Ingredient of the Day: Purple Cabbage

This is a beautiful head of purple cabbage. Packed with anthocyanins, the powerful antioxidant compounds that provide the rich purple and red hues in fruits like raspberries and blackberries, purple cabbage is higher in fiber than green cabbage and chock full of vitamin C.

When I was in culinary school, my chefs told me that if you boil cabbage that you can use the remaining liquid as coloring. Another really cool thing about cabbage is that if you add an acid to it, like balsamic vinegar, the color purple becomes even more vivid and intense (when cooked with an alkaline substance, the color will turn more blue). There are a lot of different ways you can use cabbage. Chop it for salads, use it for lettuce cups, and decorate platters. Use your imagination!

Happy Cooking! Mary

Send your questions about food, cooking and life in the kitchen to:
hailmarys.inc@gmail.com