Less Meat, More Veggies

I introduced "Meatless Mondays" to my dinner routine about a month ago as a way to challenge myself to try new recipes and new ingredients. It has since become an obsession and is no longer limited to Mondays. I should stipulate that my husband is still a rampant carnivore so I have been making my meatless dishes for one, therefore, recipe calculation is a little sketchy and I apologize for the lack of a quantitative recipe here. I am literally throwing things together off to the side while the meat sears and caramelizes... taunting me with it's delicious smell. Nevertheless, I have become quite a fan of my veggie concoctions and I am happy to be branching out. Today's lunch was a mixture of quinoa, tart apples, green onions, chopped almonds, garlic, and cilantro tossed in a dressing made from coconut milk, lime juice, curry powder, salt and a little canola oil. It was a flavorful, fresh tasting salad that was a perfect afternoon meal on it's own... and was even more delicious as a dinner served next to some spicy grilled shrimp. I can't quit you, meat. I can't.

Red Pepper Coconut Soup

This week, the snow melted and I actually saw my yard again... in all it's disheveled glory. Yesterday was spent cleaning the garden beds, tidying up the dog toys that emerged from their frozen cocoons, and planning for this year's homegrown goodness. Unfortunately, the warm weather was short lived and today was riddled with rain and wind. When life hands you lemons, make lemonade... right? Since I was stuck in the house, coincidentally with a fridge full of red peppers, I made red pepper soup. A simple mix of roasted red peppers, coconut milk and lime zest, this soup was delightfully sweet and full of flavor. Served with a few slices of crusty bread, it was a perfect lunch for a rainy Sunday afternoon. Hurry up, Spring... I am ready to be outside!

RECIPE:

6 red peppers - roasted, peeled, and deseeded

1 can coconut milk

zest of 1 lime

Puree roasted red peppers. Push puree through sieve to remove large pieces. Combine red pepper base with coconut milk and simmer in saucepan. Mix in lime zest and serve.

Sugar and Spice

Downtown is adorned with ice carvings, the temperature has been steadily hovering around 30 degrees, and there is snow as far as the eye can see... and yet, I have been craving ice cream. I have a sneaking suspicion that my hunger may have been influenced by the week long ice cream shoot at the studio. Unfortunately, I do not own an ice cream maker. My modest two bedroom house is equipped with a humble kitchen in which space is quite limited, so the small electrics are kept to a minimum. The coffee pot, food processor, and toaster are priorities on the counter while all the others are on a waiting list. Nevertheless, my mission was to make ice cream today. I mixed 1 cup of greek yogurt with a healthy dose of plums that had been simmered in ginger, cinnamon and sugar. Then, I folded in a cup of heavy cream that had been freshly whipped and nestled the concoction deep in the freezer for about 5 hours. I'll admit that it wasn't as smooth as churned ice cream, but it was sugar and spice and everything nice. Here's to a happy Valentine's Day!

Defining Style

An amuse bouche is supposed to sum up a chef's approach to cooking in one bite. While I am not a chef, I have been trying to define my culinary voice. Perhaps it's my looming 35th birthday or maybe it's just a hitch in my creative giddy up, but defining my style has been daunting. Is my approach whimsical? Is it sophisticated? Is it somewhere in between? Who knows... it seems to be a moving target. As a result, I am going back to basics. An homage to humble flavors, I offer this simple salad on a stick. Crisp bitter lettuce, spicy paper thin radishes, and a sweet cherry tomato combine to make a one bite wonder. Served directly on a knife, this presentation demands attention and articulates that simple doesn't mean without style.

What Works For You?

Food styling and cooking for human consumption are two very different activities, each requiring their own unique arsenal of tools. Go-to items in the food styling kitchen include torches, tweezers, and brushes. Pans scarred with burnt sugar and Kitchen Bouquet hang with honor on the pegboard. These are the workhorses, the unsung heroes. At home, the hardest working player is a sharp chef's knife, followed closely by a 12" stainless steel skillet. While the knife has one essential purpose, the skillet performs several different tasks, proving it's necessity on a daily basis. Working on both the stove top and in the oven, this powerhouse has endless culinary possibilities. For exactly the same reason, my dutch oven is also a favorite. Deeper, lidded and enameled, it offers an additional range of cooking options. Under the radar flies one of my favorite tools in the kitchen, the Microplane zester. It can be used for chocolate, cheese, citrus, ginger, garlic or nutmeg. Amazing finishing touches come from this humble handheld gadget. Finally, the most over-worked and under-appreciated soldiers in my kitchen are glass mason jars. Whether they are used for canning, storing ingredients or stylishly organizing miscellaneous trinkets, they are the perfect union of form and function. Consider this post an open call to assess the workhorses of your kitchen... give them their 15 minutes of fame.

Home Sweet Home

After 13 long days on location in Florida, I couldn't wait to get back to "normal" life. Not only did I miss my loved ones, but I missed the day to day details that support my overall sanity. I missed walking my dog. I missed Tosi's coffee. I missed tinkering around in the kitchen. After catching up on my sleep, I decided to fire up the oven and bake a big batch of comfort. I started with a standard lemon cookie recipe that I tweaked by changing the citrus to tangerine and adding freshly grated ginger for an extra kick. Sweet and spicy, the cookies paired perfectly with a thin layer of dark chocolate that held them all together. There's no place like home, there's no place like home.....

New Year, New Donut

I start thinking about breakfast the moment I open my eyes. Not sure what that says about me, nevertheless, it is true. Today I woke up with a serious hankering for a plain cake donut and I couldn't stop wondering what it would taste like as french toast. Spoiler alert: it was delicious. Dipped in a mixture of egg and cinnamon, the buttery sweet donut crisped up to perfection. Blueberries simmered with fresh rosemary and a little sugar made a rich and flavorful topping for my quirky little breakfast. Perhaps it wasn't the healthiest way to kick off my new year, but there's always tomorrow to start on that resolution.