ADVENTURES IN RAW: Tabouli Longstocking, Raw Beets & Greens, Minted Potatoes & Peas

Apart from some enormous salads, platters of crudite, bushels of fruit and the like,this summer has been pretty well a wash-out as far as brining this blog exciting recipes. The market produce has been fabulous - from tiny bokchoy barely twice the size of a single clove of garlic -



- so delicate that cooking seemed a shame, to wonderful heirloom tomatoes, purple and golden cauliflowers



and all manner of greens, we have had a great time. But we haven't done much cooking. Here are a couple of things:

TABOULI LONGSTOCKING (RAW)



Not wanting to use cooked grain, I made this from sprouted lentils and seeds, plus some of the usual things people put into various kinds of tabouleh. Beautifully dressed with fresh lemon (who needs ooil!), it was welcome and refreshing! I plan to do it this way more often. (Why 'longstocking'? Because 'longlegs' sounded too, er, anatomical!)

BEETS WITH THEIR OWN GREENS (RAW)



I have one or two variations going on my Beets Cooked With Their Own Greens elsewhere on this blog and other places, but RAW? Yup. I grated the beets and tore the delicate greens into bit-size pieces and dressed the salad as if it were for the cooked dish.

This next is, if anything, a very simple 'hybrid' dish - cooked plus raw, so very plain that it seems foolish to include it, but oh with the lovely fresh veggies it was outta sight! So here you have

MINTED POTATOES & PEAS



Tiny new potatoes (lightly steamed) with newsly shelled peas (at room temperature) and lots of garden mint :)

And my plate on one occasion:



As you see I had added a tomato salad.

And now off to the market to find some lovely greens for today's lunch!



(The little guy in the above photo is our co-resident Misha.)