(usually barefoot) meg

Description:
A few weeks back we had some friends over and I served Vichyssoise, Wild Rice Salad with Dried Sour Cherries, Green Bean and Radish Salad, and an array of sausages (chicken and apple, Polish, spinach and feta, and Italian). For dessert we had biscuits with sweetened strawberries and cream.

The recipes for everything except the sausages and dessert were out of various Saveur magazines. The Green Bean and Radish Salad is from the May 2006 issue.

Ingredients:
salt
1 lb. green beans, trimmed
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 lb. radishes, trimmed and quartered
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp. honey, preferably chilli (chile) honey
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Blanch green beans until crisp-tender, 3-4 minutes. Drain and quickly plunge green beans into a bowl of ice water, to cool them. Drain.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add green beans, radishes, and garlic and cook until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add honey, season with salt and pepper to taste, and cook until vegetables are just beginning to caramelize, about 2-3 minutes more. Transfer salad to a large bowl; set aside to let cool slightly.

3. Season salad with salt and pepper to taste and divide between 4 small plates. Serve at room temperature.

Meg's Final Thoughts

This was pretty yummy. I think next time I'll add about 3 times as much garlic, though. I've never seen a cooked radish salad before, making this a great unique salad to bring out to "surprise and amaze your guests!"