I know the mystery of the plated, edible version of that freshly dug fennel bulb I was handed a few weeks ago has kept you guys breathless. It was awful of me to keep it from you this long. Exhale. You can relax knowing it turned out deliciously.
I went with the Ina Garten recipe, mainly because all I had to go to the store for were tomatoes. It was tasty, but a little deep in dressing and escaped tomato juice, so I made it into a regular salad by adding spinach and carrots and tossing it all around. (The decorative-looking carrots pictured were of the bagged and presliced variety. I wouldn't want you to mistake me for someone unlazy enough to crinkle-cut vegetables.)
Speaking of laziness — and, at the same time, moving on to regret — I'm wishing now that I'd found this fennel recipe sooner. What's easier than walk-away instructions like "soak" and "roast"? Or I could have gone with this awesome-sounding broccoli/fennel salad; it's basically two vegetables and some flavorful liquids. In case it's not clear, a lot of my hunting for weeknight, feed-me-now recipes is steered by my desire to get to the eating part quickly so I can start slacking off on the couch as soon as possible. I don't want to keep track of a lot. I have important things to do, like get peppy with Jessica again. And I need to have time allotted for rifling around food52.com, possibly my new favorite website. It's user-submitted content with all the crap weeded out! And a lot of what's there has made it through the filter of being tested in Amanda Hesser's kitchen!
Let's wrap this up with a few of the dishes this site has me itching to try:
Ancho chili-cinnamon chocolate bark
Plus, holy moly, photos like this are the norm over there. It reminds me of that time I went to a macaroni art party and saw one well-lit paper plate bearing an egg and tiny piles of flour and salt. It was entitled "Origins."
