Oh boy, it's hot in Paris. I call it cani-kill but most properly in French it's canicule which is a scorching heatwave. With temperatures reaching the high 30's (celsius) and even near the 50's for the poor bakers in the bakery, one has to remember to keep hydrated.

No air con here— this is living in France. Air conditioners are not commonplace in France, especially in Paris where the city codes don't allow us to blemish their beautiful historic building facades. So I sit in my bathing suit while writing this with beads of sweat dripping down the sides of my face, forming along the back of my nape, and rolling down my back and chest. We are on a heatwave alert, level orange.

Fortunately, Paris has plenty of municipal pools and fountains. Remember the scene from La Dolce Vita with Anita Ekberg wading into the Trevi Fountain—well, then you can imagine how lucky we are to be able to jump into the waters of our equally beautiful fountains in Paris and recreate that scene. They are open to the public and it's a fantastic way to keep cool.

These days it's tough to muster up any energy to do anything, much less cook. I've got a super simple recipe for us today. Just chop, chop away these three crispy, hydrating and refreshing ingredients and voilà, the hard part is done. Otherwise just throw it all in a robot (food processor in French) and let it do the work!

So raw & crunchy...and so simply delicious. Stay cool.

Kohlrabi Salad with Beetroot and Granny Smith Apple

INGREDIENTS//Serves 2-4
• 1 medium size kohlrabi, matchstick
• 1 small size beetroot, matchstick
• 1 granny smith apple, matchstick
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• Salt and pepper, adjust accordingly

INSTRUCTIONS

Combine the matchstick size kohlrabi, beetroot, and Granny Smith apple in a bowl.

Squeeze some lemon, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

It's been so rainy, dreary, and cold in Paris. Thankfully these vibrant veggies vitalize my mind and body. Can you spot the kohlrabi? It's the round, stout bulb with the longs stems protruding out of it.

I tasted kohlrabi only a few years ago at a German friend's home. We got home from a very hot and exhausting day at the park with the kids full of dirt, hunger and thirst. She quickly dropped all her things, washed her hands and grabbed an odd-looking vegetable from her countertop that I had seen in markets before but never knew what to do with them, nor did I know what it was called. She simply used a sharp knife to cut away it's thick skin and then sliced a piece, sprinkled some salt on it and handed it over to me to eat. Wow, it was juicy and crisp!

Kohlrabi can be eaten raw or cooked. This was supposed to be a fritter dish that flopped "in the making of". It turned out to be more of an omelette instead. It's a mistake but a good one to be discovered!

Kolhrabi Nori Omelette

INGREDIENTS

• 1 small kohlrabi, matchstick slices
• 1/2 cup shredded nori
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoon panko
• pinch of salt
• pinch of white pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

In a medium size mixing bowl, add your kohlrabi, egg, panko bread crumbs and the nori.

Sprinkle a touch of salt and white pepper and whisk to combine all ingredients.

Pour mixture into a skillet and cook until the egg turns golden brown.

Slide it onto a plate and serve.

NOTE

I cut mine up into squares so that they were little bite size pieces. They are great as kids snacks and appetizers.