I mentioned the other week that my New Years resolution this year was to eat some raw vegetables every day. I figured that this would help me get some more vegetables on my plate too. Some nutrients in vegetables become more powerful and nourishing when cooked (like lycopenes in tomatoes). But there are other nutrients that start to break down, and depending on your cooking method, some of the nutrients could be leeched from the vegetables altogether. So it is important to have a balance between cooked and raw foods.
It has been much easier than I thought! Between salads, sandwiches, juices, and things like these veggie sushi rolls there are a lot of options. Everything is really easy to make and always really quick since it doesn't have to be cooked. There really isn't a recipe on how to make these sushi rolls. You can use pretty much whatever vegetables you have on hand, just slice them and put them in some nori (or you can add some rice for a more traditional roll). There is a little bit of technique to get it right though...
So the whole food truck idea has been around forever, of course. But in recent years it has become so popular, it is kind of crazy. The idea is great, get your food to where the people are... totally makes sense. But "gourmet" food from a truck? I don't know. I mean the deep fried Oreos and corn dogs make sense from a food truck... you only need a place to coat it in batter, then dunk it in a fry tank... very little prep space needed. But some of these menus these food trucks are offering... I certainly don't envy the cooks in those trucks. While the food may be good (great even), and the restaurant came to me instead of me going to it... it still makes me think I'm eating fair food even when it is a healthy salad.
So there is a food truck in Columbus that seems to be everywhere... art festivals, Fourth of July shindigs, even at my work. Good things is, this food truck has vegetarian entrees too! They may not be the healthiest meals in the world, it's nice to have an option that is packed full of vegetables, even if they were fried first.
Any way, we got food from this food truck is called Sweet Carrot which I mentioned in a previous post. I had "fried arts on a cake" which was a corn fritter with fried artichokes, cole slaw, and some kind of creamy sauce on top. It was delicious! My husband had mach and cheese with barbecued pulled pork on top, which had a cute, funny name for Art Festival, but now I forget what it was. So I thought I would try to remake both... just haven't gotten around to the mac and cheese... that sounds like a winter meal to me.
Radishes... they are such a pretty vegetable with the vibrant tones of red... but outside of slicing them up and tossing them in a salad I have never really know what to do with them. Even when scouring Google and Pinterest it is difficult to find something that isn't a salad or just a garnish (on the bright side, now I know how to make a radish rose).
I know some people pickle their radishes (although I don't know what they do with them, since pickled radishes in a salad doesn't seem quite as appetizing), so I thought a radish slaw would be some where between a pickled radish and a salad. I have been meaning to post my version of Sweet Carrot's Fried Arts on a Cake... this radish slaw paired with zucchini fritters is kind of a second version of that combination (minus the fried artichokes). The buttery, cheesy flavor of the fritters paired with the tangy, peppery flavor of the slaw. A very summery and southern combination. My husband dug out his old bartending supplies and whipped us up some mint juleps to go with dinner. Perfect meal to enjoy sitting outside enjoying the beautiful summer weather!
As soon as you give up something, you start craving it almost immediately. Giving up meat made me miss sushi. My husband and I frequently have Friday night sushi at our local sushi place and we haven't been since Lent began (they are probably wondering if we are okay). So, since I was missing this Friday night tradition (well, not every Friday), I took it into my own hands and made my own sushi!
It is really pretty easy to do. Great for raw foodies, pregnant ladies, and vegetarians alike. It is pretty inexpensive too (unlike sushi restaurants, but you are skipping the most expensive, skill-intensive part, the raw fish). You can go for pretty much any vegetable you can cut into thin slices (asparagus, green beans, sweet potato, bell pepper, etc), but I went pretty traditional.
Most traditional Irish food includes meat, but that doesn't mean it can't be transformed into a satisfying vegetarian meal. Filled with root vegetables, this is a perfect winter meal or to celebrate the end of winter with Saint Patrick's Day.
