Making the most of fall and winter vegetables

Great ways to enjoy fresh flavours all year round!

I don’t know about you, but in the summer I seem to live off salads. I crave them for their fresh, bright flavours and the satisfying crunch that comes from eating raw food. I do like to cook with the seasons, however, to take full advantage of locally-grown produce, so that means that salads tend to appear less on my menus in the fall and winter, replaced by heaps of root and other sturdy vegetables.

Over time, I’ve learned to truly love (and even crave!) ingredients like cauliflower, turnip, carrots and beets, all of which are readily available throughout the fall and winter. Some people mention to me that they can’t think of creative ways to serve these vegetables; I’m sure some of them, just like me,  do not enjoy eating beautiful produce that’s been either overcooked or slathered in an overpowering sauce. To solve your winter vegetable woes, I’ve come up with a few fun ways to enjoy root and other seasonal vegetables and I’m happy to share them with you.

Roasted beet and garlic pesto

Crunchy curried cauliflower pickles

Quick pickled turnips, Lebanese-style

Tunisian carrot soup with mint and dukkah

Root vegetable carpaccio with lemon-thyme vinaigrette