I Love it, I Love it NOT…Vegetable Medley

I write [heart] notes to things I love. Quick expressions of my zeal for things I cannot—or would rather not—live without (bacon, watermelon, Crate & Barrel), [heart] notes arose from a desire to share my love of things that didn’t really warrant a whole lot of narrative.

But as you know, it’s not always a love fest here at Arugula. There are things I am not fond of—staycations and other variations on the word vacation; ignorant, trashy bumper stickers—and that send me on a rant. But similar to those things I love that don’t warrant a 500 word narrative, and for which a simple love note suffices, there are things I dislike that don’t deserve a lengthy diatribe.

And so I begin an occasional post of a sort: I Love it, I Love it NOT. The first to receive this dubious distinction is Vegetable Medley.

I love vegetables. I crave salads (especially arugula). I can make a meal out of some in various forms—sautéed, roasted, steamed, fresh. Haricot verts, asparagus, tomatoes, cucumbers, mushrooms, celery, spinach, broccoli, and snow peas all please my palate.

But I agree with Deanna, who said, “I’ve never met a vegetable medley I liked.”

Sometimes vegetables are meant to be together—in ratatouille, or caponata, on skewers on a grill—but when served as a side dish, more often than not overcooked, and especially when there are peppers in the mix—making everything else in the mix taste like peppers—I’d rather do without.