Radish!

 

 I can't stop buying radishes at the Farmer's Market. It's like a sickness.  Last weekend they were buy one get one free.  I called my mother and asked her if she needed radishes. It gets worse.  I have three posts about radishes coming up.  That's what it's come to around here.  I've become a radish pusher.  

Come on, they're so pretty, don't you want to try them?  At the bottom of the bowl are the longer, red and white french breakfast radishes.  These are the most mild of the radishes.  Then I have some red and purple ones, they have slightly different flavors but are a bit more bitter than the breakfast radishes. There a white radish, which is spicier still and then of course, the glorious black radish, which is the most peppery.

I was most excited about the black radish, so when I got it home, I peeled it and sliced it so that we could try it right away.  I should have videotaped our reactions.  Ryan made a face like he'd bitten into a lemon, followed by a fairly aggressive blech.  It was bitter and sharp, peppery and had the faintest aftertaste of dirt.

Not exactly delicious. But then again, there are a whole lot of vegetables you shouldn't eat a slice of raw, so despite the inauspicious beginning I wasn't discouraged.  Black radish  is much better suited to be used as a flavoring.  In this seriously tasty spread, the sour cream mellows the bitter flavor and the spicy peppery flavor makes this far more exciting than your usual bland coleslaw. And the vague aura of dirt is completely gone (unless of course, you're the type of person that generally thinks things taste like dirt. If that's you, you should probably avoid radishes).

DELECTABLE RADISH SPREAD/DIP/SLAW
INGREDIENTS:
1/4 C grated black radish (this was one large black radish)
1/3 C grated carrot (this was one carrot)
1/4 C of minced cucumber (seeded and peeled)
3" piece of scallion, minced
2 T sour cream
pinch of salt - less than 1/4 t, just a pinch, really.

DIRECTIONS:
Mix together all ingredients.  Eat as a spread on bread, or a dip.  Consider making in larger batches and pretending it's coleslaw, but more interesting.