[1] First, take a head of cabbage (photo ©y Good Eggs).

[2] Next, slice it, grill it and garnish it (photo © McCormick).

[3] For better flavor, chop quality blue cheese instead of using packaged crumbles (photo © KitchenHealsSoul.com).

It can be a side, a vegetarian main, or part of a grain bowl. It’s just as delicious as cauliflower, and less expensive.

This recipe from McCormick adds more flavor to the thick cabbage “steaks” with a zesty marinade. Crumbled bacon, blue cheese and green onions (scallions) are popular toppers. But if you prefer a vegetarian dish, use any toppings you like, from vegetarian bacon and cheese to grilled tofu and cherry tomatoes.

An average head of cabbage can be cut into six steaks. Prep time is 10 minutes, cook time is 20 minutes.
 
RECIPE: GRILLED CABBAGE STEAKS

Ingredients For 6 Servings

 
For The Marinade

 
For The Garnish

 
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*Marinade mix comprises pre-selected seasonings, to which you add your own oil and vinegar. It’s easy to make a “freestyle” marinade from whatever you have on hand. Here’s a basic recipe: 3/4 cup vegetable oil, 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon each of three herbs of choice (basil, hot chile flakes, oregano, rosemary, thyme, or another favorite. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (hold the pepper if using chile flakes). Or substitute lemon zest for an herb and/or lemon juice for part of the vinegar.

1. COOK the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the drippings. Crumble the bacon and set it aside.

2. MIX the marinade packet, oil, vinegar, maple syrup, and the reserved bacon drippings in a small bowl until well blended. Place the cabbage steaks in a large resealable plastic bag or a glass dish. Add the marinade and turn to coat well.

3. REFRIGERATE the cabbage in the marinade for 30 minutes; longer for extra flavor. Then remove the cabbage steaks from the marinade, reserving any leftover marinade (see the next section).

4. GRILL the cabbage steaks over medium heat 5 to 6 minutes per side, or until tender-crisp, brushing with the leftover marinade. Garnish with the bacon, blue cheese, and green onions, and serve.
 
Next up: Brussels Sprouts Kabobs?
 
 
CAN YOU RE-USE MARINADE?

For a meat or fish marinade, the answer is no. Potentially harmful bacteria that are killed during cooking will remain in the marinade. If you really want to re-use it, you can boil it first to kill the bacteria: Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.

Vegetables do not harbor harmful bacteria, so can be re-used or frozen for later use. The marinade will lose flavor each time it is frozen and defrosted, so check it after two additional uses and spruce it up with seasonings as needed.

Here’s detailed information on marinade safety from FoodSafety.gov.
 
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†The plant genus of cruciferous vegetables, Brassica, contains nutritional powerhouses that are packed with potent, cancer-fighting phytonutrients (antioxidants). Brassica members include arugula, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, horseradish/wasabi, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, radish, rapeseed/canola, rapini, rutabaga and turnips, among others. Eat up!
 
 

And a.k.a. ravioli, too. The difference is largely local ingredients.
 
ASIAN DUMPLINGS & STUFFED PASTA: FRATERNAL TWINS

Noodles (spaghetti or other “long cut” pasta) had been introduced to the West centuries* before Marco Polo.

Arab traders brought the long noodles back home over the Silk Road, and then to Sicily during the Arab invasions of the 8th century.

In addition to being an everyday food, dried pasta was a boon for travelers, including soldiers. It was lightweight and required only boiling water to turn it into a hot meal. As in Asia, pasta was also added to soups.

In Italy, Chinese dumplings evolved into agnolotti, cannelloni, mezzalune (crescents), ravioli (plus the smaller raviolini and larger ravioloni), sacchette (beggar’s purses) and tortellini.

Instead Asian sauces made from soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger, rice wine and/or hot sauce, among other ingredients, Italian pasta was accented with sauces made from local ingredients: cream, olive oil, Parmesan and tomatoes.
 
