Sunday, April 17, 2022

Happy Easter from the REDS--and Radishes

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Happy Easter, and Happy Passover, to those who celebrate! And to us all, HAPPY BUNNIES


This is my vintage bunny painting that I bought at the Round Top antique show a few years ago. It was a totally random purchase, but I thought it was so charming, and now it seems very appropriate for the Easter/spring season.

Did you ever wonder about the whole Easter Bunny thing? (Besides the fact that giant Easter bunnies are more than a little creepy...) Supposedly, the Easter bunny first arrived in America in the 1700s with German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania and transported their tradition of an egg-laying hare called “Osterhase” or “Oschter Haws. But the Germans didn't come up with the idea. It goes much further back.  One theory, according to Time, is that the symbol of the rabbit stems from the ancient pagan rite on which many of our Easter traditions are based —the festival of Eostre, which celebrated fertility and the spring rebirth of the earth.

I am fine with all that, as long as the bunnies are not eating my garden.

And speaking of gardens, here's another little celebration of spring. Gorgeous fresh radishes are in the farmer's market and probably in your supermarket as well. Do you ever wonder what to do with those lovely radish greens?



I can never stand to just throw them away, but I have an answer! 

This recipe is courtesy of Jeanine Donofrio at loveandlemons.com and I'm so glad I discovered it.

RADISH GREENS PESTO

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup pine nuts or pepitas
  • 1 small garlic clove
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 cup radish greens
  • 1 cup basil
  • 1/4 to 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oilmore if desired
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan cheeseoptional

Instructions

  • In a food processor, combine the pine nuts, garlic, salt, and pepper and pulse until well chopped. Add the lemon juice and pulse again.
  • Add the radish greens and basil and pulse until combined.
  • With the food processor running, drizzle in the olive oil and pulse until combined. Add the Parmesan cheese, if using, and pulse briefly to combine. For a smoother pesto, add more olive oil.

I toast the pine nuts first.



And here is my finished pesto! So easy! So good!


I can't even describe how yummy this is. The radish greens tone down the basil a bit, and give the pesto a really fresh, lemony, peppery note. This is good on pasta, on rice, chicken or fish--pretty much anything.

So, REDS and readers, how are you celebrating today?


58 comments:

  1. Happy Easter . . . Happy Passover . . . Happy Spring!
    May everyone who celebrates have a wonderful day.

    Your radish greens pesto sounds delicious . . . thanks for sharing the recipe.

    Our plans are pretty simple . . . Church, dinner [roast lamb] . . . a quiet day, with, perhaps, some time for a good book . . . .

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  2. Happy Easter! I'll be going to church, and then hanging out around the condo. I'll talk to my family at some point, but that's about it. Since I was out most of the day Saturday, I need the quiet to get ready for the next week. I should do some cleaning, but that's not going to happen. I'll just tell you right now.

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    1. Take advantage of your prep day, Mark. We all need them.

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  3. Oh, this sounds absolutely lovely! I am a big fan of fresh pesto, and love this idea. It’s fun to think that pesto can be made of anything, just a green thing like basil or greens or arugula, some nuts , oil, garlic and a blender!
    Next time, let’s talk about chimichurri!
    I hope you all have a wonderful and peaceful day…

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  4. Happy Easter! That sounds delicious! Just heading out to the 6 o'clock service which is beautiful... but early.

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  5. Good Morning my JRW"s community. I will be ending Zen Retreat today. The title was:Entering Original Mind: Inner Inquiry and Inner Silence. I have not spoken more than 200 words since Wednesday, and moved more in the last few days than I have in the last few months. Thanks to Debs, I now have the radish pesto to enjoy later today. After I jabber for a while, and look for the Floridian Easter Sand Crane, who does not lay dyed eggs. May everyone enjoy the feast, where ever you are.

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    1. I am commuting to the Retreat, which is why I am able to share this with you. Again enjoy the day.

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    2. That crane needs to step up his game, Coralee! I've been hoping you would share more about your retreat. It sounds wonderful.

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  6. That sounds so delicious, Debs. Thank you!

    I'll be hosting eleven for Easter dinner (midafternoon), including my son and his wife. I'll make asparagus, herbed potatoes, and a big piece of salmon with dill-sour cream sauce. All the guests bring everything else. This year we have guests who are gluten-free, lactose-intolerant, vegetarian, and celebrating Passover, so it will be quite the mix.

