Just in time for Valentine's, a man-pleasing meal that's subtle and seductive for the ladies, too. There are lovely touches of lavender in the steak sauce, in the potatoes (the spuds alone will make you swoon) and in the creme brulee. I promise: this is not the lavender sachet of your fears! SHOPPING TIP: Lavender varies widely (1500%?) in price. Here in St Louis, it is many, many times cheaper at Whole Foods. And as lucky timing would have it, LAVENDER CREME BRULEE is my contribution for Sugar High Friday, this month hosted by Taste Everything Once . SHF16 (c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade

Today's vegetable recipe: An unusual but magical combination, rutabaga and butternut squash mashed and drizzled with just a touch of maple syrup. ~recipe & photo updated 2011~ ~ more recently updated recipes ~ ~ recipe republished in 2011, by happenstance, exactly five years later to the day! ~ (first published on Day 304 of A Veggie Venture's first year) 2006: I'll tell you something: It's mighty easy to become addicted to these root vegetable purées. Potato & carrot . Rutabaga & apple . Turnip & potato . And now, rutabaga and butternut squash. Who NEEDS spring's asparagus when there winter vegetables are still so beautiful? CULINARY REVELATION The squash in tonight's purée was cooked last night. And WOW, what a great way. You know how you risk a finger when peeling and cubing a butternut squash? (Update: No more. How to Cut, Peel & Cube a Butternut Squash and Keep All Ten Fingers .) Forget that. Just toss the whole squash -- the WHO

[It's February and we're cooking fennel this month! And YOU are invited to join the fun! All month, food bloggers and readers are invited to share their favorite fennel concoctions, new or archived. There's a running round-up , with new entries including fennel dumplings -- dumplings? Something in Season promises they're a two-time winner!] More fennel! Another prospect for easy, healthful weeknight fare! And tasty -- tasty, of course! It's a simple saute of fennel, leek and mushrooms and worked great beside grilled meat. NUTRITION NOTES ... Carb counters? This one's for you, only 5 grams of carbs. Weight Watchers? This one's for you two, with options ranging from 0 points to 2 points. So low-carb, low-fat, low-point and high-fiber. This is a real winner. NEXT TIME ... Skip the walnuts which added texture contrast (but also calories) and little flavor ... Saute the fennel and leeks in stock rather than olive oil, creating a non-fat dish ... Consider adding a

Today's quick and easy and healthy way to cook sugar snap peas: All it takes is a quick sauté in salted water. Then the flash-cooked sugar snap peas are tossed with a smidgen of butter, just a single teaspoon. But it's enough, it really is, because the lemon zest makes this one seriously tasty way to cook sugar snap peas. Low carb and because there is so little fat, so much fiber, these sugar snap peas add up to absolutely zero Weight Watchers points. ~recipe & photo updated 2013~ ~ more recently updated recipes ~ 2006 ORIGINAL POST: I can't remember the last time I cooked sugar snap peas. Hmmm: have I ever cooked sugar snap peas? Either way, what a mistake. These were easy-easy, quick-quick and tasty-tasty. (If you're into food-blogging acronyms like SHF and IMBB and DMBLGIT and ETC, then that'd be EEQQTT. And now that I've done the nutrition analysis, see below, let's make that EEQQTTHH, adding healthful-healthful.) And because there was nothing st

~ recipe & photo updated in 2007 ~ 2005: Regulars at the Epicurious Buzz Box will recognize this recipe . Since its appearance in 1998, some 200 cooks have rated it with four forks for 'dish beyond compare'. Based on those reviews, my expectations were high, so high I even splurged by leaving in the cream. I was soooo prepared for something wonderfully delicious. But tonight's soup turned out only okay, certainly nothing to rave about nor ever make again. Since so many other cooks have loved this soup, it's possible that tonight's particular circumstances changed its outcome. Winter squash can be watery and flavorless, plus for a half recipe, I cut the I cut the butter from 2 1/2 tablespoons to 1. 2007: Sure enough, if the squash itself has flavor, the soup will be delicious. I used roasted pumpkin (pumpkin and butternut squash are often interchanged) and so the soup was on the table in about 20 minutes, completely delicious. I skipped the cider cream, though

Tonight's vegetarian supper comes from a favorite cookbook from my vegetarian years, titled, surprise, surprise, Vegetarian Suppers . The margin note reads, "1/92 Great! Meaty and rich flavored." Now I've added, "2/06 Still great! Add 1T vinegar at end to brighten. Don't skip mushrooms." (Yes, I've been writing notes on recipe cards and in cookbooks forever and ever ... I figure food blogging and food writing is just my way of sharing those notes!) It makes for a terrific meatless supper or side dish, fat with fennel, potato and tomato. FEBRUARY IS FENNEL MONTH ... Are you cooking fennel with me this month? Or do you have a fennel favorite in your archives? Leave a comment and I'll add the link to February's Fennel Round-up . NUTRITION NOTES ... Carb counters: Omit the potato and substitute additional fennel. Weight Watchers: This is already a 1.5 point supper so perfect for weight-loss and weight-maintenance mode. For a no-fat version, simp

It's too warm for sleds and too cold to garden. So what's a foodie to do except, well, bake? This week's Kitchen Parade column features a luscious banana bread that's oh-so-moist, even though it's made with just one tablespoon of fat. (c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade