Beetroots roast in foil until tender (or boil for the quicker route), then peel and grate coarsely. The grated beetroot warms gently in butter with finely chopped onion, a splash of vinegar or lemon juice, sugar and a generous spoon of horseradish. Tastes of earth and warmth. Eaten warm in winter, room temperature in summer.
Cucumber slices very thin, salts for 20 minutes to draw out water, then squeezes dry. The squeeze is the technique, without it, the dressing ends up a watery puddle. The drained cucumber tosses with sour cream, lemon juice or white vinegar, plenty of fresh dill, a little sugar and pepper. Eats cold, on the day.
Three raw vegetables: coarse-grated carrot, coarse-grated apple, fine-shredded white cabbage. They toss with a sour-cream-and-lemon dressing, a pinch of sugar, salt and pepper. Sometimes a handful of raisins or sunflower seeds joins. Eaten within an hour of dressing while still crunchy; the longer it sits, the softer it gets.