You guys, I am in love… with a recipe. A recipe for cauliflower that is pretending to be cous cous and filled with herbs, spices, buttery cashews, and plump golden raisins. It’s so good it’s stupid. And easy, did I mention easy? And low-carb and healthy and gluten-free and vegan and all the things.
I am desperately trying to move away from grains and starches, but it is so hard when my brain had been programmed to think that dinner is meat, starch, vegetable (in that order in terms of importance). So anything like this that I can find that satisfies my need to have a starch, without really being one, is awesome. Oh yeah, and my husband LOVED it.
I served it as a side to some store-bought kebabs because of the distinctly Middle Eastern flavors. But I’m wondering if I can use the same technique and change up the flavorings (a la this post) to do some different things. Speaking of flavorings, this recipe uses a spice blend called za’atar that is super yummy. You should be able to find some in the spice section of your store, but if not here aretwo recipes to make your own. (more…)
I’ve been pretty lazy about blogging this past week, so I’m bringing you another vegetarian lunch with Melissa back to back with the last one. I know that you don’t mind, though, because our lunches are AWESOME. This one, in my opinion, is one of the best we have done recently. Lentils, chickpeas, raw onion, and feta with tahini, sesame, and herbs. So good, so satisfying, creamy and crunchy, nutty and sharp, it’s everything. And so, so healthy. Let’s also take a second to appreciate how gorgeous Melissa’s platter is. She has the best dishware!
The only thing that takes time in this recipe is cooking the lentils, but they are pretty hands off and you can do them ahead of time and keep them in the fridge til you need them. This recipe has you cook them with sage and garlic to infuse the lentils with flavor – I love it.
While the lentils are cooking, toss red onion with olive oil, lemon juice, feta, and herbs. I was a little unsure about this at first – so much raw red onion? But it became my favorite part of the dish. The lemon juice kind of cures the onions as they sit and mellows them out. They become sharp, crunchy bits of awesomeness in the salad. Also, feta – I love feta. I especially love Mt Vikos Traditional Sheep and Goat feta. I swear they are not sponsoring me, but they really should (hint, hint) becauseIusetheirfetaallthetime. (more…)
Happy Pi/Pie Day! I know that most people are probably celebrating with desserts, but what about a savory pie? Or rather a savory dish with pie in the name that isn’t actually a pie? Whatever, don’t judge me. It’s time for another vegetarian lunch with Melissa from Smells Like Brownies. Be sure to check out her delicious Pi Day Coconut Cream Pie, it is sooooooo good!
This vegetarian version shepard’s pie is packed with veggies, topped with creamy goat cheese, and perfect for St Paddy’s Day (which is never St Patty’s by the way). I mean, just look at that gorgeous green topping.
The base is made with roasted beets, eggplant, sundried tomatoes, and cherry tomatoes simmered in vegetable stock with thyme, caraway seeds, and fennel seeds. I was a little scared that the fennel and caraway would be really strong and take over, but they added just the right amount of depth and a real Irish flavor. (more…)
Chicken Parmesan without the guilt? I saw a really yummy looking recipe for Chicken Parmesan Meatballs that I wanted to try, but didn’t want to eat all the carbs involved in pasta. I had also been seeing cheesy spaghetti squash casseroles that looked really good, so I had the idea to combine them.
Ground chicken, onion, Parmesan, parsley, lemon zest, breadcrumbs, garlic, and egg are combined to make the meatballs, which are basted with tomato sauce and cooked in the oven.
Spaghetti squash goes into a casserole dish (I cook mine in the microwave). This is from two medium squashes.
Place the cooked meatballs on top, then the tomato sauce. I forgot to season the squash, oops! So I added more salt and pepper here. (more…)
Well, Folks – it’s been a great year! I look forward to keep sharing delicious and (sometimes) healthy recipes with you in the years to come. Until then – here are my most pinned recipes of 2013!
The other day, I was perusing Red Apron Butchery and saw that they had marrow bones. I LOVE marrow, but I had never made it at home before. It was time to fix that! You might be interested to know that while marrow is made up of fat, it is largely unsaturated; plus it has lots of vitamins and minerals like iron and Vitamin A, and it has been shown to boost the immune system!
Now you actually want to soak these bad boys in salt water overnight to draw out the blood. It’s not going to kill you or anything if you don’t, but it won’t taste as good.
Then you just pop them into a hot oven and roast for 20 minutes. You could just sprinkle it with coarse salt and eat it with a spoon, I wouldn’t blame you. But if you want the full experience, spread it onto some toasted challah bread and top with a tangy parsley salad to balance out the rich fattiness. Prairie butter, poor man’s foie gras, pure heaven – whatever you want to call it, this stuff is delicious decadence.
