Is Cabbage the Turkey of the Vegetable World?
I am married to an aspiring vegetarian, which can be trying on Thanksgiving. On this holiday in particular, vegetarians around the country find themselves on the fringes of a family debate over rituals of preparation: spatchcocked, smoked, or the big cheat—draped in bacon. Every year, my husband wrangles me into his own fraught personal debate over whether or not the turkey actually warrants a lapse in his otherwise highly principled eating. Predictably, he caves, slides a few noncommittal slices onto his plate, and spends the rest of the night lamenting the turkey’s unwarranted spot as the centerpiece of the table. The turkey is an exercise in technique—everyone has their method for how to gussy up the very driest member of...