On Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:16:06 -0400, George wrote:

> blake murphy wrote:
>> On Thu, 02 Apr 2009 08:33:14 -0400, George wrote:
>>
>>> Mr. Bill wrote:
>>>> On Thu, 2 Apr 2009 13:01:36 +0100, "john aston"
>>>> > wrote:
>>>>> would anyone know of a good combination of vegetables and anything else that
>>>>> would work well in a low cost combination? also for non-vegetarians I
>>>>> thought I could add some mince beef at the end, is that a good idea?
>>>> One item that most people discard are broccoli stems. I take the
>>>> crown apart for cooking and then slice the stems on the bias. Blanch
>>>> and then chill in ice water bath. I freeze them for later use. They
>>>> really add a nice crunch and have to be a more moderately priced
>>>> ingredient. We also enjoy carrots and celery in our stir frys.
>>>>
>>> Broccoli stems are without a doubt the best part. It has been next to
>>> impossible to find broccoli with attached stems in the past year or two.
>>
>> how odd. around here (md), usually you can buy just crowns or stems and
>> crowns together.
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
> I have never seen just stems for sale. I would definitely buy them. Most
> of the markets gradually switched to just crowns. The large family owned
> market was the last place that had crown with a nice length stem. They
> no longer have them. I asked and they said there were no wholesale sources.

nope, not the stems alone, but as you say crowns still attached to a nice
length of stem. maybe i was a little unclear. stems alone i would buy
also, hopefully at a lower price.

your pal,
blake