Roses

• Tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, cucumbers and even turnips can be used to make rose blossoms. Peel a tomato from stem end to blossom end in one continuous strand, including just a bit of the flesh attached to the skin. Slice carrots, cucumbers or zucchini into long, thin strips. Slice turnips into thin disks; cucumbers and zucchini can also be made into roses with circular slices. Use a mandolin slicer to achieve thin, uniform slices. Lay the vegetable pieces in a straight line on a flat work surface, overlapping the ends slightly when using multiple pieces. Roll up the vegetable strand, strip or slices like a carpet. Hold the rolled vegetable in your hand and adjust it so the outer layers fan out from the center. Tuck the end under the finished rose blossom.

Carnations

• Any long, slender vegetable can be used to make a carnation vegetable carving, including carrots, cucumbers and zucchini. Start by cutting off the bottom one-fourth of the vegetable. Carve the outside of the short piece at one end so it tapers slightly. Cut down into the cut end of the short piece to make a grid pattern. Carve short petal shapes down into the outside end of the short piece; these shapes remain attached. Carve a series of narrowly spaced grooves along the length of the longer piece. Slice the long, grooved section into disks no thicker than 1/8 inch. Open the slits on the short piece created by carving the outside petal slits and the grid pattern. Insert the thin slices into the slits, starting with the wider slices on the outside, to complete the culinary carnation.

Lotus Flowers

• The multiple layers of an onion are ideal for creating lotus flowers. Cut a large onion in half crosswise. Carve several evenly spaced triangle shapes around the edge of the cut side. Cut off the root or stem end of the onion and separate the individual layers. Refine the pointed tips of the smaller, inside layers with your paring knife. Place three to four onion layers inside each other, turning each layer slightly so the pointed tips alternate. Cut a 1/2-inch thick slice of carrot or cucumber and carve it to the diameter of the open circle inside the flower. Cut a groove pattern in the top of the slice and position it over the onion hole.

Lilies

• The color variations inside a carrot perfectly mimic the difference in color shades of lily flowers, particularly a fiery orange tiger lily. Cut a carrot lengthwise into three or five thin slices, making them slightly thinner toward the narrow end of the carrot. Cut each piece into a triangle shape. You can cut a smaller triangle shape inside each larger triangle to add dimension to the flower, but do not cut a base in the smaller triangle so the piece stays attached to the larger triangle. Bend the pointed in backward to mimic the natural bend in lilies. Cut a 1/2-inch disk of carrot in a crosshatch pattern. Lay the disk with the pattern-side down and insert a toothpick in the center. Push the base end of each triangle piece over the toothpick to assemble the lily.