    Did anybody see the Easter Bernie that was going around? Somebody made an Inauguration Bernie Sanders peep! It was delightful. (It's on my Facebook page if you want to take a look.)

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  7. Happy Easter, Passover and Sunday to all! I will be going on my first morning group walk since returning home on Tuesday. We're going on a new route around Dow's Lake to celebrate spring...yay!

    DEBS: Since I started growing radishes on my balcony garden 2 years ago, I also have made radish greens pesto. Sauteed radish greens are another yummy side dish.

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    1. Grace, I've read that they are good sauteed but haven't tried them that way. I'll add to my list!

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  8. Happy Easter and Passover: May your day be peaceful.

    We still have snow on the ground here, from a spring storm a few days ago, but we also had bright spring sunshine yesterday which was wonderful.

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    1. Amanda, were you in the path of the blizzard? That was nothing to sneeze at, that one. Digging out must be loads of fun. Sunshine always helps. We didn't see any of it in SW Ontario though we did get a skiff of snow overnight.

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    2. The city didn't get the worst of it, but things were shut down and planning in advance paid off. As did consistent shovelling...

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  9. Happy Easter, happy Passover, and happy spring at last! Our area went from brown to bursting in the last two weeks, and it's such a relief to see green and flowers again, isn't it?

    All these years I've been throwing away radish tops and could have made something delicious from it! Another delicious bounty from the garden is carrot tops. They make a fresh spring soup that was surprising when it was served at a garden party a few years ago. I keep meaning to figure out how to make it. Maybe it's time, since I have two whole rows of carrots in the garden right now. The radishes don't even have their true leaves yet. However, my asparagus bed is producing loads of spears! We are so excited.

    Nothing planned here at all, alas. Maybe a walk later, because it's a beautiful day, but no plans for having a special meal. And I guess the Easter Bunny skipped our house this year.

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    Replies
    1. Karen, I think you can make pesto with carrot tops, too.

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    2. It never occurred to me before, but I've made pesto from kale and from garlic scapes, so why not?

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  10. Happy Easter and Passover! Hot cross buns for breakfast, yardwork and a BPL soccer game, and our favorite pork chops for dinner. Temps in the low thirties.

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  11. Happy holidays for those of you who celebrate them.

    I was hoping to sow some radishes and lettuces in a cold frame today. And will if it warms enough to melt the bit of overnight snow. Though I can't really complain about a skiff of the stuff when the prairies got 2 feet of snow last week.

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    1. Eeek. Two feet of snow. We are very green here now, but it's a gray, chilly morning in north Texas.

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  12. I went to church for Maundy Thursday and Good Friday (beautiful bilingual service with abbreviated stations of the cross in the courtyard), did the Hop Hop 10K with friends yesterday and couldn't quite stay up for the Easter Vigil. Church this am (choir and brass!) and dinner with family, feeling grateful

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  13. In my multicultural neighborhood some are celebrating Easter, some Passover and some nothing at the moment. For my family we’ll be attending Easter services then having a traditional dinner of ham, scalloped potatoes, spring salad mix, asparagus, applesauce, carrot cake, lemon cake and strawberry cheesecake. None of our group of 11 will go home hungry!
    We’ll need to take a serious walk after that meal; hopefully, the temperature will get up to low 50s after a freeze warning here in central Pennsylvania last night.

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  14. Happy Easter and Passover and Happy, Happy Spring to all!



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  15. Happy day to all! I'm celebrating the greening of the earth around here--the understory is green in the woodlands, the lilac bushes have burst out in leaves, the magnolia tree is blooming, the forsythia is still yellow--daffodils and other bulbs are blooming--such a joy! We'll be having dinner at my older sister's later today, then doing our own Easter dinner with our littlest one tomorrow when he comes home. All he asked for were deviled eggs. You betcha, coming up!

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  16. Well, I'm not religious. And since I'm not a kid or have any kids, for me this day is pretty much just a regular old Sunday.

    However, to keep on today's worldwide theme, I'm playing the Halford album 'Resurrection'. I mean he is the Metal God so I'm on musical target at least.

    But for those who do celebrate, have a happy day.

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  17. https://tinyurl.com/3u9hbumx

    I saw this a few years back and it really tickled me.

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  18. Happy Easter and Happy Passover everyone. We're on the road. Catch up later this week. Many blessings!

