It's been an amazing month on A Veggie Venture -- only 28 days but 22 favorites! Who knew winter's goodness could rival summer's bounty? I make light but do, in fact, believe that the reason February's vegetables tasted so good is that they were suited to February : root vegetables, purees, oven dishes. I ignored the 'spring-ish' asparagus beginning to appear in the supermarket, bypassed anything resembling a tomato. So what are February's best veggie side, best soup and, a new category, best vegetarian supper? And because we've been cooking fennel all month, the best fennel? FEBRUARY'S BEST VEGETABLE SIDE DISH Sorry, there's no picking just one. For nights with calories and time to spare, try the to-die-for Parsnip Fries . For those slim-on-time and slim-in-diet, opt for Simple Braised Celery . FEBRUARY'S BEST SOUP Hunger Moon Parsnip Soup a simple soup, redolent of earth and lunar cycles FEBRUARY'S BEST VEG

Shrove Tuesday pancakes: I've been looking forward to them for weeks. Like many with English heritage -- my grandfather was born in East London within sound of the bow bells of St Mary-le-Bow, making him 'Cockney' by geography if little else -- a feast of pancakes is traditional on Shrove Tuesday, the eve of Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent in the Christian tradition. This year I opted -- of course! -- for pancakes with vegetables and a first-ever attempt at potato pancakes. Unfortunately, I chose a recipe without much care, one better titled "potato patties" (that is, potato and onion but no "cake") rather than the imagined cakey disks infused with grated potato and onion. So I improvised ... ... and the pancakes were decent but extremely difficult to brown and still more difficult to remove from the pan. The good news is that I can try again: you see, pancakes are traditional. NUTRITION NOTES ... These were filling. One pancake was plenty with

[So it's been fun, yes? experimenting with versatile fennel this month? Many thanks to everyone who joined in. The running round-up is now organized by salads, entrees, soups, etc. Every single recipe is on my "must try" list and should be on yours, too!] Sun-dried tomatoes -- before they're dessert-dessicated or drenched in olive oil -- put out intense flavor. I hoped to capture the intensity in cheese-sandwich biscuits on Day 310 -- but no such luck. I hoped to capture it in the sun-dried tomato dressing atop this salad -- but no such luck. (The dressing is good enough but so are hundreds of others.) What does create a great platform for tomato intensity is a plate of salad greens and shaved fennel, plus whatever other toppings you have on hand (tonight some nablusi cheese, its saltiness a perfect foil, and fresh dill). THAT works. NUTRITION NOTES ... If you stay away from oil-soaked sun-dried tomatoes, they're good for you. Like dried apricots, peaches

"Picked-green, rock-hard and no-taste winter supermarket tomatoes would improve this salsa." Does that suggest how bad this salsa was? I hoped for a mid-winter citrus salsa for alongside simple fish. A recipe at an unnamed-to-protect-the-guilty-source looked interesting because it called for canned tomatoes. I even splurged on organic, fire-roasted tomatoes! It wasn't inedible although the whole mess did hit the dustbin after one bite. It just wasn't salsa -- no freshness, no crunch, no taste of life, no springboard for other flavors. It just wasn't worth eating. LESSON LEARNED ... Fresh-tomato season is the only season for tomato salsa. FROM THE ARCHIVES ... See the Recipe Box for other ideas for side relishes , especially this one . WINTER SALSA Bookmark or print this recipe only Hands-on time: 10 minutes Time to table: 10 minutes Serves 0 15-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (save the juice for soup!) 1 tangerine, sections cut in three 3 gr

This was one very good vanilla ice cream. But sadly, the candied fennel itself added little more than effort and fuss. The base ice cream recipe I do recommend -- it's from my favorite never-the-same Chameleon Ice Cream . It is less sweet and less rich than other ice cream recipes -- and still perfectly sweet and lip-smacking rich. And it can be modified into an infinite number of combinations. The trick is to pump up the focus flavor (e.g, the vanilla, the coffee, the spice) which compensates for less sugar and fat. FOR THE RECORD ... This is A Veggie Venture's contribution to Is My Blog Burning - the Vive le France edition hosted by Cucina Testa Rossa. So if you like, call it Glace a la Fenouil Provencal (sorry, can't seem to manage the special characters in blogger). FENNEL ROUND-UP ... Thanks to everyone who cooked fennel with me during the month of February. Fennel must be one of the most versatile vegetables around -- check the round-up to see for yourself!

Matchstick parsnips roasted (not fried) with garlic until crisp and golden. Naturally Gluten Free. Whole30 Friendly. Not just vegan, Vegan Done Real . Did I mention delicious?! Wow! So good! Make extra because there's no NOT snatching these parsnip fries right from the dish, they're that good. They were terrific alongside burgers but another time, I'd put them out, hot, as an appetizer, especially if supper were a little skimpy. The recipe comes from my cousin Laura who feeds four kids so it's definitely kid-friendly. She suggests cutting the woody cores from the parsnips and so the first time, I did too, it was fussy and time-consuming. Ever since, I leave the cores in and have had zero problem with toughness.

It's back to Kitchen Parade's popular collection of quick suppers with a quick, cheap and tasty (and low carb AND low calorie) Greek Feta Chicken. The chicken and a curried rice side dish are featured in this week's Kitchen Parade column . And while you're there, check out the Column Archives' brand-new categories for Vegetarian & Vegan , Holidays & Celebrations , Fresh & Seasonal plus Kitchen Tips and my favorite essays . And for the health-minded? there's Low Carb and Low Calorie . (c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade