Easy Summer Slaw with Farmer's Market Finds

On Thursday, I visited the Coolidge Corner Farmer’s Market for the first time this summer. People rave about this market, so I was excited to check it out. The reviews were spot on: the market was bustling with people in the middle of a weekday, and the local farmers brought their best, brightest, and tastiest produce. There were also vendors selling freshly baked bread, bakery goods, ice cream, herb plants, and fresh seafood (which had the longest line of all of the vendors). I even got to spend some time looking at woodworking by a local craftsman, and gorgeous photography of produce and Boston scenery by a woman. This is where I also picked up a fun gift for my mom, so if you’re reading this mom, you’ll just have to wait and see what it is!

I had to choose my produce wisely, mainly because I only brought a limited amount of cash to spend. This was probably a good thing, because I could have bought out the whole market. I picked up a big bunch of yellow beets, which are orange on the outside, a kohlrabi and a bunch of carrots that were plucked out of the ground that morning. I had never seen or eaten kohlrabi and the farmer told me I could just slice it and eat it raw. I did some research on the veggie and found out that it goes well in salads, and tastes similar to the stalk of broccoli (which I love) with the texture of a raw radish. It looks like a purple alien vegetable, which made it even more appealing to try!

On Sunday, Funk and I spent hours lounging in the sun and picnicking along the Charles River in Boston. The sun sapped all of our energy and when we got home we talked about just putting a frozen pizza in the oven to avoid making dinner. But seeing my gorgeous produce in the fridge just waiting to be used, I knew I had to get cooking, or at least chopping. I had just enough energy to spend five minutes whipping up this fresh slaw:
Ingredients
½ head cabbage, cut into thin slices
1 kohlrabi, cut into bite sized pieces
about 10 carrots, cut into bite sized pieces
about 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
about 3 tablespoons Orange Muscat Vinegar from Trader Joes
salt and pepper to taste

I chopped and mixed all ingredients in a big bowl and let the flavors marinade for about 45 minutes before we settled down to enjoy dinner (paired with some frozen veggie dumplings popped in the microwave – hey, I didn’t have enough energy to make an entire meal!) This salad was fresh, easy, and tasted like summer. You can use any combination of ingredients, such as sliced radishes or broccoli stems in place of the kohlrabi, or romaine lettuce instead of cabbage. The Orange Muscat Vinegar could easily be replicated with a few tablespoons of orange juice mixed with some white wine vinegar.

I hope you’ve had a chance to enjoy the weather recently, and let the sun sap you of all of your energy. But try to save just enough to whip up this quick and tasty slaw.