I’ve been waiting all season to get my hands on a whole Brussels sprout stalk so I could roast the entire thing at once.

Have you ever tried doing this? I am telling you the truth: It’s so easy and the presentation is out-of-this-world.

But wait… you say you HATE Brussels sprouts? That’s because you’ve never had them prepared like this: crisp, caramelized and free of that nasty sulfur taste.

Brussels sprouts on the stalk are available right now (obviously).

Here’s what to look for: tightly closed sprouts that are bright green in color on a solid, heavy stalk. The stalk shouldn’t feel rubbery. For more tips on how to select beautiful, loose Brussels sprouts, click here.

I Instagramed a picture of a stalk before I roasted it and I was surprised at how many people said they’ve seen whole stalks in the super markets, but just kept on walking by because, as one reader asked, “How could I make them taste good?”

Well, here’s a recipe to show you how…

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Not up for roasting a whole stalk? Try this recipe: Hot Bacon Salad (made with Brussels Sprouts… yum!).

Cilantro. I’m predicting that in the next few days you’ll probably eat a dish prepared with this flavorful citrusy herb.

Why? Well, Cinco de Mayo is just a few days away, and cilantro has become the go-to herb for most of the Mexican food we eat this country. I won’t bother telling you that REAL Mexican food isn’t buried under a pile of this chopped green stuff because that might spoil your Drinko de Mayo fun.

That sounded a little ugly, didn’t it? Sorry. Let’s move on…

Cilantro, which comes from the coriander seed, was first grown in Greece… so it garnished gyros long before it topped those food truck tacos. Because it’s considered both an herb and a spice (since the leaves and seeds are used), cilantro/coriander is popular around the world. Think about that. You’ll find it in Indian food, Chinese food, Thai food and Central and South American food. Wow.

But cilantro is definitely an acquired taste. My daughter, Sistie, says it tastes grassy and green. I’ve heard others say it tastes like soap. I know a food scientist who thinks some people are born with a gene that makes them not like it. Maybe that’s why cilantro is not particularly popular in Europe and in the Mediterranean (but the coriander seed is used).

Cilantro is also known for its medicinal powers. I was once given a cilantro tea (when I was in the jungles of Nicaragua) to soothe a stomach ailment. It has been called the “anti-diabetic” herb (because it supposedly helps the secretion of insulin). Long ago in China, it’s was thought of as an aphrodisiac, (like in that West and South Asian collection of stories, “The Thousand and One Nights,” remember?).

Cilantro is mostly used as a garnish because it loses its flavor if it’s cooked for a long time. If you try to puree cilantro, its vibrant color and flavor quickly fade… unless it’s blended with oil (like in Chimichurri).

The best way to store cilantro is to cut off the lower stems, wash it really well, roll it in a damp paper towel and refrigerate it in a plastic bag. You can also snip off the bottom stems, make a bouquet, immerse it in a glass filled with a little water and cover it with a plastic bag.

Before you’re ready to chop cilantro, make sure it’s thoroughly dry or it will clump together. Gather the leaf ends together in a bunch and, using a sharp knife, thinly slice across the cilantro in one direction. Don’t randomly chop or you’ll bruise the tender leaves and they’ll turn black!

Oh, one other thing. Don’t buy dried cilantro. It’s worthless. That stuff really does taste like grass!

Blanca asks: What is the difference between regular salt and kosher salt? If I don’t have kosher salt, can I just use regular salt in my recipe?

There’s something so flamboyantly romantic and artistic when a chef reaches into a crock for a pinch of salt and throws it into the food with a flourish (and, no, Mama doesn’t find it the least bit show-offish). It just wouldn’t have the same effect if the chef stood there with a saltshaker… shaking, shaking, shaking… would it?

Anyhow, that’s kosher salt the chef is using… not table salt.

Chefs love kosher salt because the large grains make it easy to season with and because it dissolves slowly in cooking. It’s also chemical free, so it tastes better.

Unlike kosher salt, anti-caking chemicals are added to table salt to help it flow freely out of the saltshaker. Iodine is also in there, and has been since 1924, when the government asked the Morton Salt Co. to add it to its product. (People weren’t getting enough iodine in their diets, so the government stepped i… hard to imagine that happening today without an uproar, huh?).

Table salt also weighs more than kosher salt, so that’s another reason why you can’t substitute it equally.

So to answer your question, there is a difference: texture, taste and weight.

Oh, one other thing… and as long as no organic ingredient is introduced into it, salt, kosher or table, keeps forever. For more info about different kinds of salt, click here.