This time of year, I balance daily green salads with hot dishes, both featuring spring vegetables but providing different flavors and textures. Arugula changes from crisp to silky in Cheesy Wilted Arugula Penne. Asparagus transforms from grassy and bright to smoky and charred when grilled. And as I explain this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, radishes shift from peppery to sweet when roasted.

I emphasize salad radishes in this week’s recipe—a group that includes classic red-skinned Cherry Belle, multicolor Easter Egg, oblong French Breakfast, and green-and-pink Watermelon varieties—since they’re in their spring flush and we typically think of eating them raw. A giant daikon radish, which is typically sown in late summer to fall for a fall or mild winter harvest, can also be roasted but needs slightly different treatment. Peel this long, dense radish and then cut it into half-moons or cubes before roasting. When cooked, daikon radish holds more of its spicy flavor than round salad radishes.
Learn to make Balsamic-Roasted Radishes