Happy Vietnamese New Year: Daikon and carrot pickles plus a mushroom bánh mì

One of my favorite Vietnamese dishes is the traditional sandwich, also known as bánh mì. They’ve caught on with tremendous popularity in the U.S. and I can understand why, they’re absolutely delicious. I talk about it a little more here >>>

One of the essential ingredients of bánh mì is a condiment: daikon and carrot pickles. So, today I’m going to share how to make this simple, but delicious condiment and then a quick and easy mushroom bánh mì that is so warm and comforting, it’s perfect for winter.

From the garden: Kaleidoscope carrots

I’ve been cleaning up my alley garden in preparation for a new round of plantings. Yesterday I decided to pull up my carrot crop; I had neglected them a little too long. Aphids were starting to attack (I HATE aphids) and I forgot to thin them out as seedlings which means they were growing right on top of each, stunting each others growth. I decided to yank ‘em, enjoy them as babies, and start the new crop while there is still plenty of time in the season.

Holy baloney, don’t these colors look incredible? I’m so happy I went with the Kaleidoscope Mix from Cooks Garden. It was one of my few splurges on seeds. For the majority of my planting I pick up seeds at the local Walmart or garden center for $1-2 a pack. These seeds were $4.95. But look at the colors! They’re beautiful! Who doesn’t want to eat that?