Pillow Pasta/Stuffed Pasta

Pillow pasta is stuffed pasta (pasta ripiena in Italian), but not all stuffed pasta is pillow pasta. In addition to the stuffed “pillows,” the other stuffed category includes large tubes and other shapes that are stuffed and baked, like cannelloni and jumbo shells. Other tube pasta, such as penne, rigatoni and ziti, are too small to be stuffed.

Pillow pasta can be stuffed with almost any kind of filling, either a single seasoned ingredient or combinations of different meats, cheeses, vegetables, seafood and herbs.

Here’s a brief history of pasta.

 
RECIPE: PORK & GINGER RAVIOLI…OR ARE THEY DUMPLINGS?

This recipe, from Chef Eric B LeVine could be ravioli. But because of the dough used (wonton wrappers) and the Asian ingredients—soy sauce, fresh ginger, lime, scallions—it could be a dumpling.

But wait: There’s also basil and Parmesan cheese, two Italian specialties.

This recipe, a fusion of Asian and Italian, illustrates how close Italian and Chinese (and other Asian) pastas can be; and not just in stuffed pasta, but in long cuts as well (mai fun = angel hair, chow fun = pappardelle, etc.).

Check out Chef Eric’s book, Small Bites, Big Flavor.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the dipping sauce: Combine the lime zest, juice, honey, soy sauce, canola oil, sesame oil and pepper flakes. Whisk or shake well to combine and set aside.

2. WHISK together the Parmesan, basil, ginger, garlic, scallions, nutmeg and egg in a large bowl. Add the pork and mix very gently with your finger tips until just blended. Place the pork mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm.

3. MAKE the dumplings, one at a time. Brush the flour side of the wrapper with water. Place a heaping tablespoon of the pork mixture in the center of the wrapper. Place another wrapper on top and press the edges together to seal. Use a pastry cutter† or ravioli stamp otherwise trim the edges with a zigzag pastry wheel. Repeat with the remaining filling and wraps.

4. COOK: Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add salt and cook the ravioli for 6 minutes.

Top: classic ravioli (photo courtesy Delfino Restaurant). Second: round ravioli (photo courtesy Ristorante Morini. Third: The recipe below: Pork-Ginger Ravioli…or are they dumplings? (photo courtesy Chef Eric LeVine. Fourth: Italian mezzalune pasta (half moons or crescents) plus tortellini. Photo courtesy Eataly Chicago). Bottom: Chinese potstickers (photo courtesy Mackenzie Ltd).

*The oldest written reference to noodles is in a Chinese dictionary from the third century C.E. However, these noodles were not made from what we know as noodle dough, but from bread dough. The dough was shaped into little bits and cooked in a wok of boiling water. Called mian pian, they are still eaten in China. [Source]

†If you need to buy a pastry cutter, consider the double-wheel type that cuts both straight and zigzag edges.
  

[2] Trimmed rhubarb, as it is most often seen in stores (photo © Good Eggs | San Francisco).

[3] A beautiful strawberry-rhubarb pie. Here’s the recipe (photo © The Baker Chick).

We add rhubarb to that list. In North America it grows between April and June, paralleling the asparagus season.

Nana was so fond of stewed rhubarb, she made it once or twice a week during rhubarb season. She served it in a dish, like pudding, with or without heavy cream; in a compote; in a parfait; on pound cream (with whipped cream); and as a topping on ice cream.

Her daughter, Mom, was an inveterate pie baker, turning out Rhubarb Pie, Raspberry Rhubarb Pie, and Strawberry Rhubarb Pie.

There’s a delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Galette (a rustic pie) recipe below.

> The history of rhubarb.

> The history of strawberries.

> The history of pie.

> National Rhubarb Day is January 23rd.

> National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day is June 9th.
 
 
RHUBARB: A VEGETABLE, NOT A FRUIT

Technically, rhubarb is a vegetable, a member of the sorrel family. Fruits are not necessarily sweet. Tomatoes are fruits, avocados are fruits, hot chiles are fruits, and cucumbers and squash are fruits.

