Coconut kaffir lime ice cream

I have somewhat of a love affair going on with kaffir lime leaves. Ever since our trip to Thailand back in December, I have made sure to always have a stash of these guys in our freezer. For those who may not know, kaffir limes are a type of lime with a bumpy exterior which are native to Southeast Asia as well as the Indian Ocean islands of La Réunion and Madagascar. Also known as combava (this is the standard French translation as well), the rind of these limes as well as their leaves are commonly used in the cuisine of these parts of the world. They lend a pungent, astringent note that is unmistakable.

Spring risotto

Another weekend, another Sunday morning visit to the Marché Bastille, my new favorite market in Paris. Once again, we stocked up on gorgeous spring produce such as green and white asparagus (my first of the season, believe it or not!), zucchini, grape tomatoes, strawberries, dill, mint and rhubarb. This time, we also discovered a great stand selling Portuguese and Italian products. Luis was happy to talk to the vendors in Portuguese, and I was happy to discover that they were selling cheap vinho verde (the young, almost sparkly "green" wine for which Portugal is famous) and some interesting cheeses, such as a pecorino with chili flakes that I couldn't resist.

Black bean, corn & mango salad

Do you have a go-to recipe that you've been making for years, one that you throw together whenever you need a simple party dish that you know that your guests will love? This black bean, corn and mango salad, adapted from a recipe in Cooking Light about a decade ago, is mine. I've made it for countless picnics, BBQs and house parties and passed on the recipe to many friends, who have made it their own as well. Whenever mangoes start coming into season, I eagerly anticipate occasions to make this salad, which is simple, tasty, beautifully colorful and always appreciated by everyone.

Creamy parsnip soup with South Indian flavors

The humble parsnip doesn't seem like the kind of vegetable that one should get excited about. This root vegetable, which looks like a fatter, beige-colored version of a carrot, was totally unbeknownst to me until a couple of years ago. But my parsnip love affair began the minute that Luis and I ate a purée de panais as an accompaniment at one our favorite Montmartre restaurants, 16 Rue Tholozé. I had no idea what panais was in English and the waiter couldn't tell me either, but the caramelized, buttery taste of that purée was just incredible. As soon as we got home, I looked up panais in my French-English dictionary, and low and behold there it was...parsnip.

Classic guacamole

Growing up in Texas, having a bowl of homemade, spicy guacamole on hand to snack on was as much a part of life as Friday night high school football games and summer days at the swimming pool. My mom would always whip up a batch anytime that she made Mexican food and even at other times as an after-school snack. Visits to Mexican or Tex-Mex restaurants would always begin with bowls of fresh salsa and guacamole with tortilla chips. So imagine my horror upon moving to France when I discovered that most people's conception of guacamole consists of a green, gloppy mess that comes out of a jar. Quelle horreur!

Strawberry mint sorbet

You know that the spring- and almost summer-like weather is here to stay when you start to get a hankering for ice creams and sorbets. When I asked Luis to get our ice cream maker off of the top shelf the other day, I knew that it is definitely that time of year! After I found gorgeous seasonal strawberries at the Marché Bastille over the weekend, I thought that they would be just perfect in a luscious sorbet.

Marché Bastille + spring cleaning = great quinoa salad

With Luis away in Brussels for a few days, I enjoyed a lovely girls' weekend with my friend Madonna (yes, that's her real name!) who came to stay a couple of days. On the agenda: exercise, healthy eating, strolling in Montmartre and enjoying the gorgeous spring sunshine that blessed Paris over the weekend. On Sunday, we got up and went to the Marché Bastille (formerly called the Marché Richard-Lenoir), which I'd long heard about but never visited, to check out the seasonal fruits, vegetables and other goods on offer. I don't know why it took me five years to get to this market, which is actually the largest in Paris. It is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! From gorgeous spring produce (artichokes, asparagus, strawberries, pineapples, etc.) to pungent cheeses to specialty breads to a variety of traiteurs (caterers) selling everything from paella to freshly-made Italian pasta to Senegalese yassa chicken to Lebanese goodies, this market is a truly a food lover's paradise.