Quick Radish & White Bean Salad ♥ Recipe

How to fall in love with radishes: Toss together a quick medley of chopped radishes and tomatoes brightened with olives, capers, parsley and lemon juice. Add canned beans for protein. Skip the oil. Swoon.

Turns out, every year I fall in love with a new vegetable. In 2009, the unlikely addiction is the radish.

For the last few months, radishes are such a staple that like lettuce and milk, they need no mention on the grocery list. Texture-wise, I've fallen in love with their crunch, taste-wise with that slight bite of radish pepperiness, visually with those clean white interiors framed by clear red skins. All winter long, one salad after another, radishes add a special oomph.

Forgive me, but am I truly writing an ode to the radish? What crazy person creates room for radishes in her brain? Aren't they always an afterthought, never the star?

In this quick 'n' easy lunch salad, the radishes do take center stage, they're what turn a bean 'n' stuff salad into something just a tad touch different. For anyone willing to open their minds to the idea of falling in love with radishes, this is your recipe.

QUICK RADISH & WHITE BEAN SALAD

Hands-on time: 15 minutes
Time to table: 15 minutes
Makes about 5 cups

SALAD
2 15-ounce cans of white beans, rinsed and drained
1 pound of radishes, trimmed and sliced thin
1 - 2 tomatoes (see NOTES), chopped
8 kalamata olives, pitted
1 tablespoon capers
2 tablespoon chopped parsley
Zest and juice of a lemon
Salt & pepper to taste

Mix all the salad ingredients.

Serving Suggetion: Serve over salad greens with homemade hummus on Wasa crackers.


KITCHEN NOTES
The inspiring recipe called for 3 tablespoons of olive oil. I did a taste test before adding: none needed!
Call me surprised. I bought a few Roma tomatoes last week, needing them for garnish. After a day of ripening on the counter, they were really quite good! Not summer tomatoes, not by a long shot, but still, for the cusp of winter and spring, a definite pleasure. How many more days until the first tomatoes ripen? I can get by, for now, with a Roma or two.

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© Copyright 2009

Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

Comments

  1. Hey Alanna,
    I made a salad a lot like this with chickpeas this week, and it needed some crunch: radishes to the rescue! This is a great idea (and such an easy lunch to have on hand). Hope you're well -- I'm always happy to see that you're still blogging when new posts come up in my reader (even if I don't always stop in to say hello :)

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  2. i have really come to like radishes. and i just bought some! i have to try this for sure.

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  3. Sounds like a beautiful way to welcome Spring! And it seems like this would go really well with crackly Wasa crackers :)

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  4. I find recipes every once in a while that I can leave all the oil out of, do a happy dance!
    Love the look of this one and will try it soon.

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  5. I like that you don't need any oil.

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  6. this is such a 'spring/summer' recipe Alanna :) The radishes also add a nice vibrant color to the salad :)

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  7. This sounds delish. Glad I found your blog. I'll be checking in.

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  8. This sounds yummy and easy! I like radishes, especially from my garden.I think the Roma tomatoes are good for this time of year.

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  9. Love radishes. I can eat them plain dipped in sea salt when they're fresh. My husband hates them. What a bummer for him! Thanks for the recipe!

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe, whether a current recipe or a long-ago favorite. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. ~ Alanna