Rapini: Nothing to be bitter about
But the cold, hard reality of Ontario's stunted growing season is that if you want to eat local from now until May, you'd better like rutabagas. I'm more of a leafy green vegetable man myself, and my favourite is rapini.
Also known as broccoli raab and broccoli di rape, 99 per cent of rapini found in Toronto comes from California. In fact, I have never seen any brand other than the ubiquitous Andy Boy.
When buying rapini, look for dark green leaves and firm heads. Avoid bunches with browning ends or leaves yellowing at the edges. Your average bunch of rapini will feed three to four as an antipasto or side dish.
Other than washing it in a bowl of cold water, rapini needs little work; just trim any frayed ends and discard the odd ugly leaf.
No matter what you plan to use it for, I find the only way to tame rapini's fierce bitterness is to boil it first. Bring a large pot of aggressively salted water to a boil and cook each bunch of rapini in two batches. It should be fully cooked, which usually takes a few minutes after the pot returns to a boil. The best way to tell if it's done is to try a piece.
If you are not planning to eat it right away, plunge it into ice water to stop the cooking and preserve the vibrant green colour. Drain and dry on clean kitchen towels.
With a nutty flavour and assertive bitterness, rapini stands up to strong flavours. Dressed with extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice and garlic, this all-Italian vegetable can be served as an antipasto, either on its own, draped with anchovy filets, sprinkled with chopped olives or mounded on a plate of prosciutto or spicy salami.
To serve it warm, saute slivers of garlic and dried chili flakes in olive oil before adding the rapini and a splash of water to help steam it back to life. Done this way, it makes an excellent side dish to grilled sausages and polenta.
Some cooks like to grill rapini, but I find the smokiness of the grill exacerbates the bitterness.
It goes without saying that rapini is dynamite in pasta. A classic dish combines orrecchietti with rapini, sweet sausage, garlic and olive oil with salty pecorino romano cheese. It is also great with penne, spicy tomato sauce and pancetta.
Try putting rapini on your pizza - preferably in combination with anchovies.
Finally, rapini is delicious in a vegetarian sandwich with goat cheese, tapenade and oven-dried tomatoes.
