BostonZest

Fennel Tips and Tidbits

We learned a few interesting things about fennel when we researched this vegetable.

In her book, Nigella Fresh: Delicious Flavors on Your Plate All Year Round, Nigella Lawson suggests substituting thin slices of fennel for the cucumber in a typical Greek salad.

We include fennel in our plate of salad ingredients. Since we may not be ready to eat at the same moment, Penny likes to prep and arrange the additions so we can add them to our greens.

She finds it helps the salad stay fresh longer while still adding a cool taste and crunch.

Our favorite vegetable reference book is Deborah Madison’s “Vegetable Literacy” in which she reminds us that fennel is a member of the carrot family and, unless you have an old, tough bulb or want the petals to fall apart, there is no need to remove the core before you slice the bulb.

The online, Real Food Encyclopedia offers these fun facts about fennel:

• “Pliny The Elder, the ancient Roman author famous for his sweeping encyclopedia, ‘Natural History,’ mentions fennel numerous times as a treatment for stomach ache, to care for the ‘stings of serpents,’ for uterus health and as a treatment for a bunch of other ancient Roman maladies.”
• “In some places in the US, fennel has become an invasive species.”
• “Thomas Jefferson once proclaimed Florence fennel his favorite vegetable.”

More on fennel here in part one of our fennel research.

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2018- 2019 Penny Cherubino 
(Adapted for BostonZest from one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns.)

Fennel in a Supporting Role

Recently, Ed discovered that he actually likes fennel. We were sharing a lobster roll at Select Oyster Bar.

(Yes, that is half of the lobster roll and salad.)

He was digging into the salad that’s served with it and asked about the thin slices of some vegetable scattered among the lettuce leaves. When told it was fennel, he was surprised.

His father loved to chomp on big hunks of raw fennel and tasting it that way had put him off this licorice flavored bulb. Ed didn't realize that he had been enjoying a milder version of fennel’s flavor in a supporting role in some of his favorite meals for years.

Bulbs and Fronds

Fennel is a staple in our vegetable bin. Thin slices of fresh fennel bulb are in many of our favorite fish recipes like fish chowder or fish baked in parchment packets. When we serve a fish topped with a breaded stuffing, there is fennel in that mixture. If there’s a piece of fennel that needs to be used, it may go in any soup from chicken to minestrone. Chopped fennel fronds often appear in his salads, stir fries, and stews.

This salad of thinly sliced asparagus and shaved fennel with lemon juice, capers, and lemon olive oil became a spring favorite for both of us this year.

Both fennel and fennel seeds are among the ingredients in one bolognese sauce recipe we love!

Fennel Seed

Fennel seeds are in our homemade chutneys, ground in the spice blend for our favorite grilled salmon, and we even make our own teabags for a spiced tea that contains fennel seed. Most of the time, we gently toast the seeds in a dry pan to bring out the maximum flavor before adding them, ground in a little coffee grinder or mortar and pestle or whole, to a recipe.

You’ll often find fennel seeds coated with sugar as you leave Indian restaurants. In that culture they are considered an aid in digestion after a big meal.

Do your own research and be very cautious when using concentrated forms of a spice like fennel seed. They have long been used for their therapeutic value. However, just like manufactured drugs, they may interact with other medications or have their own physical side effects.

For example, fennel can have an impact on estrogen levels and may interact with any medication that is sensitive to estrogen levels such as birth control pills or tamoxifen. We rely on the Sloan Kettering database of "Herbs, Botanicals and Other Products" for solid information about this topic.

In part 2, we pass on some fennel tips and tidbits.

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2018- 2019 Penny Cherubino 

(Adapted for BostonZest from one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns.)

We'll Toast August with 2013 Iron Horse Classic Vintage Brut, a Gift from West Coast Friends

This month's choice for a Happy New Month toast is a bottle of 2013 Iron Horse Classic Vintage Brut that arrived at our wine rack thanks to our friends David and Peter. We will raise a glass to them and the fun we had over July 4th eating, drinking, catching up, and enjoying the fact that they have stayed friends despite the miles.

We have enjoyed many a bottle of wine with these guys and by sharing favorites and new discoveries we've all expanded all our knowledge and tastes. This one comes from one of their favorite vacation spots which makes it extra special to us. As King Solomon is quoted as having said, "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend."

Trying wines from different places, made with different grapes, and produced by different methods adds spice to our monthly ritual. Since 2007 we have raised a glass of sparkling wine to greet each new month!

Here's what we learned from the Iron Horse Vineyard:

This is their flagship wine.

Tasting Notes

"By nose - rising dough, orange marmalade and baked apple. By mouth - ripe red apple, mandarin orange and hazelnut."

 

Food Pairing Notes

"A perfect wine with poached eggs, smoked salmon and toast, salade Niçoise, hard cheeses, classic roast chicken with Yukon gold potatoes, harvest pear crisp with candied ginger."

 

The salade Niçoise is one of Ed's favorite meals and is a perfect summer supper. That will go on the menu!

 

 

Happy Update!!

 

Peter & David know our taste well. This is a lovely pinot forward sparkler with the flavor profile like many of the very traditional Champagnes we love. We had asked one of our favorite wine mentors his thoughts on it a few days ago and he said, "Big, traditional, you'll love it." 

Related Posts:

Our Sparkling Resolution is covered in this post : Join Us as We Toast...

A Few of Our Favorite Gifts for Wine Lovers

Here are all the wines we've covered. Since this is a category, this post may appear at the top. Just scroll down for more.

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2019 Penny Cherubino