Challenge Ingredient: WATER CHESTNUTS

I know a lot of you did Asian type foods with your cabbage this week, but that's where we're headed again. This week's challenge ingredient is water chestnuts. While not unique to Asian cuisine, they are commonly found there.

I've always enjoyed the texture and the crisp "snap" of the water chestnut. Its flavor is so mild it's almost boring, but the texture can really add a lot to a dish.

Whenever I make stir fry, I throw in some water chestnuts. They're also good in a salad. A favorite recipe of mine to use them in is this (from Epicurious): Asian Meatballs with Sesame Lime Dipping Sauce. They're really yummy.

For my wedding reception, my mom made some hors d'oeuvres with water chestnuts. At fancy restaurants, you may have seen scallops wrapped in bacon on the menu. Well, my mom liked the idea, but knows that I hate seafood of any kind, so she wrapped whole water chestnuts in strips of bacon. They were sooooo yummy.

Canned water chestnuts can be found in the Asian foods section at your grocery store.

You have until Saturday night to post your recipe. Please remember when you do to tag it with the challenge ingredient, your name, and the type of dish.

Happy cooking!