Have you ever needed some help in making the most of what’s in season in your Imperfect box? You’re not alone, which is why we’re excited to introduce you to our friend and your new veggie guardian angel, Abra Berens! Abra is a chef, farmer, and author of Ruffage: A Practical Guide to Vegetables, and she has generously volunteered to help our community by sharing her veggie knowledge with all of you. To whet your appetite, here are Abra’s top 3 cooking tips for demystifying the world of root vegetables:

1. Just about every root can be cut into chunks, tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and roasted in a hot oven until tender with pretty good results. So if you don’t know what to do, start there.

2. If you don’t have ideas of what to pair with an unfamiliar vegetable, just taste a little piece, close your eyes, and make a list of the other flavors that come to mind. That’s honestly how I build most menu items in the restaurant.

3. Most vegetables don’t need to be peeled. Peeling is only if the skin is so tough that it is unpalatable. Consider just giving the roots a good scrub and eating them whole. It produces less waste and since most micronutrients live in the skins, you’ll be getting more nutritional bang for your buck.

Want even more cooking tips on vegetables from chef Abra? Stay tuned for our “Open Kitchen” Instagram story next Wednesday, March 6th, when you can submit your top cooking questions for Abra to answer the following week!

To learn more about Abra, be sure to visit her website or Instagram. You can also pre-order her book online at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Indiebound.