Mimosa LA Nursery - Los Angeles

The day before Thanksgiving, my mom said she wanted to buy a Meyer lemon tree for the house. We have plenty of fruit trees given by my uncles, but none of them were lemons. My youngest uncle's Meyer lemon tree isn't producing as much as it had in the past and my parents wanted to plant one in the front yard. Less likelihood of anyone stealing our fruit since so many people in SoCal have lemon trees in their yards you see.

So I took my mom to Mimosa LA Nursery, where lil' sis had purchased the persimmon tree for my parents' garden the year we drove up in 2008. It's also where my uncles bought their fruit trees until they started grafting or planting seedlings from existing stock.

Mimosa Nursery is owned by a Vietnamese-American so there is a pretty large selection of tropical fruit and flower trees spread across three acres.

Jicama Slaw with Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette

Inspired by the jicama slaw I got as a side with the spicy smothered hot wings at Gus's Barbecue - South Pasadena, I finally got around to making my own. I figured the Sriracha Buffalo Roast Chicken was the perfect pairing to experiment with this recipe.

I kept it pretty simple, julienned jicama tossed with salt, sugar, dijon mustard, white wine vinegar, olive oil, and mayonnaise. It's best to let the jicama slaw chill in the fridge for a bit before serving to allow a chance for the dressing to absorb. It's a nice cool contrast to a spicy dish.

Sriracha Buffalo Roast Chicken

Considering that my Sriracha Buffalo Wings recipe is one of my older recipes on the blog, and considering how many roast chicken recipes I've already featured, I'm surprised I hadn't made the leap to this Sriracha Buffalo Roast Chicken recipe sooner.

I mean, I dip chicken in Sriracha all the time, but using it as a marinade is different. I used half a cup of Sriracha for a 5-lb chicken; obviously, you'll want to use less if you can't handle the heat. But as the Sriracha is mixed with butter and vinegar and sugar, and will mingle with the chicken juices as it cooks, the chicken actually won't be very hot, if at all, after it's done.

Like traditional Buffalo wings, I served the chicken with celery and carrot sticks and ranch dressing, although Blue Cheese Dressing is preferred. I also experimented with a Jicama Slaw with Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette, but that recipe's for another post.