This Sunday the toddler and I donned our rain coats and braved the winter monsoon to visit the Dupont Circle Market. I’m like a kid loose in the candy store whenever I get to Dupont, even at the end of November, and this week was no exception. In the market basket: Cibola Farms buffalo stew meat, Brussels sprouts (on the stalk), red Anjou and seckel pears, quince, Stayman apples, watermelon radish, baby carrots, sunchokes, leek, Maitake mushrooms, Keswick ricotta, Atwater’s peasant wheat bread and a drinkable pumpkin yogurt (which the toddler chugged 2/3 of on the drive home!).

Market Menus: Sunday evening we had buffalo chili and Farmer John’s cornbread, along with parmesan Brussels sprouts. (Toddler tasted but rejected the sprouts, while the chili was dubbed, “Touchdown! chili” and devoured two nights in a row.) I’m planning to make a soup with the sunchokes and leek. And this salad was just for me, as the toddler deemed the radish too spicy and I’m the only blue cheese lover in the family (so far). You can omit the radish for a sweeter variation, but more adventurous taste buds will appreciate the balance of tangy and sweet flavors that play off the Irish blue cheese.

Recipe: Watermelon Radish, Red Pear and Cashel Blue Salad

Watermelon radishes are white on the outside, slightly larger than your typical radish but otherwise unsurprising, until you slice into them and get a peak at their deep fuschia interior. Sliced, they look like watermelon slices, hence the name. They have a sharp bite, which plays nicely off the sweet pears and touch of honey in this vinaigrette.

Ingredients:

• 1 red Anjou pear
• 1 watermelon radish
• 2 ounces Cashel Irish blue cheese

Vinaigrette:

• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil
• 1/2 teaspoon honey

Instructions: Whisk the vinaigrette ingredients together and set aside. Peel the radish and thinly slice both the radish and the pear. (Optional, serve over arugula or mesclun greens.) Serves 2. Enjoy!

P.S. Have I mentioned my cheese project? Read my review of Cashel Irish Blue, and if you’re on twitter, be sure to follow @100cheeses for updates and the latest in curd news and cheese recipes.