What’s in the produce aisle this week? Check out the forty-five fantastic creations sent to our inbox.

We thank Kalyn for the opportunity to host last week’s Weekend Herb Blogging, and the participants for your enthusiastic response. Here are the entries. If we have missed any, we apologise. Please let us know through the contact form.

Grilled Radicchio and Arugula Salad with Parmesan Shavings ~ Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska

Drizzled with olive oil and grilled, radicchio is no longer as bitter. Laurie pairs it beautifully with egg yolk-rich pasta and also adds it to a salad.

Zucchini mousakka with garbanzo beans ~ almost turkish recipes

In Turkey musakka is usually prepared with fried eggplant, tomato, peppers, and ground meat. Burcu uses zucchini, garbanzo beans and replaces ground meat with TVP (textured vegetable protein) to replicate the menu item from Çiya Restaurant in Istanbul.

Mixed Greens, Cilantro and Purple Cabbage Salad ~ Gluten Free Mommy

Cilantro is an ingredient Natalie endorses to perk up any salad. Champagne vinaigrette elevates it to a whole new level.

Eggplant and Zucchini Pie ~ The Kitchen Playground

Rummaging through the refrigerator and garden, Dani found eggplant, zucchini and oregano. A beautiful Mediterranean pie was born.

Red Hot Chili Peppers = They’re Red Hot ~ The Backyard Pizzeria

Pam’s fiery red peppers travel quickly from the garden to the jar. They assume a gorgeous, fragrant avatar in her Sambal Oelek.

Kovakkai / Tindora masala ~ Dil Se..

Divya pairs up ivy gourd (kovakkai/tindora) with onions, tomatoes and Indian spices to create a lip-smacking accompaniment to rice.

Baby Carrots and Thyme ~ Saffron Trail

‘Infant carrots’, as she calls them and thyme, paired with garlic and onions are roasted to envelop her home in a wonderful aroma. Nandita recommends them on their own, or as a sandwich filling.

Spicy Mexican Slaw with Lime and Cilantro ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen

Kalyn’s kicked-up version of coleslaw has green Tabasco and some other zesty Mexican flavours. It’s eye candy too.

Citrus Fruit Salad in Spicy Honey ~ Kitchen Unplugged

Gattina presents the world’s most beautiful and delicious cold remedy with this citrusy, honey-drenched, spicy fruit salad. Hope you have recovered fully, dear Gattina.

It’s Breakfast Thyme ~ LiberalFoodie

Eggs baked with milk and cream, paired with bread and avocado, make breakfast a snap. Liberal Foodie scents this dish with delicate thyme.

Papaya Milkshake ~ Spice-Club

Cham’s tropical milkshake is rich with the sweetness and nutritive benefits of papaya. The fruit abounds in fibre and digestive enzymes.

Methi Pakodas (Fenugreek Fritters) ~ Fun and Food

Mansi combines fenugreek leaves with cilantro, green chillies and spices to dish out these popular Indian teatime treats. The distinct fenugreek flavour makes them very special.

Of Herbs from Provence, & Roasted Chicken ~ Noob Cook

Noob Cook anoints her chicken with a delicious, aromatic French blend of herbs. She explains what goes into the blend known as herbs be provence.

Arti Danttu Vepudu ~ Cooking 4 all Seasons

Fiber-rich plantain stems stir fried with mung beans enhance Srivalli’s lunchbox. There are a variety of interesting ways to cook various parts of the plantian plant, including the fruit, stem and flowers in south India.

Simply Morels ~ Post Collegiate Cooking a Deux

“After a few tentatively enthusiastic words, neither one really wanting to take responsibility for the decision to shell out over a buck per mushroom, it was decided: Dad would buy the morels. And they would be ours. And it would be glorious,” says Neen, describing some sinful mushroom decadence.

“Proper” Chili ~ The Skinny Gourmet

Cabbage, bell peppers, beer, beans, turkey, chipotle flakes …. what could that be? It’s chili, silly!!! The Skinny Gourmet way.

Fava Bean and Dill Crostini ~ Food Blogga

The short, coveted fava season is here. Susan celebrates it with these delightful crostini. “According to Wiki and Cook’s Thesaurus, you’re correct if you say Vicia faba, broad bean, butter bean, faba bean, English bean, field bean, horse bean, tic bean, or Winsdor bean”, she informs us.

Olive and Oregano Bread ~ Culinary Bazaar

Olive+oregano = Good Eats. Olive+oregano in bread = Great Eats in Dhivya’s kitchen.

Green Chickpea and Corn Kadhi ~ Cooking in Westchester

Green chickpeas with tart yogurt and fresh corn, tempered with whole spices and thickened with chickpea flour. This, on rice, completes Rinku’s Indian meal.

Spinach Mousse ~ Kits Chow

This is an easy, diet-friendly dish that can be adapted to incorporate a host of veggies. KC prepared this for a friend who has been advised by her doctor to eat only soft foods.

Kokum Tambli ~ Monsoon Spice

Tambli is a yogurt-based curry from south India that often uses rare ingredients known for their medicinal properties. Sia uses kokum which aids digestion and is relished for its tangy flavour.

Braised Puy Lentils ~ Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once

Haalo serves up a classic dish with puy lentils. She slowly braises them with porcini mushrooms and other vegetables to bring out their sweet, nutty flavour.

Marsala, Anis And Olive Oil Biscuits ~ Absolutely Green

These figure-friendly cookies are a vegan treat. Virginie uses marsala, olive oil and delicately scented anise.

