Kohlrabi

If you mention kohlrabi to your friends who don't frequent farmers markets or venture out of the packaged food aisles in their national-chain supermarkets, you may get a blank stare.  Even more so when you show them one.

This sputnik-shaped vegetable is actually quite common on dinner plates outside of the US.  The name comes from combining German variants of the words for "cabbage" and "turnip".  Kohlrabi is a member of the same family as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, collard greens, and Brussel sprouts. 

The taste can be likened to a sweeter, milder form of cabbage and the texture is simliar to broccoli stems or cabbage hearts.  Similar to turnips, the greens can also be eaten and are of similar flavor.  Both green and purple varieties are common.

Kohlrabi is exceptionally high in vitamin C, and is a good source of B-complex vitamins.  They contain the same compounds as their other family members (mentioned above) that have been linked to string cancer-fighting effects.  Kohlrabi is rich in thiamine, folate, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, copper, manganese, and dietary fiber.  If there is one drawback to kohlrabi, it's that much of the calorie content comes from sugars, but that also means your kids might eat it!

 

Image credit - http://www.thekitchn.com/

Storage tips:

With the stems and greens removed, kohlrabi can be kept for several weeks in the refrigerator.  It is best to bag them in plastic and keep in the vegetable crisper.  Colder temeratures and higher humidity will help kohlrabi last longer.