Seven Little Vegetables in One Dish

During a recent lunch at JoJo’s in New York City, I ordered “27 Vegetables Simmered in Their Own Juice with Chive Oil” as an appetizer. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten had cooked each vegetable separately, then combined and seasoned them with chive-infused oil. The kaleidoscopic array of vegetables was perfectly cooked so that each bite was pure bliss.

By the time I returned home, I was determined to try it in my own kitchen, but with fewer vegetables. At the market, I picked seven vegetables I thought would contribute the most flavor and color to such a dish--carrots, turnips, slender spring asparagus, fennel, sugar snap peas, young green beans and green onions.

To make blanching the vegetables easy, I brought a large pan of salted water to a boil and added each vegetable separately, cooking them just until tender and removing them with a strainer. None of the vegetables took more than 5 minutes to cook, and most took only 2. The whole process involved little more than 20 minutes of cooking time.

Infusing an oil with an herb often takes several weeks, so I made a quick version combining lemon juice and peel with a very small amount of olive oil along with fresh thyme. The lemon juice and peel help intensify the flavor of the thyme.

At serving time, I quickly reheated all the vegetables at once in boiling water, tossed them in the oil, then arranged them on a serving plate. I offered the melange at a small dinner party as a side dish to broiled lamb chops, but it would also be excellent with roast chicken or sauteed veal chops. And, of course, you could offer this dish as a first course as at JoJo’s.

Rosbottom is the author of “American Favorites” (Chapters Publishing, 1996).

VEGETABLE MELANGE (VEGETARIAN; LOW-FAT COOKING)

4 small carrots

1 white turnip

1 bulb fennel

1/2 pound thin asparagus

1/4 pound green beans

1/4 pound sugar snap peas

1 bunch green onions

1 tablespoon olive oil, preferably extra virgin

1 teaspoon lemon juice

3/4 teaspoon grated lemon peel

1 teaspoon chopped thyme leaves

Several grinds black pepper

Salt

Cut carrots into 1/8-inch slices. Halve turnip and cut into 1/8-inch slices. Remove and discard stalks from fennel; halve bulb lengthwise, core and cut into 1/4-inch slices.

Snap tough ends off asparagus and cut stalks diagonally into 2-inch pieces. Trim ends off green beans and discard. Trim ends off sugar snap peas and discard. Cut 2 inches from green stems of onions, then cut remaining green onions diagonally into 2-inch lengths.

Whisk olive oil, lemon juice and peel, thyme, pepper and 1/4 teaspoon salt in small bowl and set aside. (Note: Dressing can be made up to 2 hours ahead. Cover and leave at cool room temperature. Whisk well before using.)

Bring 3 quarts water to boil in large pan and add 1 tablespoon salt. Drop in carrots and cook until just tender and slightly crunchy, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with strainer or slotted spoon to large bowl. Cook turnip, then fennel, in same manner, checking each for doneness in 1 to 2 minutes.

Cook asparagus 3 minutes, remove to colander and run under cold running water to stop cooking and set color. Drain and add to bowl with other cooked vegetables. Repeat process with green beans, cooking about 5 minutes. Repeat again with sugar snap peas, cooking about 2 minutes. Repeat with green onions, cooking 1 to 2 minutes.

When all vegetables are cooked, they may rest, uncovered, up to 2 hours at cool room temperature.

When ready to serve, bring large pan of lightly salted water to boil and add all vegetables at once to reheat, 30 to 60 seconds. Drain well and toss with dressing. Season with salt and pepper if needed.

4 first-course or 6 side-dish servings. Each first-course serving:

91 calories; 108 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 4 grams fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams protein; 2.06 grams fiber.