Thursday Recipe - Weird Veggies and Fruits

Okay, this isn't really a recipe but a post about weird food. I've been doing the Bountiful Basket thing again. It's less than $20 for a big laundry basket of really fresh veggies and fruit. Some of them are definitely gourmet. Some of it is just weird.

What are some of the bizarre fruits or veggies you've found lately? Post in the comments and I'll let you know if I've cooked/prepared it, and possible grown it at one point. My dad had a thing for growing strange vegetables in our backyard.

Here's some of the weird stuff I've gotten lately:

Tamarind - these are weird looking bean pod things used in Asian sauces primarily. You prep it by peeling off the crunchy outer layer, then soaking the insides in a bowl of water for a while, then squishing it to pop out the seeds, then smashing it through a fine strainer. You end up with a smooth brown paste that has a sweet/sour taste. I didn't think it was worth the effort for the taste. Not my thing.

Dried hibiscus flowers - Yep, you read that right. These are what they look like blooming:

From Wallpapers World - http://newartcolorz.com/cat/117818.html

I love hibiscus flowers. They're so pretty, but they're mostly tropical so I can't really grow them.

I found out I like the dried ones, too. I used mine to make a syrup that we used to flavor (and color) ice cream, frosting, fruit punch, and a bunch of other sweet things. The ice cream and frosting turned out lovely shades of lavender and pink. The fruit punch turned out deep red. I'll post recipes next week.

Papaya - I've never had it fresh and I don't think I will ever again. Not my thing.

Italian Eggplant - this is the really long, skinny eggplant. It was very mild and tasty. This is the way I like it cooked - fried in egg batter.

Red Corn - like regular sweet corn on the cob only not as sweet and with a red tint to the outsides of the kernels and the cob.

We've also gotten some really good pear varieties, different kinds of apples, plums, fresh figs, and a whole host of other goodies. Some were kind of a miss, but overall it was worth the price of the basket. Excuse me while I go order another one...