Florence fennel, the bulbous variety found in most American stores has a subtle anise (mild licorice) flavor and delicate celery texture. The bulbs are often sold with the feathery fronds lopped off. Get the ones with some fronds attached if you can -- they’re the perfect raw finish to a fennel dish, sprinkled on as a bright green top layer to echo the anise flavor.
You can thinly slice fennel crosswise for sautés, pastas, and salads, or cut it into wedges lengthwise to roast, braise, or gratinee.
First, rinse the bulb and fronds well and pat them dry. Cut off the the stalks close to the bulb.
If you want to remove some of the slightly stringy outer layer, peel bulb with a vegetable peeler.
To slice for salads or quick cooking, just cut across the bulb as thick or thin as you like.
For longer cooking methods like braising and roasting, cut the bulb lengthwise into wedges of any size. Slice through the core, leaving some of it attached to each wedge to help keep the wedges together. The core will become tender with cooking.
If you want to cook wedges briefly, like on a grill, it's best to remove the core. Cut the bulb into wedges lengthwise, then sliced down along the core at an angle. Then just slice the quarters crosswise to any thickness.
Now that you know how to prep fennel, try cooking it - there are lots of fennel recipes at Cookthink.com.
Spelt is an ancient cereal grain that is native to southern Europe. A European staple from the Bronze Age to medieval times, the easily digestible grain with a mild, nutty flavor has made a health food comeback as a wheat substitute for the allergic or otherwise averse. Spelt flour can be substituted for wheat flour in baked goods (and it's got a bit more protein, too).
Spelt was introduced in the U.S. in the 1890s. It requires fewer fertilizers than wheat, making it popular with organic farmers.
Parsley used to be a gross-looking garnish on the side of your plate. Now, we think of it as one of the best go-to herbs to work into your cooking. It adds a bright but relatively neutral herbal flavor to almost any dish.To prep it, first rinse and shake dry the leaves. Hold the bouquet at an angle with the leaves against the cutting board. Run your knife down the side of the bouquet to slice away the leaves. It's fine to remove some of the tender stems along with the leaves.Now just run your knife back and forth across the pile of leaves, chopping them as coarsely or as finely as you need to. The closer to the end of the cooking you plan to add the parsley, the finer you'll want to chop it. But since parsley's so tender it's usually okay to keep the the chop coarse.
