One of my favorite views on the planet is the swath of colors spread across a farmers market in mid-June. Gone are the days when I wonder what might be there; now it’s almost all there — carrots, turnips, radishes, onions, fennel, herbs, greens, snap peas, the list goes on. Even though our Southwestern sun is out in full force, baby vegetables are not only showing their resilience, they are, lucky for us, abundant and available. Gathering your favorites and arranging them on a board or platter with dips, vinaigrettes or spreads is one of the easiest and most delicious ways to enjoy them.
The French have named this crudités from the word “crudité,” which means rawness, and some consider this to mean everything on the platter must be raw. But I like to think about crudités in a slightly larger context, one in which the goal is to celebrate the best of the season, simply and without fuss, but with room for a bit of creativity and diversity sprinkled in. I love seeing a crudités platter with a combination of raw, roasted and pickled fruits and vegetables.
When I make any kind of crudités platter, it feels very much as if I have brought home a big bunch of various and disheveled wildflowers, and my task is straightforward — arrange a bouquet that shows off their natural beauty and delicate, delightful flavor. Sometimes this might mean roasting, if I happen to find some new potatoes in their prime. Other times it might mean including some pickled garlic scapes, which are one of my favorite treats this time of year.
For this version, I keep things simple by grilling vegetables just enough to give them a hint of char and smoke, but still preserving their crunch. Kind of like ordering a steak black and blue where the outside is charred but the inside is almost rare. But then again, crudités is not like a steak at all. On the side, this time I skip the dips I often make like hummus or yogurt with herbs, and instead leave room on the board for a generous smear of good butter that I sprinkle with a blend of sea salt, chile powder and lavender, which is the magical flavor combination that for me, anyway, contains the essence of the high desert (also available as High Desert Salt on stokli.com).
The endive on this platter was so sweet, crunchy and tender, if it had been the only vegetable on the board, it still would have been my favorite dish on the table. Let yourself get as creative or focused as you want when putting a platter like this together. You could go the monochromatic route and gather all of one color, or put together a board that celebrates the entire rainbow of foods that are available to us right now. In his 1965 book Menus for Entertaining, James Beard called crudités “the most appetizing dish imaginable.” I feel the same way.
Charred Crudités with High Desert Butter
Makes: 6-8 servings;
total time: 30 minutes
1 bunch, radishes
1 bunch, baby turnips
1 bunch, baby carrots
3 heads, endive, halved
1 bunch, asparagus
Small drizzle of olive oil
1 stick of good butter, softened to room temperature
Sprinkle of medium-grain sea salt and black pepper
Sprinkle of chile powder
Sprinkle of ground lavender or other herbs
Preparation: Clean and trim radishes, turnips, carrots, endive and asparagus, keeping any greens for later use. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. If there are any large vegetables, you can slice them in half lengthwise; otherwise, leave them whole. Lightly toss vegetables with a crack of salt and just enough olive oil to barely coat everything. Grill them just until they have nice grill marks, but you don’t want them to be cooked all the way through. Transfer them to a large board, leaving room along the side. Smear the butter into the open space on the board and sprinkle it with sea salt, black pepper, chile powder, lavender or other herbs.
Marianne Sundquist is a chef and writer who in 2020 co-founded Stokli, an online general store. Find her on Instagram @chefmariannesundquist, and email her at marianne@stokli.com.
