Wow, I can’t believe we are already the beneficiaries of fresh and flavourful local cabbage and carrots. Lucky us! To honour these veg, I decided to do a simple recipe that allowed their incredible flavour and texture to take the forefront. With such tasty and fresh veg, there really isn’t any need to dress them up – they taste absolutely perfect on their own!
Below you’ll find the recipe for Vegetable Peeler Salad. I came across it in one of my cookbooks Power Vegetables (Peter Meehan), and knew instantly that it was a perfect way to showcase the carrots and cabbage. Don’t let the simplicity fool you! This salad is flavourful and crunchy, acidic and sweet. It comes together in a flash, and can be enjoyed as a side, in wraps, tacos, or atop memelitas (which is how we enjoyed it, though it was certainly a very loose interpretation of memelitas). It paired really nicely with refried beans, which we made with the garlic scape and green onion bulbs. You can also be creative with the veg you put in the salad- radish, kohlrabi, and even cucumber would all be delicious.
I’m planning on using the basil and oregano on pizza tomorrow, but decided to use some of the basil for a special drink tonight. We’re coming to the end of strawberry season, so I dreamed up a Strawberry Basil Lemonade that is perfectly cooling in this hot weather, and honours the end of the strawberry harvest. I made mine quite tart, but I’ve provided instructions if you prefer a sweeter lemonade. I love how the basil adds a herbaceous and aromatic quality – you can smell it before you take a sip, and it is a subtle and welcome flavour that adds a bit of complexity to the drink. Basil also happens to be a wonderful medicinal – it aids digestion and eases stomach cramping and bloating. If you’ve missed out on the last of the strawberries – never fear! This lemonade would be delicious with blueberries, and their season is just around the corner.
More Magnificent Meal Musings:
- Tomato, Basil, and Oregano Flatbread
- Mushrooms and Kale on Toast
- Fresh Salad with Lettuce, Cucumber, and a Green Onion Dressing
- Cucumber and Carrot Salad with Crushed Peanuts and Chili
- Grilled Cabbage
Vegetable Peeler Salad
This (ever so slightly adapted) recipe comes from a wonderfully fun and colourful cookbook Power Vegetables. It's as simple as can be, delightfully crunchy and bright, and allows the flavour of the vegetables to shine. We had it atop a very loose interpretation of memelitas, and it was the perfect meal on a hot summer's eve.
Ingredients
- 4 sweetheart cabbage leaves
- 4 small carrots
- 1-2 green onion stalks
- 1 lime, juiced
- possible add-ins: cilantro, chili flakes, thinly sliced radish or kohlrabi
Instructions
-
Wash carrots and then, using a vegetable peeler, peel long ribbons into a bowl.
-
Stack the cabbage leaves on top of one another and remove the toughest part at the bottom of the stem (I created a small triangle cut). cut the cabbage leaves to create thin ribbons. Add the the bowl of carrot peelings.
-
Thinly slice the green onion stalks and add to the cabbage and carrots. Toss with lime and salt.
-
Serve with tacos, memelitas, in a chicken wrap, or simply on its own.
Strawberry Basil Lemonade
This is a tart, sweet, and aromatic little number. It is super refreshing, and is an excellent drink to go alongside a meal – basil is not only a tasty culinary herb, but also a medicinal, and can help ease digestion. You can make this with a splash of vodka or gin if that's the vibe you're going for, otherwise, this drink is entirely family friendly and is an absolutely beautiful colour to boot.
Ingredients
- 7 fresh strawberries, washed and hulled
- 7-10 fresh basil leaves, torn
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 1 Tbsp honey or simple syrup add an extra 1-2 Tbsp if you want it sweet
- sparkling water
- ice cubes
Instructions
-
Muddle the strawberries, basil, lemon juice, honey/simple syrup, and several ice cubes in a cocktail shaker or mason jar. Sample, and add more sweetener if needed (if using 1 Tbsp, it will still be quite tart).
-
Strain into two glasses and top off with sparkling water, and ice cubes if desired. Garnish with a strawberry and basil leaf.
Recipe Notes
If you’d prefer, you can also use still water instead of sparkling. I think it would be an excellent picnic drink, so you could also triple the recipe and make a big pitcher.
Also – if you’ve missed out on the last of the strawberries for the season, never fear! This would be absolutely delicious with blueberries, and their season is just around the corner.