By botanical definition, fruits have their seeds/pits, on the inside, contained in the fruit’s ovary sac*.

Fruits carry their seeds inside; vegetable seeds scatter in the wind. You see seeds in an apple, avocado, cucumber, and tomato, but not in broccoli, carrots, or lettuce. Lacking sweetness doesn’t make it a vegetable.

Rhubarb, Rheum rhabarbarum, is a vegetable in the Polygonaceae family. The leaf stalks (petioles) are crisp like celery with a strong, tart taste. Rhubarb looks like rosy-pink celery but is no relation (celery is a member of the Apiaceae family).

Even for a vegetable, rhubarb is very tart. Before it was served sweetened, it was added to soups (try it in lentil soup) and sauces: in the Himalayas, in Moroccan tagines, and in Middle Eastern stews. Be sure to cook only the stems; the leaves are mildly toxic (they contain oxalic acid).

But for most of us, rhubarb needs a sweetener. It’s absolutely delicious as stewed rhubarb, rhubarb ice cream, rhubarb pie, and its variation in this recipe, strawberry rhubarb pie. Some people eat the stems raw by dipping them into sugar.

The thinner and darker pink the fresh rhubarb stalks are, the less tart they will be. Look for stalks that are crisp, bright pink, thin, and unblemished.
 
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*The only exception is the strawberry, which is not a botanical berry but an accessory fruit. True vegetables have no pit or seed sac.
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RECIPE: STRAWBERRY-RHUBARB GALETTE

This French-inspired pastry (photo #3) is the perfect balance of tart and sweet, prepared with fresh strawberries and peak season rhubarb enveloped inside a buttery, hand-formed crust and garnished with a touch of sparkling sugar.

It’s a spring specialty at Hewn, an artisanal bakery in Evanston, Illinois, which advises that this pastry makes a brief appearance only during the late months of spring when rhubarb season is at its peak.
 
What’s A Galette?

In the pastry world, a galette is a rustic, open-face fruit pie. It is flat, with a flaky, turned-up crust that wraps around the filling to create a “bowl.” The Italian word is crostata.

A galette is a pie instead of a tart because it uses a pâte brisée crust, instead of the dense, crumbly, and sweet pâte sablée used for sweet tarts.

For The Filling

 
For The Dough

 
Preparation

Make the Filling

1. CHOP the rhubarb into ¼ inch strips. Toss the rhubarb with the quartered strawberries.

2. ADD the sugar, vanilla bean and sea salt to the rhubarb and strawberries. Toss until it is coated.

3. ADD the flour and mix the filling.
 
Make the Dough

[4] Rhubarb Galette from Hewn; recipe included

[5] Our Nana’s favorite use of rhubarb is stewed rhubarb. Here’s a recipe (photo © Fast Ed.com.au).

The easiest way to make the dough is to use a food processor—but you have to make sure to not overwork the dough.

1. USING a food processor add the salt and flour and pulse for 5 seconds. With the food processor on…

2. SLOWLY DROP butter in, in a continuous stream. You should be able to have all the butter added within a minute. Once all the butter is added, let the processor run for 10 more seconds. The dough should look very shaggy and the butter should still be visible. Add the optional herbs.

3. TURN to the the pulse setting and slowly pour the cold water. This is where the dough can get overworked. Once the water is added, the dough will still be shaggy and should NOT form a ball. The shaggier it is, the flakier the dough will be.

4. SCOOP out the dough and form into a flat disk. Wrap with plastic wrap and let the dough chill for 2 hours before rolling it out.
 
Assemble And Bake

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F (325° for a convection oven).

2. ROLL the dough out and use a ring or bowl to trace a round. The size should be about 6 inches. Cover a sheet pan with parchment paper, lay the dough ring on it sheet pan and spoon ¼ cup of the filling in the center. Fold the edges of the dough up, so it creates a pocket to contain the filling. Add the rest of the filling.

