4 minutes and serve.

Dilly Beans

1 and one half cups water
2 cups green beans (purple and yellow work too)
2 Tablespoons chopped dill
2 large garlic cloves
quarter teaspoon red pepper flakes
third cup cider vinegar
half teaspoon sugar or honey
half teaspoon olive oil (optional)

Boil water in a small pot with a good lid. Add the beans and cook until bright green add barely tender, 3-5 minutes. Drain the beans and toss them with the dill while they are still hot. Combine garlic, red pepper, vinegar, sugar/honeyin a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 2 minutes

Pepperonata

Quarter cup of olive oil
2 diced onions
3 garlic cloves, sliced thin
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
6 bell peppers –red and/or green, sliced
Salt and fresh pepper
4 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced

Heat the oil in a large skillet and add onions garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Sauté over medium heat until the onions soften and color. Add the peppers and a pinch of salt; raise the heat and cook vigorously until the peppers begin to soften. Add the tomatoes and lower the heat. Simmer until the excess water from the tomatoes has steamed away and season with pepper.

Oven Roasted Peppers

Preheat oven to 400. Cut the tops from the peppers and halve them lengthwise. Remove the veins and seeds; brush the skins with olive oil and lay out flat on a cookie sheet with the skin side up. Bake at 400 or broil 5-6 inches from the top element/burner in your oven until the skins are wrinkled but not charred, 10-20 minutes. Remove and stack peppers to steam in a pile for 15 minutes.

At this point you can rub off the skins with your hand or the help of a paper towel. A cold water bath can help this process but washes away a lot of flavor.

These flat peppers are easy to freeze by stacking them with wax paper between each layer and slipping them into ziplocks. Remove as much air as possible and freeze flat.