Recipe Rursday: Radishes and Radish Greens

10/5/10.

Trying something a little different this week...in our CSA we received a nice bunch of radishes. I'm not a huge fan of raw radishes, though if hidden in an avocado/sprouts sandwich, I might not complain. The greens (tops of the radishes) looked really good and Chris reported that they're edible, if we could figure out how to prepare them.

Tonight I tried Food & Wine's Roasted Radishes and Radish Greens (below). The combination of the sweet roasted radishes (something like mellow sweet potatoes) with the bitter greens worked really really well. I sliced the radishes thinly, which made them more like crisps or chips. And the final dish looked nothing like Food & Wine's, but I'd make it again in a flash. At least, any time I am given radishes.

Ingredients

1. 3 bunches small radishes with greens attached
2. 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3. Salt and freshly ground pepper
4. 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (skipped this step)
   
5. 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (used a splash of lime juice actually, but the cast iron skillet was so hot, it basically disintegrated as soon as it hit the pan).

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 500°. Trim the radishes and wash the greens; pat dry.
2. In a large ovenproof skillet, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the radishes, season with salt and pepper and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned in spots, about 2 minutes. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast the radishes for 15 minutes, until crisp-tender.
3. Return the skillet to the burner and stir in the butter to coat the radishes. Add the radish greens and cook over moderate heat until they are wilted, about 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice and season with salt. Serve the radishes right away.