Beets and Purple Carrot with Brown Rice, Barley, Mung Bean Cutlets

What to do with leftovers might be a troublesome prospect for some. It happens to be quite an exciting enterprise for me.

About 1½ cups of stuffing for the Stuffed Kohlrabi in Coconut Sauce was leftover (on purpose). Also, some purple carrots and beets and red cabbage were handy. That's how these loaded Beets and Purple Carrot with Brown Rice, Barley, Mung Bean Cutlets came about.

Ingredients
1½ cups Barley, Brown Rice, Mung Bean prepared as shared in Stuffed Kohlrabi recipe
1½ cups combined grated purple carrots, beets, red cabbage, lightly sauteed with salt
¼ cup coconut flour
¼ cup fine corn meal
Up to 1 cup all purpose flour (a little at a time, as needed)
salt to taste
oil as needed

2 to 3 cups of Panko seasoned bread crumbs

Preparation

1. Combine the sauteed purple carrots, red cabbage and beets with the brown rice+barley+mung-bean filling
2. Add the corn meal and coconut flour and stir till incorporated
3. Add some all purpose flour, a little at a time, to make a thick dough-like batter that can be shaped into golf ball sized spheres
4. Have the Panko breadcrumbs hand on a plate
5. Heat a pan to medium high
6. Press each dough ball into the breadcrumbs and flatten a little; also, press in breadcrumbs to the topside so that both surfaces are coated
7. Place gently on the hot pan and cook; flip and cook both sides till breadcrumbs get crisp and golden and the cutlets hold together
8. Serve warm with favorite chutneys, including Green Papaya, Green Mango, Kohlrabi Chutney

Purple Pleasures: Purple Carrots, Purple Beets, Purple Cabbage, Purple Onion Relish

Summer is the only time we visit the farm often, naturally. During each of these farm visits that are primarily focused on berry-picking, I exercise my right to loiter in the market attached to the farm, mentally salivating and resisting the urge to grab a bunch of each and every single produce there. That is, until the other adult gently but insistently escorts me to the checkout.

While the escort maneuvre was in progress last weekend, I held up a bunch of purple carrots grinning from ear to ear. But you have a pound of carrots at home already, he reasoned. Ah, but they are not purple, I clarified. You are going to be eating a lot of carrots this week, the wise septuagenarian co-shopper explained to him genially, all the while beaming at me. I could have hugged her right then.

The bright purples were irresistible at the farm market and so they came home with me, with no particular agenda except to use them as wisely as possible: purple carrots, purple cabbage, purple beets, purple onions. Well, sometimes the cabbage and beets fall under the "red foods" category, but, they seemed quite the purple to me this time so purple they shall be.

Ingredients

¼ cup finely chopped garlic

2 Tablespoon freshly grated ginger

1 medium purple/red onion grated

1 cup grated purple cabbage

2 cups grated purple beets

2 cups grated purple carrots

Flavoring:

1 cup white vinegar

½ cup cider vinegar

¼ cup balsamic

1 teaspoon dried caraway seeds or 1 teaspoon dried dill weed

1 Tablespoon red hot chili powder or ground black pepper (adjust to taste)

4 Tbsp brown sugar

salt to taste

¼ cup oil

Preparation

1. Heat the oil in a pan, add garlic, ginger and onions, saute till aromatic
2. Add the grated beets, carrots, cabbage, some salt, and stir in the rest of the flavoring ingredients
3. Allow to simmer till liquid evaporates and the relish comes together to a coarse spreadable consistency
4. Taste and adjust seasoning
5. To preserve it, canning is done in a boiling water bath, just standard procedure

Ways to savor the Purple Carrot Beet Relish:

1. Mix with goat cheese and cream cheese and use it as a sandwich spread
2. Stir some in with thick Greek yogurt and use it as a Wrap sauce
3. Add a dollop of it to crackers and enjoy with cheese
4. Toss some cooked pasta with the beet relish, top with feta or other favorite cheese and enjoy a quick tasty meal minus the tomato sauce
5. Spread it on a pita or naan, top with avocado, watercress, snow peas and spring onions, fold in half or roll it up

Green Papaya and Purple Carrot Thai Salad

Trips to Farmer's Market make me giddy. So many colors, so many fresh and earthy goods  make it hard for me to pick just a handful to bring home.

Today, I couldn't resist the bunch of purple carrots and a lovely green papaya. So, they came together for a Thai-style salad with some other items thrown in.

[image source: Amazon.com]

Ever since last Winter when I got this Spiralizer as a present, it has been a temptation to put all possible vegetables through it and see how they turn out. Everything from zucchini, carrots, potatoes to beets, green papaya and raw green mangoes have been Spiralized over the months.

Rather than Mandolin slicer that I am mortally afraid of, I went with Spiralizing the veggies for this salad.

Ingredients

1 to 2 cups Spiralized or Julienned raw green papaya

1 purple carrot Spiralized

1 orange carrot Spiralized

A handful of spring onions sliced thin

About a handful of thinly sliced red onions

2 green chilies thinly sliced

Chopped cilantro

Crushed roasted salted peanuts
lemon wedges for garnish

Dressing

1 Tbsp Bragg Liquid Aminos

2 garlic cloves crushed

1 Tbsp Lemon juice

1/2 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp rice vinegar

Preparation

1. Combine the dressing ingredients and stir well 

2. Layer the papayas, carrots, chilies, red onions, spring onions, and dress as preferred

3. Garnish with cilantro and crushed peanuts