I love a classic Greek salad – so many different textures and the all the salty goodness from olives and feta. If you, like me, have a garden full of kale, or maybe you’re just interested in upping the nutritional content in your salad bowl, you can easily substitute raw or massage kale for the traditional Romain. If you choose to keep the kale raw, … Continue reading Kale Greek Salad
This easy, cold salad comes together quickly, and makes great use of late Augusts juicy tomatoes and plentiful herbs. My salad, above, is a slightly simpler version of Ottolenghi’s “Tomato Party” from his cookbook Plenty. A simple mix of regular and larger, Israeli couscous, which cooks and cool quickly. As many tomatoes as you wish (the more the better) yellow, green, orange, red, zebra – the more … Continue reading Tomato, CousCous and Herb Salad
It’s been hot in Philly, and very humid. It’s about this time in the summer where the idea of cooking anything is completely unappealing. I had a nice head of organic cauliflower in the refrigerator, no intention of roasting or cooking it, but I don’t really enjoy it raw. What to do? Pickle! It’s easy to make quick, refrigerator pickles out of almost any produce. … Continue reading Pickled Cauliflower
We’ve reached that wonderful part of summer when we still have access to spring crops, but the later summer crops, like vine-ripened tomatoes, are starting to appear in farmers markets and Co-Ops. Here in Philadelphia, most of our earliest tomatoes come from New Jersey, which is famous for their juicy fruits. Combining spring and summer produce, I put together this very simple, and very delicious, … Continue reading Fava Bean, Pea, and Jersey Tomato Salad
I bought some adorable little asian eggplants, and there they lay, lingering in my fridge, waiting for me to make myself a dinner. I love asian varieties of eggplant, as they tend to be more tender, and less bitter than their larger, Italian cousins. With not much time or desire to put together a large meal for just myself, and even less desire to spend … Continue reading Steamed Eggplant with Miso-Tomato Sauce
I love keeping jars of interesting drinks, mixers, tonics, and concoctions – especially in the summer. This ayurvedic beverage (to cool the acid and heat of Pitta constitutions) is delicious, very easy to make, and full of vitamin C. Boil 6 cups of water, add a handful of dried rose petals* and a handful of dried hibiscus flowers** and simmer for about 20 minutes. Strain, … Continue reading Rose Hibiscus Lime Cooler
I like a little kick in almost everything that I cook, but even if you’re on the lower end of “spice tolerance,” chili oil is a bright, flavorful condiment to keep in your refridgerator. You can purchase ready-made chili oil, but it is usually produced with roasted seseme oil and intended as a finishing oil – not a cooking oil. In many dishes where chili … Continue reading Homemade Chili Oil
Quinoa is a near perfect food, and an easy grain to fold into almost any soup, salad, casserole, or main dish. This quick fall salad braises instead of roasts your winter vegetables, without sacrificing that golden flavor. I was treated to a similar dish the other night at a friends how, but she used roasted turnips, onions, rutabaga, sweet potato, and garlic – delicious! … Continue reading Winter Quinoa Salad with Roasted Vegetables
Some nights are just not cooking nights. I come from work late, tired, perhaps after cooking all day, and the last thing I want to do is make myself a meal before crawling into bed with a glass of wine to watch Friday Night Lights. Sometimes I reach for leftovers, or homemade yogurt and granola, or just a hunk of cheese and some crackers, … Continue reading Quick Comforting Dumpling Soup
I don’t know about you, but I get a little tired of the traditional roasted root vegetable winter salad. There are so many more options! Like most salads, I don’t exactly have a recipe, rather just a list of ingredients and simple preparation techniques. Salads are flexible! Big head of cauliflower 2 bulbs of fennel 2 heads of radicchio 6 garlic cloves olive oil Chop … Continue reading Roasted Cauliflower, Fennel and Radicchio Salad
