Radicchio Salad with Mungbean Sprouts

If you don't know this site, visit it asap, because it will inspire you. When I saw Juliet's entry on Tastespotting I decided to try sprouting my own seeds. The first attempt was a sad story because I added too many flax seeds to the mixture, which are mucilagenous (i.e. slimy), so the seeds were always too wet and eventually fermented. This property of the flax seeds works well if you are constipated but not if you want to sprout them. The second time I used only mungbeans and kept rinsing them twice a day and draining them well. Within 5 days I had lots of sprouts, and now they are in the fridge to keep them fresh.

Today I added them to a salad and the crunchiness of the sprouts was incredible. I am hooked!

The radicchio I used in the salad is called Radicchio di Castelfranco and it was given to me by the incredibly knowledgeable Annabelle Lenderink of the Star Route Farms at the farmers' market in San Rafael. After we talked about a squash that has only recently been cultivated in California, the Marina di Chioggia aka Zucca Barucca in Venetian, she generously gave me a head of this wonderful radicchio. This chicory variety gets the name from Castelfranco, a town 30 minutes from my home town Venice, has a mild flavor, is really buttery with a slight bitterness, and it paired well with the Meyer lemon zet flavor (the aroma of the zest still lingers on my fingers as I am typing, YUM!).

Radicchio Salad with Mungbean sprouts

Cut the radicchio in strips, and the avocado in cubes. Sprinkle with extravergin olive oil, aceto balsamico, meyer lemon juice and zest. Add a handful of sprout and toss the salad.

Buon Appetito!