(post, Lisa Becker Shea)
With March upon us, I can’t think of a more deceitful time of year. Despite the near-60 degree weather, the chill in the sharp wind asserts that it’s not yet spring. As the days grow longer and the sun begins to reclaim the day, the threat of snow intensely lingers; particularly troubling this year with winter’s track record. Yes, it’s still winter with tinges of spring. In recognition of “sprinter” and the annual deception it imparts, I introduce this Sprinter Slaw — winter produce mimicking the melon hues of warm weather to come.
With honeydew, cantaloupe and melon varieties months from ripe consumption in the Northeast, kohlrabi, rutabaga and apple are the impostors. These winter stand-ins are certainly harmless and actually quite dignified; crisp for soft, mild for sweet, with nutritionally similar profiles (all pack vitamins A, C, folate and fiber).
Since my first wrestle with kohlrabi, I’ve had my eyes on a few vegetable slaw recipes and many required the use of a food processor. Though my food processor had been sleeping since Thanksgiving’s Pumpkin Pie, I dusted the appliance and re-read the instruction manual to understand the various attachments before beginning this recipe. While I’m fairly certain I used the wrong one – I used the slicer, when I should have used the shredder – the results were still slaw-like, as you’ll see in the pictures, and certainly light and crunchy. The apple adds sweetness to the vegetables and the Apple-Ginger Vinaigrette dressing intensifies this flavor. I nestled the slaw in some Bibb lettuce and found myself with a new salad to celebrate the arrival of sprinter.
Sprinter Slaw with Apple-Ginger Vinaigrette
Vinaigrette based on Ginger Vinaigrette recipe from Food & Wine, June 2009.
Slaw Ingredients (makes about 4 cups):
1 apple (I used Jonagold)
1 kohlrabi bulb
1 rutabaga
Vinaigrette Ingredients (per 2 cups of slaw):
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp ginger
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Peel rutabaga, kohlrabi and apple.
2. Cut into chunks that enable you to place comfortably into the feeder tube of your food processor using the shredder blade.
3. Work in batches to shred the vegetables.
4. In a small bowl, mix the apple cider vinegar with the sugar and grated ginger until the sugar is dissolved.
5. Whisk in the olive oil and season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper.
6. Combine slaw with vinaigrette and allow to marinate for an hour in the refrigerator.
The three ingredients of kohlrabi, rutabaga and apple actually creates about 4 cups of slaw. The Vinaigrette, as portioned above, is enough dressing for 2 cups of slaw. This was done purposely so that I had enough slaw leftover for use in other recipes.