Category Archives: Nourishing, Fast, Fresh Recipes

Real Caesar Dressing

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

About a decade ago, I came across a Caesar dressing recipe in Fine Cooking by Ana Sortun, the chef/owner of Oleana Restaurant in Cambridge, Mass. Several years later, I met Ana at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone and waxed on about how incredible the recipe was. Then I realized how silly it was to be praising the acclaimed chef of a high end Turkish restaurant for her Caesar salad dressing recipe. But, honestly, it made that big of an impact on me. Over the years, I memorized and adapted it, and this is the version that has stuck as a staple in our house. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:31]

 

Naked Root Vegetable Gratin

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

After much agonizing, I’ve come to think of this dish as a naked gratin and close cousin to pommes Anna. I used a mixture of rutabaga, kohlrabi and sunchokes (also called Jerusalem artichokes) in lieu of potatoes, and it was out of this world. The sunchokes, especially, gave it an amazing nutty earthiness. If you can find a pound or so of those, I highly recommend using them. But go with whatever root veggies suit your fancy. One other embellishment I loved … smoked sea salt. Not necessary by any means, but fun if you want to give it a little something extra.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:21]

Soft Scrambled Eggs with Chives

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

A plate of soft scrambled eggs is one of my hands-down favorite easy dinners, and can also be transformed into an easy appetizer by topping crostini (and if you’re feeling decadent, drizzling with truffle oil). Watch my video down below to see how easy it is to make these luscious scrambled eggs.

 

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:3]

Kale Salad with Toasted Coconut Chips

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

I’ve been wanting to do a kale salad for a long time, and this is the one I wanted to make. Rubbing breaks down the cells and softens the kale, yet leaves all of its meaty taste.

kale-salad

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon tamari sauce
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey, liquified
2 tablespoons minced scallions
4 packed cups Tuscan kale (also called dinosaur or black kale), zipped, cleaned and torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup julienned radicchio
1 cup cilantro leaves
coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 avocado, cubed
1 cup toasted, unsweetened coconut chips

Shake together the oil, lime juice, tamari sauce, cider vinegar, honey and scallions in a tight-sealing jar.

Place the kale in a large bowl and rub a handful at a time between your palms as if you were warming your hands together. You’ll feel the kale “soften” after 15 seconds or so. Then grab another bunch and do the same thing until you’ve rubbed all of the kale.

Toss the kale, radicchio, cilantro a generous pinch of salt and pepper together in the bowl and pour dressing over top. Toss well to thoroughly coat and top with avocado and coconut chips.

Serves 2

 

Tangy Pumpkin Soup

Posted on by — 6 Comments ↓

This zippy, velvety and comforting pumpkin soup, adapted from Everyday Thai Cooking (Tuttle Publishing) exemplifies Katie Chin’s easy approach to Thai cuisine. It uses ingredients that you can find in many supermarkets, and if you can’t find ’em, Katie has suggestions for simple substitutions. “Thais often use pumpkins to make desserts or delicious savory soups like this one,” Katie says. “The heat from the spices is a great contrast to the sweet pumpkin in this seasonal soup. You may substitute the pumpkin with any kind of winter squash.” I found it works just as beautifully with butternut squash. Check out Katie’s blog, The Sweet and Sour Chronicles.

tangy-pumpkin-soup-everyday-thai-cooking2 tablespoons coconut oil, Canola or other high-heat cooking oil
1/4 cup finely chopped shallot
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 fresh hot red or green chiles, preferably Thai chiles, thinly sliced (seeded, if you prefer less heat)
1 clove garlic, chopped
4 cups peeled and diced pumpkin
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup regular or light coconut milk
2 stalks lemongrass, cut into 2-inch pieces and bruised (you can substitute grated zest of 1 lemon or lime)
1 teaspoon palm or brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
Fresh Thai or Italian basil leaves, for garnish

Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir-fry shallot, coriander, cumin, turmeric, chiles and garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add pumpkin, stock, coconut milk, lemongrass, sugar and salt, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil. Cook until the pumpkin softens, about 8-10 minutes. Quickly stir in fish sauce and lime juice.

Transfer a blender, or using an immersion blender, blend the soup to a smooth or slightly chunky consistency, as desired. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with basil leaves. Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6

 

Comforting Brown Rice Porridge with Mushrooms

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

This brown rice porridge is inspired by Chef Louis Maldonado of Spoonbar here in Healdsburg, and most recently of Top Chef fame. He turned me on to rice porridge. It’s one of the staples on his menu that he changes up with the seasons and the whims of the farmers that supply him. It’s also a traditional dish across a number of different cultures, from Korea to Vietnam, and is often eaten as breakfast (which I can now personally vouch for as being a very good idea). On a recent cold, cold night when my family was dropping sick one by one, I conjured this version up to bring comfort to us all. It takes awhile to cook (you can shave off about half the time if you use a pressure cooker), but it’s one of those dishes that calls to you from the fridge all week long, so make a double batch and consider it time well invested.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:76]

 

 

Simple Butternut Squash Soup

Posted on by — 4 Comments ↓

This Thanksgiving, Mom requested butternut squash soup and grilled cheese. I made enough to freeze for easy meals in December, and I’m glad I did … this soup may be simple, but it’s gooood.

simple-butternut-squash-soup

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:225]

Nourishing No-Knead Bread

Posted on by — 7 Comments ↓

Making this bread recipe, adapted from cookbook author and cooking teacher Penni Wisner, is one of the best things I do all week. From mixing the ingredients to flipping the finished loaf out of the pan, the whole process is satisfying. And with this no-knead technique, time and the yeast do most of the work for you. I like dusting the dough with cornmeal for a nice crunch, though you can use sesame seeds, poppy seeds, rolled oats or simply flour. I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to weigh the flour — it’s easier, really, and you’ll get more consistent results.

[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:23]

 

Christopher’s Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

Christopher starts angling for a carrot cake for his October birthday sometime around the end of July. For years, he demanded my mom’s version, a classic carrot cake with cream cheese frosting — and a shocking amount of oil and highly processed flour and sugar. But after a while, I couldn’t help myself … I started to tinker. This cupcake version with my honey cream cheese frosting — which is a good deal healthier by all standards — has become our new favorite. So tell any health-aphobes in your world that this has Christopher’s stamp of approval!

whole-wheat-carrot-cake-cupcakesDry Ingredients:

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Wet Ingredients:

2/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1-1/2 cups grated carrot
1 cup raisins
1/3 cup shredded coconut

Honey Cream Cheese Frosting:

6 ounces neufchatel, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons orange zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners.

Whisk together dry ingredients in a large bowl. With an electric beater, beat together sour cream, sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs in another large bowl. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, beating just until well combined. Stir in carrot, raisins and coconut.

Divide the batter evenly amongst the muffin cups. Bake for 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, beat together neufchatel, powdered sugar, honey and orange zest until fluffy and smooth. Either spread onto the cupcakes with the back of a warm spoon, or transfer the frosting to a pastry bag and pipe onto cupcakes.

Makes 12 cupcakes