Simple Fennel Salad — A Refreshing Lunch or Side

I had never purchased fennel bulb before two weeks ago.  I am pretty sure though that I have consumed fennel before, but I didn't quite remember the taste when I picked it up at the grocery store.  My first attempt at using one of the bulbs involved making a simple, fresh fennel salad, inspired by Alice Waters Shaved Fennel Salad in the Art of Simple Cooking.  I ended up eating an entire bulb one afternoon with a quick dressing that I made with the following ingredients that I pulled from the cabinet:

• 1 tbl. lemon juice 
• 1 tbl. brown rice vinegar
• garlic powder
• chili powder
• crushed white pepper
• salt

I started with the lemon juice and vinegar, and then just added the other ingredients to taste.  My made-up simple dressing helped cut some of the sharp flavors of the fresh fennel.  I would have used Waters' recipe which calls for olive oil and white wine vinegar, but unfortunately I was out of both at the time I made the salad.  Per Waters' suggestion though, I cut the fennel using a mandoline on the thinnest setting so that the fennel slices were quite fine and delicate.  

I think the next time I use fresh fennel bulb, I may try to chop the sliced fennel into even smaller chunks to make a fennel slaw.  I think a fennel slaw would make a great, healthy side dish to any lunch or casual dinner (basically, whenever one would use a slaw as a side dish).