Winter Foods Cabbage Season

One of the brightest culinary spots in winter is cabbage.Its bright green leaves are a nice changefromall the canned veggies.Like those other winter foods, oranges and tangerines, it's full of Vitamin C and other good things.It can be eaten raw or cooked.Either way it's full of freshness and flavor. There are several different types of cold weather cabbage.they have smaller heads and are harder than the ones Grown in the summer.One of the most popular is the light green Danish Ballhead.This is mild tasting, perfecting for making sauerkraut and introducing kids to cabbage. creamy white Bentley is another winter variety.You can keep it for weeks without worrying that it will go bad.Most people know the January King, with it's flattened shape and deep purple marking on it's veins.A popular one in Northern Italy and my kitchen right now is the Savoy.It's cheerful yellow color is beckoning and it has an almost sugary taste.Any cabbage is chock full of beta carotene and Vitamins A and C.It's good to incorporate it in your diet now in the midst of cold and flu season.Cabbages also are full of iron and magnesium.It also becomes a pro biotic if fermented as in dishes like the traditional German sauerkraut and the Korean Kim chi. Cabbages are also easy for the novice home chef.They can made into salads and can be cooked into simple stir fries and braises. One of the best recipes is Cole slaw. this is a simple dish of shredded cabbage ,carrots and a mayo dressing.This is the most traditional, and the one everyone tends to make.Yet Cole slaw can be turned into something fun and zingy side dish, perfect with all those football party ribs and wings. Sub in oil and apple sider vinegar.Instead of carrots try wafer thin slices of Granny Smith apples(use a mandolin for this last), You could also create a Mexican influenced one with slivered jalapeño and garlic. cooked cabbage is wonderful.Wilting cabbage is easy.Take any kind ,cut into manageable pieces and then sauté in a blend of olive oil and butter( you can use margarine but it won't add to the veggies's flavor).Garlic and sea salt can be added for more flavoring. One of the best winter dishes is the Piedmontese pas coi.Translated from the dialect as not fish, (although the name could come from the shape or the way the cabbage leaves look kind of scaly after cooking and pickling).The leaves are first parboiled and then drained .This makes them more malleable to work with.Fill them with uncooked polenta and a small knovpb of butter.They are then rolled ,sort of like the Greek dolmades or grape leaves and tied with sturdy thread .They are they fried in olive oil until they turn brown. After this place them in a cassarole dish and purr a pickling brine over them.The brine is made from red wine vinegar and the herb savia.They're left to pickle for a few hours before eating. Cabbage is one of the best winter foods to eat.It's healthy and delicious, along with being veratile.Buy a head of it today for a tasty side whether cooked or made into a salad.It's a winter treat.