Kohl Rabi, Turnips, Radishes, etc.

Kohl Rabi is a tasty root veggie.  Well, it's kind of a root - it actually forms a bulb above ground.  Some people describe it as a mix of turnip and cabbage.  If harvested during the colder months, it is sweet and juicy.  During the days leading up to summer, it can become more bitter, spicy and woody.  So, if you try it in late June or July and don't like it, give it another go in October or later.  The frost/colder temputure really brings up the sugar content of this veggie.

Turnips or kohlrabi or radishes or daikon radish or rutabaga:

A few ideas on how to use:

1. We generally eat these raw.  The children, for some reason, prefer all members of the cabbage family raw.  This includes cabbage, kale, collards, kohl rabi, turnips, etc.  We peel the kohlrabi or turnip with a paring knife and then slice it and serve fresh with salt and sometimes a little lime which is squeezed on the slice. We generally don't peel radishes.  Depending on your spice preference, you can peel daikon radish.  If you don't, it will be spicier.  Which is generally OK after a frost but can be really overwhelming before a frost.  So taste it to see if you like it.
2. You can include these in a combination with other root veggies for roasting.  Cut up all root veggies and toss in olive oil, salt and any other dry spice that you like and roast at 350 or 400 until they are fork-tender.  Turn a few times to brown.  Yum.
3. You can cut up into 1/3" wide strips x 1/2" wide and sautee with your greens.  The root veggies add a bit of crisp texture to your greens.
4. You can add to a pot roast.  These white root veggies, including radishes, daikon radish, rutabaga, etc. will absorb the flavor of the meat and impart a bit of their own flavor on the dish.  Again, it's a nice texture combined with meat - definitely comfort food.
5. You can cube any of these veggies, par boil them until tender, drain and toss with a little butter and salt and serve as a side dish.
6. For spicier root veggies, some people grate and combine with tuna fish or saute some and serve as a bed with fish.  It's not always horse-radish hot but can be.  Cooking will tone down the spice.
7. Don't forget that the greens of all of these veggies are high in vitamin C.  All greens make a nice pesto - some spicier than others.  Radish greens are very tasty sauteed with a little butter and salt.  Try it, I think you'll like it.

 How to store:
All of these will store for months.  Remove the tops immediately and store separately in the fridge.  Place root veggies in a sealed plastic bag with a little moisture in the crisper.  Should keep for 2 months or more as long as they don't freeze.

Chicken soup with root veggies

So, people have been surprised to hear that we still have parsnips, turnips and winter squash in storage. The parsnips are holding up really well (although there are only 2 left in the fridge but more in the ground in the front garden). The turnips are OK - some are good, some are going. The squash is the same as the turnips. I have to cut it up and take out the bad spots but most of it is still good. As long as your squash doesn't freeze and it's not too humid, you can keep it for a long time. It's almost March and I still have at least 10 various squash in the garage. Now, I'll admit, I protect it. I don't open the garage door so it's basically a very large "root cellar". I stuff any air hole I notice with rags or sheets. I have a thermometer in where the squash is kept and if I see the temp. at 38 or so, I plug in a small space heater. This is not what everyone is committed to do. But, if you want a "fresh" squash in late-Feb., it works.

I enjoy cooking but really don't like to slave over the stove. Soups are good. You can put them on and let them go, adding during the last hour the complimentary ingredients. Today was one of those days. We've had a lot of snow lately so I thought soup might be in order and, at about 1:00, I took out a stewing hen from the freezer, put it in an 8 Q. stock pot, covered it with water, added 2 fresh bay leaves (from one of our plants), 4 very small onions from the fall harvest, about 1/8 cup of coarse kosher salt (small handful), and 8 - 10 peppercorns. I turned it on high (because it was frozen) and suited up to go and plow. Allie and I had so much fun plowing that we decided to go into the woods to haul out a log (we heat with wood). Long story short, I drove over a log and got stuck. (I did get out 1 1/2 hours later). So, we walked to the house.

Now, with all of the excitement, I had forgotten about the soup. But, that's the beauty of soup. As long as it doesn't evaporate, it's OK. The chicken was at a full boil and was no longer covered with water but I just added some water, turned it down and continued to simmer it down until 5:00 .

I ladled off the fat (there was about 1/3 inch on the top) and poured the stock through a colander into a large sauce pan. I let the chicken cool and de-boned it. The bones are now in a second pot making more stock (with one onion, some salt, and a bay leaf). I cut up the chicken and threw 1/2 in the pot and will keep the other 1/2 for pizza or sandwiches. Then I peeled and chopped up 3 parsnips, about 1/3 large patty pan squash squash and 3 turnips, added about 1 tsp. each of celery salt, coriander, ground ginger and some rice vinegar and brought to a boil until the veggies were tender.

Yum. I added noodles for the children, Zingerman's bread for the adults.