Dish

Deconstructing (explanations from the inside out)

Yellow mustard

Blue Bell Ice Cream

Emeril Lagasse

Please answer in the form of a question.

Category: Condiments.

Answer: The cabbage family.

Buzz. What goes with corned beef?

No.

Buzz. What is used to make cole slaw?

No.

The correct answer is "Where does mustard come from?"

The origin of food has the power to blow your mind, sometimes. The bright yellow stuff we slather on our hot dogs comes from the seeds of the mustard plant, a member of the cabbage family.

Three varieties of mustard plants produce white or yellow seeds, black seeds and red seeds. The first two are native to Europe, the last a product of Asia. The plants that produce white or yellow seeds and red seeds are now the kinds used for commercial mustard.

Essentially, mustard is made by mixing ground dried seeds with water. This basic paste has been augmented over the years with beer, wine, vinegar, fruit juice and honey, plus many herbs and spices. The condiment's texture can be smooth or coarse depending on how finely the seeds are ground.

There are many types of mustards, from the strong English and Chinese varieties to mild yellow American to the nose-clearing spiciness of Dijon, developed in that region of France. Other popular French mustards include Bordeaux, which is mild and brown with a slight vinegar flavor and often contains tarragon, and mild Meaux mustard, which is made from unmilled, crushed grains. German mustard and spicy brown mustard, sometimes called deli mustard, are variations of Bordeaux.

Yellow American mustard, introduced by Robert French at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, is a mild mustard that's made bright yellow with turmeric.

Choose celery bunches with leaves for a two-for-one value; you will get a vegetable and herb. The leaves have an intense flavor similar to the herb lovage. Add the leaves to salads, bouquet garni or use them for garnish.

Car travel and road food go hand in hand. Nothing compares to the ambience of a quaint greasy spoon that'll slap an egg on a plate for you. It's a hankering down deep that compels travelers to seek out sizzling fried bologna sandwiches, homemade apple dumplings, hot roast beef sandwiches, legendary fish fries and volcanic chili. This site is devoted exclusively to travelers' most memorable eateries and all their side dishes: books about road food, museums heralding road food and discussions and chats about road food.

For the Texas transplants among us, not much says home more than Blue Bell Ice Cream. The 90-year-old ice cream maker based in Brenham, Texas, has wowed generations with its many flavors and creamy countenance. Beginning this month, Blue Bell will be sold in the the Tampa Bay area in Publix, Albertsons, WalMart Supercenters, Winn-Dixie, Eckerd and Walgreens. It's already served at Outback and Carrabba's. We sampled the vanilla, key lime pie (with chucks of graham cracker crust), butter pecan and chocolate moo-illennium crunch. We liked them all but a big Lone Star thumbs up for the butter pecan and the nutty chocolate crunch.

Those store-bought rotisserie chickens look good, don't they? But how many nights can you serve roasted chicken to the family before somebody stages a dinner-time revolt? Cookbook author Carla Fitzgerald Williams knows your pain and has written Rotisserie Chickens to the Rescue (Hyperion, $14.95), 125 recipes for such dishes as snappy smothered chicken, chicken tacos and chicken lasagna. Most menus are simple enough to stave off the revolution.

Montego Jerk Pepper Sauce, a product of Alabama, not the islands, was a big seller in the bay area until the maker lost its distributor and the sauce disappeared from stores. If you're a fan of this unusual creamy sauce with a sour-and-hot punch, you can buy it online at www.casualshores.com Six bottles are $28.

Cook up a good time at Halloween this year and go dressed as your favorite television chef. To be the "Bam!" man, Emeril Lagasse, don a chef's jacket and a black curly wig. Carry a slab of bacon and say, over and over, "fat is flavor" and "feel the love." To be Italian chef Mario Batali, wear shorts and red, high-top tennis shoes with chef's jacket. Don't forget the ponytail. "Naked Chef" Jamie Oliver wears hooded sweat shirts under jean jackets and spikes his hair with sculpting paste. Practice your Cockney accent, love. The best chef costume would be Dan Aykroyd as Julia Child in the classic Saturday Night Live sketch. Dress, apron, rubber chicken and lots of Band-Aids and red food coloring.

- Compiled by JANET K. KEELER from staff and wire reports

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