Roasted Bone Marrow
serves 4
8 3′-4′-long pieces beef or veal marrow bones (cut lengthwise or crosswise, doesn’t matter)
1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
2 small shallots, thinly sliced (about 1/3 cup)
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp drained capers
Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 1/2-inch thick slices challah or rustic white bread, toasted
To remove the blood from the marrow, place the bones in a bowl of ice water with 1 tsp coarse sea salt per 1 cup water. Refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours, changing the water every 4 hours and replacing the salt each time. Drain and refrigerate until you are ready to cook the marrow. Be sure to use it within 24 hours or freeze the drained bones for up to 3 months.
Preheat the oven to 450°. Place bones in an ovenproof skillet or roasting pan – wider cut side down for crosswise, cut side up for lengthwise. Roast bones until marrow is soft and begins to separate from bone but before it begins to melt, 15-20 minutes, depending on thickness of bones. Sprinkle with sea salt.
Meanwhile, toss parsley, shallots, oil, lemon juice, and capers in a medium bowl to coat. Season salad to taste with sea salt and pepper.
Serve bones with toast and parsley salad. Use a long, thin spoon or knife to scoop marrow onto toast and top with salad.
I find it hard to come up with dinner ideas in the summer, I don’t know if anyone else has this problem. All I want to do is snack on fruit, salads, or fresh tomatoes with cheese. And I definitely don’t want to hang out in the kitchen for too long. But this? I would seriously make this every week if my husband would let me. This is the BEST summer dish ever. Gnocchi, summer squash, and fresh sweet corn sauteed in butter and topped with goat cheese, basil, chives, and a splash of lemon juice – perfection. Plus (other than boiling the water), it takes less than 10 minutes to put together!
Just look at it, you know you want it. Warm and filling, but not heavy, with bright pops of veg and fresh herbs, it’s the goat cheese that sends it over the edge into awesome territory. If you crumble the cheese on top and don’t stir it in, then you get a little bit of melted creaminess but also bits of cold that really compliment the gnocchi. Also, I used goat butter – cuz I’m FANCY… and it’s delicious.
I served it as a side dish with salmon, but it would go well with chicken and it’s perfect on it’s own, as well. Swing by your local farmer’s market, snag some fresh produce, and let’s get cooking! (more…)
I saw these guys at the Farmers Market and though, “What the heck are those?” So out came the phone and Google searching commenced. Garlic Scapes, as it turns out, are a shoot that grows out of the top of the garlic plant. They need to be removed so that the plant can focus on growing the bulb instead of flowering. This is fortunate, because the also happen to be insanely delicious. They taste like garlic, but without the bite, and can be used like scallions.
I bought myself a big handful and set about looking up recipes. The most common way to use them is in a pesto, so of course I did not make that… because I’m weird.
Instead, I made carbonara – with guanciale (cuz I’m legit) and peas (which put an end to my legit-ness, but I don’t care cuz I love peas). You are probably wondering what the heck I am talking about, I don’t blame you. Here is a link to a great article about the do’s and dont’s of real carbonara. TLDR (too long, didn’t read for all you non-techies) – while bacon and pancetta are acceptable, guanciale is the best; peas are a definite don’t.
I also made biscuits – with garlic scapes, Gruyere, and goat butter (another new obsession of mine). (more…)
You guys know how much I love homemade ricotta. In case you don’t – it’s A LOT. I’ve also been kind of obsessed with peaslately. So I was super excited to try out this recipe.
I had never made scallops at home before, so I was pretty nervous. But as it turns out, it’s pretty easy! Just make sure that you buy them no more than 1 day before you want to cook them, keep them on ice if you aren’t going straight home, and store them in the coldest part of the fridge. Also, be warned that your house will smell like seafood after you cook them.
As for the pasta – whole wheat linguine, lemon, peas, thyme, and of course – fresh ricotta. Fresh and light and creamy deliciousness!
Halloumi is a salty, dense Greek cheese that is super amazing when grilled. My friend Melissa, from Smells Like Brownies, is a big fan so she was pretty excited when I showed her this recipe. Hearty quinoa mixed with lettuce and veggies and topped with warm cheese – delish!
We didn’t end up having the cucumbers the original recipe called for, so we used tomatoes instead and they were great. I do really like cucumbers, though, so I would say to use both. The more veg, the better, right? The dressing includes red wine vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, mint, and scallion – yum!
We also discovered (by oiling one side and not the other of an electric grill) that the cheese gets better grill marks when the grill is not oiled. Don’t worry, though, it won’t stick!
This is a very satisfying (and light!) vegetarian lunch that is sure to make even meat eaters happy. (more…)