Parwal Masala (Wax Gourd Stir Fry) ~ Peppermill

Miri tells us that wax gourd (parwal) is popular in certain regions of north India for it’s neutral taste and medicinal value. This vegetable is recommended by traditional healers in Chattisgarh for women who have just delivered a child, for its unique healing properties.

Artichoke and lemon linguine ~ Technicolor Kitchen

This no-cook pasta sauce guarantees dinner on the table in 10, maybe 12 minutes. Patricia gives artichoke hearts and parsley a whir in the food processor and flavours it with lemon for a delicious and quick meal.

Sunburst Pattypan Squash Pickle ~ vineelascuisine

Vineela pickles sunburst pattypan squash with mustard, cayenne and fenugreek seeds. This spicy condiment pairs very well with rice.

Tagine of Quinoa with Chickpeas, Olives and Prunes ~ Diet, Dessert and Dogs

Slighly sweet, slightly salty, warmly spiced. That’s how Ricki describes this wholesome quinoa tagine with Mediterranean flavours.

Harvesting Red Chilies ~ Enjoy Indian Food

Meera shares pictures of her container garden. She tells us about different varieties of Indian chillies, and how she grows them.

Saute Okra seasoned with Dry Mango Powder ~ Simply passion for food

An Indonesian married to a Singaporean, living in Goa, India. That’s Ira. She decribes her tryst with the ’sexy veggie’, okra (called lady finger in India). The dry mango powder (amchur) adds a fruity sourness.

Asparagus with Quail Eggs ~ Thyme for Cooking, the Blog

You can eat an asparagus with your fingers, unless it’s served with Hollandaise. In some places, you must peel and eat a whole orange with your fork and knife. Read Katie’s culinary adventures and lessons.

Wild garlic risotto ~ Cooksister

Brown bears like to dig up and snack on its bulbs. That explains the name for wild garlic - Allium ursinum. Jeanne uses them to a make a mean risotto.

Meatballs With Parsley And Parmesan ~ What Did You Eat?

Sher was intrigued by this deceptively simple recipe with a four-star rating on Epicurious. Parsley and garlic provide the flavour kick to these meatballs.

Chicken Tetrazzini ~ Canela & Comino

Gretchen describes her visit to a mushroom farm. She uses baby portabellas (crimini mushrooms) to flavour her creamy Chicken Tetrazzini.

Pesche Ripiene (Baked Peaches Stuffed w Amaretti) ~ Morsels & Musings

Anna has an interesting relationship with peaches. She adores their flavour and has an aversion to their fuzz. Baking them takes care of the fuzz problem and intensifies their sweetness. Amaretti cookies add crunch.

Celeriac, Parnsip and Fennel Salad ~ Real Epicurean

Never tried celeriac? This would be a great way to start. Scott pairs it with thinly shaved parsnip and fennel. Dressed with mustard and lemon, this salad makes a crunchy, aromatic topping on toast.

Samba Lado Mudo ~ The Art and Science of Food

Tomatillos, chillies, shallots and anchovies come together in Pepy’s version of the Indonesian condiment. Usually made with green tomatoes, Samba Lado Mudo is a specialty of West Sumatra.

Chicken with Baked Eggplant and Tomato ~ Jerry’s Thoughts, Musings, and Rants!

Eggplants are the star of this low-fat ratatouille-type dish. Jerry uses the veggies as a bed for pancetta-wrapped chicken.

Baked Walla Walla Sweet Onion Dip ~ White On Rice Couple

Todd and Diane take you on a travel adventure to Todd’s dad’s farm in north-eastern Oregon. They dig up some Walla Walla onions and … let the food porn begin. Check out their awesome video travelogue.

Ensalada de Cabrales ~ We Are Never Full

This is a salad with an iPod-like interface: “astonishingly simple, yet …. unbelievably clever in its design”. Jonny and Amy recreated this dish from a favourite food show. This scintillating melange of flavours pairs cabrales, the Spanish blue cheese (”perhaps the world’s wildest cheese”) with apples and hazelnuts.

Stinging Nettle Fritters ~ Palachinka

Marija from Serbia highlights an unusual ingredient - stinging nettles. They are soaked overnight and cooked to neutralise any toxicity, then converted into these savoury treats.

asparago ~ briciole

Simona is the consummate wordsmith. She describes with the Italian passion for asparagus (they have four words to describe its various parts), and the joy of discovering how to grow it in California.

Brown Rice Vegetable Pilaf ~ Siri’s Corner

Brown rice, cooked with onions and bell peppers add nutrition and flavour to a meal. Siri informs us that one cup of brown rice provides about 88% of one’s daily value for manganese.

Vietnamese Chicken and Cabbage Salad ~ Like to Cook

Spring is the season for the mint invasion in our herb gardens. Jennifer uses it in this Vietnamese salad with a tangy lime dressing.

Filet Mignon with Herb-Infused Port Wine Syrup and Balsamic Reduction ~ Weak Weary Mom

Port wine and balsamic are simmered down with rosemary and lavender. Georgetta then drizzles this syrup over grilled filet mignon for a memorable meal.

In the Greenhouse ~ Jugalbandi

This photo-essay affords a glimpse of our local nursery. We love shopping here or simply walking around for a mood lift when it’s grey and dreary outside.

We wish our readers from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Assam and Punjab a New Year filled with peace, joy and good eats.

- Jai and Bee

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