Broccoli Raab is yummy stuff. Really! Try it.

For years we have been trying to eat Broccoli Raab, and finally it is here. We grew it our first season, and were quite sucessful (as we were with many crops that season). Unfortunately that year, I didn't know that the stems are unpalatably bitter. I cooked up some Raab with the stems left in, and no one liked it. A few days after we pulled all the plants out, I learned to just eat the leaves and the little florets-no stems. Then Andy and I went to a fancy resaurant for our anniversary dinner and they had Raab there. I ordered a dinner that included it, and discovered that I was not the only one who did not know to remove those stems. I was dissappointed to say the least.
Last summer I anticipated the planting of more Raab to test some recipe ideas for the green reputed to have essences of nutmeg and a sweetness unparalleled by other greens. I planted thousands of tiny round seeds. They sprouted and grew. They were hairier than I remembered. I began to second guess that I had planted the proper seed in the right row. Luckily Shiela had started some in cells to see if that would yield a tastier product. What she got was a surprise. When she transplanted them to the field, the roots were big white stumps that almost totally filled the cells they were planted in. Our hairy broccoli raab was daikon! All the seed was mislabelled from our distributor. We couldn't have raab that year.
So this year is it. We harvested it, and tried some. Raab is all the things it is reputed to be and more. It is quite bug free (knock on wood). It is a cinch to prepare. The leaves pull off the stems quite easily those little florets are a nice change of texture. (I threw my rinsed leaves at a smoking hot pan coated in olive oil, stood back and waited until the spitting subsided, stirred it into a big clump of soggy green leaves, scooped it into a bowl, and drizzled red wine vinegar on it. It beat the pants off that vile pile of greens we had at the fancy french restaurant. It was tasty.) It is chock full of nutrients. I secretly hope that none of you choose it, so we can eat more of it. Next time I'll dry it better before I cook it, and add some garlic.