We seem to be having one of those stubborn springs that refuses to, well, spring. And after a particularly dreary winter with a record dearth of sunny days, the grower from whom I get most of my vegetables told me he’s about a month and a half late with the spring crop.

So, despite what the calendar says — and despite my hunger for fresh peas — I am choosing to respect the realities of the current season, and to celebrate the tail end of the winter produce.

And the winter vegetable I’ve really rediscovered of late is the Savoy cabbage — chou frisé in French.

I like cruciferous vegetables of all stripes and colors, but this one had always been my cabbage of least proficiency. I love it in my mother’s stuffed cabbage, and in the farci poitevin I’ve revisited in The French Market Cookbook, but I lacked ideas beyond those.

But then kale happened: it was suddenly easier to find on Paris markets, so I played around with it a lot — cue the mega-list of 50 things to do with kale — and naturally that gave me ideas for its close, if less fashionable, cousin the Savoy cabbage.

As it turns out, the roasting method that gave the world kale chips has a transformative effect on Savoy cabbage, too. In just a few chops of the chef knife and fifteen minutes in a hot oven, the slightly daunting head becomes a heap of lightly browned, tender at the spine but crisp-edged ribbons that I can eat by the bowlful — and happily have.

Add a touch of lemon juice, a scoop of steamed rice and a scatter of almonds, and I am content to wait for spring a little while longer. Just a little.

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Two weeks ago, I wrote about Jules Clancy’s fantastic new book, 5 Ingredients, 10 Minutes, and offered to give away three copies as prizes in a 5-ingredient recipe contest.

You collectively submitted nearly 140 five-ingredient recipes, all of which sound fantastic and provide a fascinating glimpse into your personal tastes and appetites. It’s been very difficult to pick just three — why, oh why do I put myself in these situations? — but I had to, so I elected Ms. C’s pan-fried tofu with kale and noodles, Rakhi’s mujaddara, and Pierre Pozi’s sardine boulettes (submitted in the French version of the contest). Congratulations! You will soon be receiving your copy of 5 Ingredients, 10 Minutes.

And to thank you all for your invaluable contributions, I’ve collated your recipe formulas into a masterlist we can all dip into; recipe details can be found in the comment section of the original post. (If you read French, you’ll find even more 5-ingredient suggestions in the French masterlist.)

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A few of my favorite finds and reads for March:

~ Interested in community composting in Paris? The mairie can help.

~ French stamps with illustrated idioms (more French idioms).

~ The Washington Post’s food editor comes out as a vegetarian.

~ The Scared is scared, a video made according to a six-year-old storyteller’s specs (warning: this will make your day).

~ Paris restaurants cooking local ingredients can now get a special label.

~ I gave tips on French restaurants for the Weight Watchers website.

~ How writers can prepare for the rise in using mobile phones to read websites and blogs. (Note: Chocolate & Zucchini is available in a mobile-friendly version.)

~ This year’s skiing season in Montmartre.

~ Economics professor finds a strong link between optimism and how many fruits and vegetables one consumes.

~ Sheep to help keep Paris lawns tidy.

~ The Helsinki bus station theory for creative careers.

~ Impressive: how Cassie Johnston preps food for the week.

What about you, any recent find you’d like to share ?

The 2013 edition of the Omnivore Food Festival (officially called Omnivore World Tour now that it’s a traveling festival) was held at Paris’s Palais de la Mutualité last week. I spent two days out of time in a dark auditorium, watching chefs cook on stage and jotting down notes in a handwriting that looks considerably more pulled together, I’ve only recently found out, if I use felt-tip rather than ball-point pens.

Every year a few common themes or ingredients emerge, and this time we saw a lot of oysters, cabbages, onions, and vegetables cooked to the point of being charred.

Aside from the excitement of climbing into a chef’s brain, seeing him (overwhelmingly more than her, regrettably) do his thing, and listening to him talk about his craft, what I love about those sessions is being inspired by details, pairings, or techniques that I can take away and perhaps rig into my own cooking sometime.

Looking through my notes a few days later, I thought I would wring out a list of these ideas to share with you, in the hope that they may inspire you, too.

From Guillaume Foucault, formerly at L’Artémise in Uzès, soon to open Pertica in Vendôme, in the Perche region:

– A pork belly, cooked for 30 minutes in the skillet, then soaked for 1 1/2 hours at warm room temperature in nuoc mam infused with star anise, cinnamon, and clove (pictured below).

– Talauma, a Vietnamese spice that you grate (a bit like nutmeg), pairs well with game meats.

– Fresh, uncooked green beans layered with coarse salt and meadowsweet flowers in a barrel and left to rest for a while. He then cuts the beans in small slices and uses them as a condiment or seasoning, especially with fresh cheese.

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