Radish: French, Round, Purple & Easter

In ancient Greece, there was a vegetable so revered that Greeks offered pure-gold replicas to Apollo, god of sun, light, music, poetry, prophecy, and more. The prized produce? Radishes.

(Beets, on the other hand, were cast in silver; lowly turnips, lead.) Glorifying radishes sure makes sense to me:

In their crisp, peppery-hot raw state, these colorful roots can enhance salads or crudités platters or star in an elegant appetizer where I generally like to complement their pungency with sweet and/or creamy ingredients. If raw radishes is not your thing, then cooking them—whether sautéing, braising, or roasting—is the way to go.

Radish Butter

This easy appetizer is a awesome idea on the French nibble of radishes smeared with sweet butter and sprinkled with sea salt. Here we encourage you to chop the radishes with vinegar to give their pungency staying power and then mix in horseradish to boost the spiciness. Served with a nice bread and you will not be disappointed.

The Greeks Got it right. They are pure gold.

Spinach: Health and Tasty

Whether you eat it steamed, cooked, canned or raw, spinach nutrition is foundational in the battle to help slow down the aging process and prevent degenerative diseases. This leafy green vegetable is one of the most nutritious foods you can consume.

Smokey Spiced Spinach and Chickpeas: This will warm you on cold spring day.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

250g spinach leaves, washed
1 medium onion, finely chopped
Pinch of saffron threads
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 large tomato, chopped small
2 x 400g tins chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tsp smoked or plain paprika
Salt and pepper
2-3 tbsp olive oil

Method

Place the wet spinach in a large pan with a lid on a medium heat, and allow to just wilt, making sure the leaves are still bright green and not overcooked. Drain immediately in a colander, and refresh under cold water to halt the cooking.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan and soften the onion for 10 minutes on a medium to low heat.
While the onion is cooking, place the garlic with the saffron threads and a pinch of salt in a pestle and mortar, and crush to a paste.
When the onion is just beginning to colour golden, add the garlic saffron paste, and cook gently for a minute or two further.
Add the chickpeas, chopped tomato and ½ tsp of paprika and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring to coat the chickpeas in the spices.
Taste and season with a little more salt, pepper, and paprika if necessary, then stir in the wilted spinach.
Serve drizzled with more olive oil and sprinkled with paprika.

Spring Veggie Primer: Radish and Spinach