Carrot tops right down to the roots . . .

I have always liked carrots and given the reasonable price, they appear as the vegetable at our dinner table about three times a week. Even now, my husband is dicing some up for beef barley soup. I did not, however, realize how far beyond carrot cake the lowly carrot can evolve.

1. Roasted and dried carrots can be ground into power and used as a coffee substitute. Not saying it will taste great but with the economy, these days, it might be something to keep in mind!

2. There is such a thing as carrot syrup! Carrots are on the sweet side so would have a sugar content. I'll have to start reading labels more closely to see if any products employ that ingredient.

3. The perfume industry uses carrot oil! It is also used for flavoring. I'm now wondering how you can get sugar and oil from the same simple vegetable.

4. Carrot seeds are supposed to enhance the flavor of soups and stews. I have never seen them offered in a spice catalog, however. I would advise using them from a packet of garden seeds as they often have coatings on them to keep away the varmints or grow better.

5. Bees will go from carrot flower to carrot flower. Such visits will end up in the bee's honey production. From what I've read, the flavor isn't that great but the carrot flower clusters can be used to great advantage in fine cooking. Again, this fact hasn't come across my radar but I'm thinking about investigating.

For now, I'm sticking to steamed carrots, carrots braised in garlic, carrots brightening up my soups and stews, or a nice chunk of carrot cake with a tasty half inch of lemon frosting.