3. BRUSH the edge of the dough with the egg wash and bake the galette for 12 minutes. After 12 minutes check: The crust should be deep golden and the filling should not be runny.
 
 
ABOUT HEWN ARTISANAL BAKERY

Founded by partners Ellen King and Julie Matthei in 2013, Hewn is a cozy neighborhood spot in a historic space. Ellen is a classically trained chef, Julie is the business director.

Hewn sources local and seasonal ingredients from small, local farmers. The bakery’s name refers to the craftsmanship associated with making something by hand For more information, visit HewnBread.com.

Cider is equally popular among men and women, whereas beer is significantly more popular among men*. Cider is also gluten-free and less filling than beer.

While many people think “autumn” when they hear “cider,” that is true for non-alcoholic cider, which is fresh-pressed.

Hard cider is fermented for eight weeks after the juice is pressed. The cider then matures for several months, is blended, filtered and carbonated. So the “freshest” hard cider is on the market now, not in the fall.

Another note: In the U.S., alcoholic cider is called hard cider and apple cider/apple juice (the terms are interchangeable in the U.S.) is simply called cider.

In the U.K. it’s the reverse: “Cider” is hard cider.

While most cider is made from apples, you’ll also find pear cider, known in the U.K. as perry.

Hard ciders pairs with the same foods as beer and white wine. Styles range from very dry to sweet “hard apple juice.”

 
TIPS

1. Gather up a dozen brands or so, and invite friends over for a hard cider tasting. You’ll find hard ciders from the U.S. and England†. Get apple cider for the kids.

2. For serious foodies, conduct a blind tasting. Serve them in order of alcohol content, lowest to highest. Either cover up the labels with paper (we used a removable glue stick) or place each one in a paper sandwich sack (the size of a take-out coffee bag, which you can get at the nearest deli [offer to pay for them and you’ll likely get them for free]).

3. Mark each label or bag with a number, and provide each person with a tasting notes sheet. If your group is accustomed to evaluating beer and wine, you can adapt this professional scoring sheet. We put all the descriptors in the left column of that sheet onto one piece of paper, with one for each guest. For notes, we made up a simple sheet with designated areas for rating ciders 1 through 12 (or however many ciders you’re serving) on a second sheet.

You can also print out this Cider Tasting Wheel.

5. Start with small pours: An ounce each of 12 cider becomes 12 ounces in relatively short order. At the end of the comparison tasting, people can go back for more.

6. Provide “dump buckets” so participants can toss what they don’t like. These can be large tumblers or other vessels (we’ve used short vases!).

7. Have a great time.
 
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*Beer is preferred by men in terms of market penetration (+10% for men), frequency (+35% for men), and servings consumed (+33% for men).
 
†Magners Irish Cider is the only hard cider imported from Ireland.
  

In addition to Chocolate Matzoh Crunch and chocolate-dipped coconut macaroons, we’ve added anther Passover treat to our recommendations. It’s courtesy of Good Eggs in San Francisco.

“Shortcake“ is a stretch as a substitute for biscuits or sponge cake, but this no-cook, no-bake Passover dessert is delicious and oh-so-easy to make.

Speaking of sponge cake, our standard family Passover dessert is Strawberry Shortcake with sponge cake, strawberries and whipped cream. Since sponge cakes are not leavened with yeast, they can be eaten during Passover when made with matzoh meal instead of wheat flour.

RECIPE: MATZOH STRAWBERRY “SHORTCAKES”

Prep time is 15 minutes.

Ingredients For 3 Servings

1. SLICE the strawberries and let them macerate in the orange juice, reserving one tablespoon. Mix the mascarpone with the powdered sugar, half of the zest and the reserved tablespoon of orange juice.

2. MELT the butter in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted, add the matzoh and fry until crispy and golden-brown, about 1 minute on each side.

3. ASSEMBLE the shortcakes: spread a generous layer of mascarpone on each piece of fried matzo, then top with sliced strawberries and mint. Dust powdered sugar over the top for an extra touch of sweetness!