The following excerpt and recipe for Fall Radish Salad with Walnuts, Sesame, and Mint is from Emma Hearst's cookbook "Flavors from the Farm." It features over 100 recipes – from beverages to soups to desserts – celebrating fresh food from her Upstate New York farmstead. It's available for purchase on Amazon.
As fall commences, the chilly evening air does magical things to root vegetables like radishes. Their tops begin to weaken and their energy shifts to their roots to form sugar, which they use for survival. Their usual spicy flavor begins to mellow, developing a fruit-like sweetness, and they take on a nice crunch.
Radish Salad With Walnuts, Sesame, & Mint
- Prep Time:20 mins
- Cook Time:0
- Total Time:20 mins
- Servings:4
- Easy
- 4 to 8 medium-to-large assorted fall radishes such as watermelon green luobo and Spanish black
- 1 cup or so walnut halves toasted and lightly crushed
- 1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds plus more for garnish
- 1/2 cup buttery extra-virgin olive oil
- Juice 1 large lemon
- Maldon salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Handful fresh mint leaves
- Handful fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- Runny honey for drizzling
Ingredients
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Step 1
HOT TIP: To give extra crunch to any root vegetable or onion, give them a plunge in ice water after you’ve sliced them. A prolonged soak will also help to mellow the flavor.
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Step 2
Using a vegetable peeler, remove any blemishes or tough skin from the radishes. Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, cut the radishes into slices about the thickness of a quarter. Cut the slices into half-moons or whatever shape is bite-size and would be pleasantly received.
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Step 3
In a bowl, combine the radishes, walnuts, sesame seeds, oil, and lemon juice, season liberally with salt, and toss to mix well. Tear some of the mint and parsley leaves, leaving the rest whole, and add them all to the bowl. Massage everything together with your hands, then taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.
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Step 4
Garnish with a drizzle of honey, a dusting of pepper, and a sprinkle of sesame seeds and serve.
Photo from Emma Hearst
Reprinted with permission from Flavors from the Farm by Emma Hearst copyright © 2024. Published by Weldon Owen.