Of all the holidays, I find Thanksgiving the hardest to do as a vegetarian. That’s mostly because it’s so steeped in tradition, and in many families (certainly in mine) particular recipes are expected year after year. It’s okay, because many of the traditional side dishes are vegetarian by nature: sweet potatoes (maybe skip the marshmallows, [...]
In college, I invented a dish I called “apple tofu.” I was very proud of myself; it was the first recipe I’d ever made up on my own, and I thought it was pretty tasty. It was basically chopped-up apples, simmered with cubed tofu until they got soft and the tofu picked up the apple [...]
Summer is on its way out, but at least here in DC, fresh local tomatoes are still around for a while yet. As much as I like to be creative with my cooking, some combinations of ingredients are too easy, too delicious to pass up. My favorite combination at the moment? Tomatoes, basil, and cheese. [...]
Stuffing tomatoes isn’t an original idea, but it is a tasty one. I like stuffed tomatoes much better than stuffed peppers. They’re pretty quick and easy to make, especially if you have some leftover grains lying around. While fresh, uncooked tomatoes are one of the joys of summer, I also love what happens to tomatoes [...]
Last night, we had dinner on the outdoor patio of our local tex-mex restaurant. The food was good – black bean burrito with mole, and a really good margarita – but somehow, being outside really made the meal. We don’t eat outdoors often. That’s one disadvantage of living in a third-floor apartment with no balcony: [...]
Summer is, not surprisingly, my favorite season for farmer’s markets, but to me the very pinnacle of summer veggie goodness is the tomatoes. Tomato season is finally here, and I’m excited. If you’re accustomed to tomatoes from the grocery store, you’re missing out. Fresh local tomatoes are in a league of their own – the [...]
I’ve been posting a lot about blueberries, because they’re bountiful (but soon to be out of season), delicious, and adaptable. This is my newest creation: Southwest Blueberry Soup. This recipe has been beating around my brain for a few weeks (I mused about it when I made a more dessert-like blueberry soup), and tonight I [...]
This salad was simple and delicious. With some couscous on the side, it made a very satisfying summer meal. It used about half of my pint of blueberries (the rest turned into pancakes). I love the simplicity of it. It feels special, yet it takes only a few ingredients and a few minutes to toss [...]
We usually think of pesto as something made in the food processor, but since pesto is older than electricity, that can’t be the traditional method. From what I’ve read, pesto was traditionally made with a mortar and pestle, pounding the basil into a paste, and adding seasoning to the mashed leaves. I did exactly that: [...]
I’m on vacation this week, visiting my parents for the 4th. We went shopping on Wednesday to get all the usual holiday cookout fixin’s: hot dogs (and veggie dogs, among my mock-meat vices because the taste is nearly indistinguishable from the meat variety), potatos for potato salad, etc. We were planning for a nice day [...]