Lisa on August 20th, 2010

Given my recent preoccupation with macadamia nut butter, I’m sure you knew another mac butter recipe would be on the way. How could it not? The stuff is simply fabulous! I’m in a bit of culinary mourning right now, actually, because I polished off my jar this morning when I stirred the last spoonful of [...]

Continue reading about Velvety, Nutty Nectarines

Lisa on August 11th, 2010

As my regular readers know, when I discover a new ingredient or a new way to use a tried-and-true ingredient, I go on a [fill in the blank] kick.  This time, it’s macadamia nut butter.  I started out dipping 90% dark chocolate squares into it (UNbelievable!), then made salad dressings out of it, and now [...]

Continue reading about Coconut, Banana & Macadamia All in One Glass

Lisa on July 28th, 2010

“Corned” meatballs might sound odd, but I’m hearkening back to the original meaning of “corned” here, back when corns referred to any small grains.  Often, those grains were coarse grains of salt used in brines and pickling solutions.  That’s where we get corned beef from — it doesn’t have anything to do with the kind [...]

Continue reading about Herbed & Crunchy Meatballs

Lisa on July 16th, 2010

Dates are fabulously useful!  Just don’t confuse them with figs, which are also lovely but which don’t have the staying power or sweetness of dates.  (And don’t confuse fresh figs with the gritty stuff inside Fig Newtons — an actual fig tastes much lighter and fruitier, plus it beautifully shades from pink to cream to [...]

Continue reading about Naturally Sweetened Smoothies

Lisa on June 30th, 2010

Even though the simmering action of making a compote might make you think of winter, what goes into a berry compote is all summer: strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, even rhubarb.  All you need is some fruit, some liquid — wine or water works best — some sweetener, and some spices.  You’ll have a refreshing fruit [...]

Continue reading about ‘Tis the Season for Summer Berry Compotes

Lisa on June 16th, 2010

Egg poaching is generally a three-step process: first, you boil water; next, you crack an egg into the boiling water, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer the egg for 3 minutes, occasionally skimming a slotted spoon around the edges of the pot to make sure the egg isn’t sticking; finally, you [...]

Continue reading about One-Step Egg Poaching

Lisa on June 9th, 2010

I love eggs, especially the eggs with the bright orange yolks that I get from my farmer every week.  (Thanks to the proliferation of farmer’s markets and community-supported farms, even urban dwellers can get honest-to-goodness eggs laid by hens who spend their days scratching in the dirt for tasty bugs…as opposed to eggs from factory-fed [...]

Continue reading about Reinventing the Egg Salad

Lisa on May 21st, 2010

When I get on a kick, I get on a kick — I can happily eat the same thing for several days in a row if I like it.  It’s even better when the dish/ingredient being eaten is multipurpose-able.  After all, leftovers are the ultimate convenience food!
Crepes are my most recent food fixation: first the [...]

Continue reading about Mix ‘n’ Match Fruit Crepes

Lisa on May 19th, 2010

It’s summertime, and the blueberries are calling.  (So are the strawberries and the blackberries and the rest of the berry bunch.)  Time to celebrate with some fruit soup!  It’s ridiculously easy to make — which is probably one of the chief reasons fruit soup is on every cruise ship’s menu — and can be made [...]

Continue reading about The Fruit Soups of Summer

Lisa on April 23rd, 2010

Upfront disclosure to the mousse die-hards out there: this is not a true mousse.  True mousses are made with eggs — they’re the key ingredient, in fact — whereas this one is made with macadamia nut butter.  Still, the nutty richness of the macadamia butter is very reminiscent of an eggy richness, and both the [...]

Continue reading about Making “Mousse” with Chai