Kohlrabi carpaccio with cranberry walnut pesto

It always amazes me how a few very simple (and budget friendly) ingredients can turn into a very fancy looking and tasting dish with just a little creativity and carefully garnished plates. For this dish for example, I used kohlrabi as the main ingredient, which is a kind of cabbage that is very common (and inexpensive) in German speaking countries. It can be eaten raw or cooked, and has a mild cabbage flavor that works great in salads, hearty stews or as a side dish. I combined it with a sweet yet savory pesto made from cranberries and walnuts and served it on a bed of lambs lettuce. By the way, if you have any leftovers or simply don’t need all the pesto and veggies for serving, use it as a sandwich filling – absolutely delicious!

Colourful lamb’s lettuce salad with joghurt dressing

Even if it’s getting cold outside and autumn has finally displaced the last warm summer days, I still enjoy a fresh salad for a small lunch or supper. Admittedly, it doesn’t warm you like a hot soup or stew, but gives you plenty of vitamins and is quick and easy to prepare. Lamb’s lettuce is the perfect base for any autumn salad – it has a very mild taste and can be combined with sweet or hearty other ingedients. This salad combines lamb’s lettuce, crisp ball pepper, almonds and fruity cranberries for the perfect mixture of flavours. Give it a try! 

Lambs lettuce with roasted pears

You need:

• 40g lambs lettuce
• 1 pear
• 2-3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• butter
• salt
• pepper
• some walnuts

Wash the lambs lettuce and arrange it on a plate or in a small bowl. Cut the pear in bite-sized slices. Heat some butter in a small pan and gently roast the pear for about 3-5 minutes.

Then deglaze with the baslamic vinegar, take the pear slices out of the pan (not the vinegar!) and place them on the lambs lettuce. Now add the honey to the balsamic vinegar and season with some salt and pepper. Gently heat the dressing until it gets a creamy texture. Pour it over the salad and top it with some walnuts. Serve with fresh bread.

UPDATE:

Annegret from Munich sent me this gorgeous picture from a dinner with her friends – they had the salad as a starter. Click on the thumbnail to see a bigger version of the picture!