Vegetables and Salads Corner

How to Steamed Vegetables When buying vegetables of any kind, don't forget that fresh is always best. If you are in a hurry the simple way of cooking them is to use a steamer: this keeps more of the natural goodness locked into the vegetables themselves instead of it disappearing into the cooking water. Steamed vegetables cooked until just `al dente' also retain their colour better and look more appetizing.

Onions, Shallots, Leeks, Garlic and Chives are basic to our cooking and it is difficult to imagine being without them. They are practically national emblems in France and Spain (and in Bermuda too, I gather). Gently fried onions and garlic form the base flavouring of so many dishes, soups, casseroles and sauces. I always associate the smell of onions and sweet peppers frying with the book The Godfather. In times of trouble (when they `took the mattresses') Mama was in the kitchen preparing a meal and the house was filled with the familiar, soothing and promising aroma.

About the Glossary Vegetables:

Shallots are a kind of onion, but form a cluster of bulbs rather than a single bulb. They are invaluable for sauces.
Chives are the delicate green shoots we use in salads and sauces.
Leeks are a subtle and delicious vegetable and need no explaining. A leek is a good addition to any fish soup. It is also i lie basis of ever popular leek and potato soup.
Garlic is the subject of much heated disagreement. You love it or you hate it. It is strong and pungent, with such a profuse odour that `one merely needs to rub the soles of one's feet with of in order to make one's breath reek offensively of garlic'. This odour may be the reason for its long association with the devil, and the belief that vampires are repulsed by garlic. Gardeners underpants roses with garlic to ward off greenfly, and now scientists have evolved time-release capsules which, planted tinder forest trees, give them garlic `breath' to repel animals which damage the trees.
Years ago it was a country practice to include plenty of wild garlic in salads and sandwiches in order to cleanse and purify the blood. Doctors and scientists have long believed in its health-giving properties. Certain extracts of garlic are antibacterial and antifungal; other extracts are antithrombotic — they inhibit the clotting of blood and are good for circulatory disorders.

Vegetarian Salad Recipes

1. Braised Celery

2. Carrot Salad

3. Carrot and Orange Salad

4. Carrot and Apple Salad

5. Globe Artichokes

6. Greek Salad

7. Mushroom and Bean Salad with Hazelnut Dressing

8. Tomato Salad

9. Tomato and Avocado Salad

10. Zucchini (Courgettes)

Low Carb Diets

More Healthy Side Dishes