Spring Vegetables Recipe

My Romanian grandfather liked to eat radishes every day. Next to his plate one could always find a bowl of sliced, raw, undressed red radishes all ready for him. His love of this simple root, however, is not widely shared. I have found that radishes are best as an accent in a salad. They have a unique taste, slightly bitter, kind of cool, almost like fennel, but not licorice-like.

In this salad, they help add an extra dimension to the classic pairing of white beans and shrimp.

-- Stephanie Witt Sedgwick

Shrimp, White Bean and Radish Salad

6 to 8 lunch or appetizer servings

Two 15.5-ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed, or 3 cups cooked white beans

6 radishes, stemmed and cut into small ( 1/4 - to 1/2 -inch) dice (about ( 3/4 cup)

1 large stalk celery, diced (about 1/2 cup)

1/4 cup sliced spring onion (scallions), white and tender green parts only (may substitute diced sweet onion)

1 pound cooked medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and cut into bite-size pieces

1/4 cup sherry vinegar

1/2 cup mild-tasting olive oil

1 teaspoon sugar

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well. Adjust seasonings to taste. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours before serving, so the flavors have time to develop. Mix well before serving.

Per serving (based on 8): 266 calories, 17 g protein, 16 g carbohydrates, 15 g fat, 86 mg cholesterol, 2 g saturated fat, 129 mg sodium, 4 g dietary fiber

Recipe tested by Stephanie Witt Sedgwick; e-mail questions tofood@washpost.com