Monday, November 23, 2015

Vegetable Evangelism

I've become a vegetable evangelist.

If you are feeling snarky, you're probably wondering, "Oh, really, SpSq?  What was your first clue?  That not only do you feed everyone brussels sprouts, you blog about how much you love them?  That you go through 13 heads of cauliflower in a few weeks?  That you anonymously send people vegetable cookbooks?"

Well, actually, I didn't come up with this phrase on my own.  I didn't know I was a vegetable evangelist until someone told me I was.  We had friends in town, and as I was roasting brussels sprouts, turnips, sweet potatoes, and beets while discussing the apple fennel slaw I apparently made last time they were in town and mentioning best things to do with parsnips and rutabagas*, the phrase magically appeared.  And I love it.  "Vegetable Evangelist" makes me feel much cooler than "woman who inflicts root crops on unsuspecting guests."

I'm a vegetable evangelist and apparently I am becoming a poor writer.  Or rather I am becoming the writer I have always been: one who cannot quickly articulate the bits that are cleverly connected in her head. And because some of what I am wanting to write is time sensitive, I guess I will go ahead and list my points and (probably never) return to rewrite in a clever and witty fashion.

Intended Points of Post:
  1. I am a vegetable evangelist and proud of it.
  2. I want to discuss Thanksgiving side dishes. 
  3. The Mister and the boys made little "hoop houses" (or very low "poly-tunnels") over our winter garden on Saturday and it made me ridiculously happy.
  4. There was a "holiday" farmer's market in town on Saturday, at which we purchased fresh tomatoes (peppers, sweet potatoes, new potatoes, eggs, honey, pickles and turnips).  I harvested my basil before it froze (for the first time) on Saturday night, so we had pasta with tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella last night, as is typical of late November in Oklahoma (or maybe not).
  5.  I want to teach people how to cook (and to not be afraid of vegetables).  I want suggestions for how to do this.
  6. I am excited to offer my readers an opportunity to help refugees by helping them grow food through a fund-raising project vetted by a friend I trust (I have lots and lots to say about this, but for now, a link to Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is),
 And, see, in my mind this all makes sense together-- love vegetables: here are some examples -- excited to be growing food: look at the picture of cute boys and hoop house -- thankful for friends and family and Thanksgiving (but no green bean casserole for me) -- let's help others grow vegetables -- thank you for being my friend -- now let's talk about food some more.

Please comment about side dishes and suggestions for spreading the good word o' veggies.

*Parsips: parsnips and carrots.  Rutabagas: rutabagas and apples, perhaps with some red cabbage.


5 comments:

Amateur Reader (Tom) said...

Poor misunderstood skillet green beans with mushrooms.

The Zahav cookbook has a Thanksgiving / Hanukkah version based on tahini rather than cream that looks very tempting.

Sparkling Squirrel said...

AR- I have nothing against either classic green bean casserole or your really tasty crispy shallot version, it's just that neither is important to me as part of Thanksgiving. If I'm cooking and going to have a green vegetable, it is going to first be a green salad with some acid (usually spinach with citrus and pomegranate, but I've been eyeing a recipe for radicchio, oranges and grapefruit) and second be something easy (steamed broccoli or roasted brussels sprouts). Let me know about the tahini version.

Anonymous said...

I would love to hear more about this apple fennel slaw and also suggestions about what to do with rutabagas. You are the person who introduced me to the wonder of parsnips, and I'm grateful for your vegetable evangelism.
Jenny

Chateau said...

I can hardly contain myself thinking about good vegetables - yum!
Bon Appétit, Nov 2015 did a splendid article on Thanksgiving
sides (well, no I didn't try any yet, but it's the morning after
Thanksgiving and I'm salivating; and the photos are exquisite!)
(how do you like that?) Herby Barley Salad with Butter-Basted
Mushrooms, Roasted Carrots and Red Onions with Fennel and
Mint, Sautéed Pears with Bacon and Mustard Dressing, Winter
Squash Agrodolce

AdAstra said...

Adore roasted veggies. Just made roasted cauliflower with raisins, but I'm guessing that's nothing new to you having recently prepared 11 lbs of cauliflower in a week. Oh, another favorite is cauliflower au gratin (with horseradish and Gruyere)--packs a flavorful punch! Thrilled that this Thanksgiving Meghan discovered sweet potatoes! Hoping the kids grow to love veggies as much as their mum. What'd you settle on for your Turkey Day side dishes?

Have a lovely visit home! Hugs!