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  19. I wanted to let everyone know that I just saw a very nice piece about Delia Ephron on CBS Sunday Morning. You can probably find it at the CBS news site.

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    1. Oh, thank you! I will look for that..we always tape it!

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    2. Thanks, Judi! Going to tune in now.

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  20. Happy Easter PassoverRamadan everyone.

    The sun is shining,
    The grass has riz
    I wonder where the flowers Oz?

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  21. Replies
    1. the moon is bright
      the day is short
      snow is coming
      flowers abort


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  22. We have two out of town guests, a bit unexpectedly, but it’s good to see them. May go for a drive later, the weather is gray but snow and rain are paused for a few days. Dinner will be beef stew with Smitten Kitchen blondies for dessert. A blessed day to all!

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  23. Happy everything! For the first time in years we are not hosting an Easter brunch. In fact we'll be lucky if we get anything to eat today. We are packing, packing, packing. Our pod arrives Tuesday. The packers Wednesday. The pod is picked up Thursday but we won't see it again for a couple of weeks. Enjoy your Sunday, everyone!

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  24. Happy Easter, happy Passover to all at Jungle Reds.
    I hope you all celebrate a joyful, peaceful holiday
    Dinner tonight with daughter Clare who is hosting two Afghan refugees in her guest house. Former diplomats who fled for their lives. They are in the middle of Ramadan so we’ll be eating late!

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  25. Happy Easter, Happy Passover to all at Jungle Reds!

    Thanks for the recipe, Debs! Though I am Not a fan of Pine Nuts, I am going to try this recipe and see if I like it. I may be pleasantly surprised.

    How are we planning to celebrate? A quiet day at home. I am currently having a cup of homemade cafe latte with chocolate eggs. Yum! If my church has online services today, I am going online to virtually attend.

    Diana

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  26. It is a rare occurence when the Western world is celebrating Easter, in the midst of Pesach, and halfway through Ramadan, isn't it?

    I'm lucky enough to be headed over to our own Celia Wakefield's house for an Easter dinner, and those of you who follow her recipes on my Sundays will know THAT'S going to be a treat and a half. I also got out into the garden for the first time in several days (it's been raining) and did a good hour's work cutting back forsythia and yanking out oriental bittersweet - with breaks to throw sticks for Kingsley and to watch the gorgeous swooping flight of the turkey vultures, who have returned to my barn for a second season. It was a lovely way to start the day.

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    1. Happy Easter to you and Celia and Victor! I'll bet Celia's Easter dinner will be fab!

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  27. Happy celebrations to all those engaged in Easter or Pesach or Ramadan! We had our Easter lunch yesterday when my daughter and her family came over. We went with brisket this year, which was delicious. Our neighbor manages one of the two best bbq restaurants in town, and he had it cooked at his restaurant for us. Sides were my baked beans and the restaurant's potato salad and mac'n cheese. Also rolls and corn bread. I fixed my chocolate cherry cake, too. Everyone had a chocolate Easter bunny and bag of treats at their place setting. I had planned on doing more of the side dishes myself, but I have been dealing with a bum leg that requires a certain amount of resting it. I was glad the rain had dissipated, so we could enjoy the back porch a bit, too.

    Debs, your pesto looks delicious, but I'm afraid I'm too lazy to do the work.

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    1. Kathy, I'm lazy, too, and that pesto is super easy. Happy Easter!

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  28. I'm celebrating having visiting grandchildren today! As I type they are outside Easter egg hunting. Can you say: sugar high! That bunny photo is darling Rhys, though I agree bunnies themselves are far from darling. Hoping that this year regularly treating my tender shoots with fox urine will discourage the marauders.

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    1. Hallie, our plague here is squirrels. I've just got all my deck pots planted, and the squirrels are already digging them up! Enjoy the grands!

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  29. Happy Easter! I had no idea about the origin of the big hare! Fascinating! Now I have something to share at dinner. Thanks, Debs!

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  30. Your pesto looks delicious, Debs! I use the one from The Silver Palate and now both my daughters-in-law have the recipe since my sons love it, but I'm definitely going to try yours since pesto is a favorite in our house. Our Easter dinner: Honey Baked Ham, poached asparagus with homemade vinaigrette, and cinnamon and turmeric spiced Basmati rice. (And champagne). Happy Easter!

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