When your kiddo asks if they can pick out a vegetable at the grocery store or Farmer’s Market, your answer should always be, “Yes!” Getting kids to try new things can be a challenge and getting them to try new vegetables can sometimes be impossible. Seeing a variety of beautiful vegetable presentations piques the interest of kids. With so many colors, shapes, textures and flavors; produce should be as exciting for kids as it is good for them. On a recent trip to a new Natural Grocers in my area, my youngest son asked if we could make something with fennel for dinner.
Usually, I make most of my recipes up using things I have on hand but today I took to google to find a fennel salad recipe. Thanks to Elise at Simply Recipes, I found this Fennel Slaw with Mint Vinaigrette. It was a hit with the entire family. The vinaigrette tamed the licorice flavor of the fennel, giving it a pleasant flavor profile. Most of us ate it as is, but my mom added it to a salami and cheese sandwich. Next time I make this, I will make extra so I can heap it on a sandwich or burger of my own.
Using the more tender base of the fennel for the salad, I decided to roast the upper portion. The simple roasting method I use with almost every vegetable is just a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Roasted at 370º for 20 minutes, the fennel came out slightly caramelized with a mellow flavor.
Our next fennel adventure will include this…
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