Vegetarian Turnip Cake with Shiitake Mushrooms and Fried Shallots

The Lunar New Year is upon us—tomorrow marks the start of the Year of the Rooster. This is my year. I’m a rooster, and if you’re familiar with the Chinese calendar, you could deduce that I will be turning 24, 36 or 48 this year. I’ll let you figure it out. In Chinese horoscope theory, it’s supposed to be an unlucky year for you when it’s your year. Funny, it seems that it’s been unlucky for a lot of folks … Read More

Crostini with Watermelon Radish, Ricotta and Mint

Yes, be a little twee sometimes — go ahead, I dare you. That time you splurged on a dear, felt hat that was so right for a horseback riding weekend in the country that you’ll never go on? With the kid gloves that go up to your elbows? That fancy little fetish for truffled sea salts in the cupboard? The extra emoji in a text to a crush? We can all push the cuteness of our character to the limits sometimes — and … Read More

Ode to A Difficult Food: Black Radish

I brought these black radishes home from the market for the precise reason that they were so difficult to love. Do you have a friend or family member like that, who constantly seems to wage war with you in a bet to lose your loyalty? We have relationships with food all the time, believe it or not. Maybe you’ve been having an affair with the same chicken salad sandwich from that deli for weeks, and maybe you’ve long since parted … Read More

Clams Simmered with Sake and Daikon Radish

posted in: Recipes, Seafood | 1

Just because the holiday season is officially over doesn’t mean cooking has to return to a boring routine. I’ve resolved to cook more under-explored foods this year, and stood at the seafood stand at the market for about five seconds before deciding on clams. Why? Because they — like daikon radishes, which were also snatched from a nearby market bin — are quick and easy to cook, flavorful, healthy, sustainable, and very inexpensive to boot. Hm, I guess that’s not … Read More

Spring Chicken Sandwich

posted in: Meat & Poultry, Recipes | 5

Why settle for sad tomatoes shipped in from somewhere it wasn’t ripened on the vine just because you’re craving a sandwich? We all love a juicy slab of beefsteak tomato at its peak of flavor on bread, but it ain’t going to happen in the spring. Fortunately, there are plenty of ingredients in their prime now, and with a little imagination — and acceptance — you may just forget the bloated, blood-red things even exist.

Daikon Radish Greens Pasta with Seared Daikon, Chilies, Garlic and Lemon

posted in: Recipes, vegetarian | 8

It’s another round of head-to-tail cooking, for the underrated root vegetable! And for good cause: radish greens are a true superfood, among the most nutrient-rich of all leafy greens, yet they tend to become a little coarse and bitter-tasting while the root beneath them matures. No matter — mash them into a silken fresh pasta to toss with the lightly cooked radishes, too.

Strawberry & Radish Salad with Balsamic Vinegar

It didn’t take very much imagination to make this dish; I was admiring the bright, red berries just arrived in their teal cardboard cartons when I spied bunches of similar round objects sitting nearby at the Greenmarket. Craving something crunchy to off-set the strawberries’ sweet softness and juice, I had already picked up a bag of granola — and some yogurt, too. But radishes, in a fresh, crisp salad to surround them instead? I thought, hey, why not?

Carrot, Cucumber and Radish Oshinko

No, I didn’t just sneeze, it’s oshinko! A simple, no-sweat type of Japanese pickle. If you like a salty, crisp snack in the middle of the day, or something to refresh your palate with at the end of a meal, try making a big batch of these pickles to keep in the fridge. It takes just three days for them to sit at room-temperature, to their slightly fermented state.

Arugula Salad with Wisconsin Blue Cheese

I’ve been to Wisconsin a few times, whether traveling for work (involving food) or pleasure. So I’ve gotten a good taste of the dairy state, and even toured the caves of a cheesemaker once. So when I was asked to recreate a recipe from Wisconsin Cheese and Chef Michael Symon’s cooking series, Favorite Foods, I thought it’d be a good way to cook with one of my findings. But also, to maybe overcome a lifelong aversion I’ve had for Blue … Read More

Spelt Pilaf with Pickled Radish, Pumpkin Seeds, Golden Raisins & Parsley

In the past couple months, I have gone off such the deep end into Eastern philosophy it’s embarrassing. I’ve traded coffee for tea, drunken bike crashes and homemade hangover brunch parties (as recalled in The Art of Eating In) for bikram yoga and granola with soy milk. I don’t know what’s going on. My latest obsession is with macrobiotics. It stresses the importance of many of the things we’re already privvy to about food (unprocessed, well-balanced), but much more, like … Read More

1 2