For a long time, I've been interested in produce that comes in all different colors and varieties. Apples, kale, gourds; you name it and I am all about it. At the moment, my colorful produce obsession has been mainly focused on beets.

Jim Webster, the co-author of my most recent cookbook, "America Farm to Table," pegs it rather perfectly. "The gold seem extravagant. The candy-stripe Chioggia -- say it: key-oh-jah -- seem playful. But the truth is, I just buy red beets now. They seem to be the sweetest, and for me, that's the game with beets." Amen, Webster.

David Cleverdon, our featured Chicago farmer in "America," owns Kinnikinnick Farm northwest of the city. He introduced us to the notion that the more cylindrical-shaped the beet, the more evenly they cook and subsequently the easier they become for cutting into uniform shapes.

In my Beet and Fennel Insalata Cruda, I keep the medium to large red beets raw and grate them on the large holes of a box grater. To add a crunchy and second slightly sweet component, I discard the ribs and fronds of my fennel, utilizing only the bulbs.

When picking fennel at the farmers' market, you'll know it's of good quality when the bulbs are solid, firm and clean without bruising or spotting. Store fresh fennel for up to four days in your refrigerator crisper drawer. Keep in mind that as this vegetable ages, it gradually loses flavor.

Closely associated with Dionysus, the god of wine, a fennel stalk is also given in Greek mythology as the means by which Prometheus passed down fire from the gods to men. It's been grown in areas surrounding the Mediterranean Sea since ancient times, and today the United States is among the leading cultivators. If fennel is good enough for the gods, it sure is good enough as a light and refreshing starter to my winter dinner.

Beet and Fennel Insalata Cruda

Serves 8 to 10 as a side dish.

Cook Time: 30-60 minutes

3 medium to large red beets

2 fennel bulbs, ribs and fronds discarded, bulbs shaved paper thin on a mandoline

1 red onion, chopped into 1/8 inch dice

10 radishes, julienned

1 small head Savoy cabbage, cored and thinly shredded

6 scallions, whites and about 2 inches of the greens sliced super-thin on the diagonal

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill leaves

2 tablespoons whole celery seeds

2 tablespoons whole mustard seeds

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cooking Directions

Peel the beets and then grate them on the large holes of a box grater. Place the beets in a large bowl, and add the fennel, onion, radishes, cabbage and scallions. Toss with your hands to mix.

In a medium bowl, whisk the mustard, vinegar and honey together. Then add the olive oil in a thin stream, whisking to form a light emulsion. Add the dill, celery seeds and mustard seeds, and stir well.

Pour the vinaigrette over the cabbage mixture, and toss gently for 3 minutes to mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir again. Serve immediately or cover and chill for as long as overnight.

(Mario Batali is the award-winning chef behind twenty-four restaurants including Eataly, DelPosto, and his flagship Greenwich Village enoteca, Babbo.)