Braised Radishes

When you think radishes - the first thought that comes to mind is not to braise them. Yet, braising has a nice soothing and smoothing effect on the flavor of the radish. In fact, for centuries, Daikon (a larger Asian variety of radish) has been incorporated into stir fry.

Ingredients:

- 20 plump purple or red radishes
- 1 to 2 Tbl butter, unsalted
- 2 stalks green garlic (cleaned and sliced on the bias) -scallions or shallots can be used as a substitute
- 1 Tsp chopped fresh thyme
- Salt and pepper to taste **

[green garlic: young garlic which is harvested before the cloves have begun to mature. The resulting vegetable resembles a scallion, with a deep green stalk and a pale white bulb.]

Process:

1. Trim the tops off the radishes (if present) and gently scrub radishes clean of any debris

2. Cut radishes to even sizes - smaller ones can stay whole while larger are cut in halves

3. In a heated sauté pan, melt butter (avoid having the pan too hot or you will burn the butter)

4. Add the green garlic and thyme and cook for one to two minutes to soften garlic and release the oils of the thyme

5. Add the radishes and simmer for a few minutes until tender (3-5 minutes)

6. When soft remove from pan and plate radishes

7. Keep liquid/sauce in pan - add an additional pat or two of butter and reduce until 1/3 to 1/4 cup

8. Serve butter reduction over braised radishes - one to two tablespoons per serving

** I always recommend good kosher salt or good sea salt and fresh cracked pepper from the pepper mill over canned pepper and iodized salt

Recipe concept adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison