Purple Kohlrabi

We grew our own kohlrabi this year - first time ever. I grew it from a six-pack of little plants I set out earlier in the winter.

I love purple kohlrabi from the farmers' market. It's one of those plants where you get two vegetables in one - the greens are delicious sautéed in garlic and olive oil, and the root is great steamed or boiled and served as you would turnips.

The one essential is to make sure to peel off all the heavy fibrous skin of the bulbous part before cooking it. Otherwise you get mouthfuls of tough string.

This kohlrabi I pulled from my garden, however, was a revelation. As you can see, the bulbous part grows above the soil - you can see the small clump of roots below it still with some dirt on it.

When I started peeling off the purple skin, expecting lots of stringy fibers under it, I found instead crisp juicy flesh, similar to jicama. I don't know why it's so tender, but we're enjoying it. I peeled it and cut off any tough-looking parts. Then I chopped it in large pieces and steamed it until it was tender - under 10 minutes - and then tossed it in garlic butter for a yummy side dish.

I saved the greens and combined them with other greens later in the week in a simple sautéed greens dish.

It was another reminder that home-grown food really does taste best, and not just because of the satisfaction of helping nature create something beautiful.