This dish came about for two reasons: I had a hankering for a whole-grain, gluten-free crouton alternative, and I couldn’t find grape tomatoes at the produce market. (Sadly, it’s too early in the season for them to be plentiful in my garden. But I’m looking forward to those little flavor bombs growing a few feet [...]
Nothing warms up a cold winter night like spicy soup. I don’t mean spicy-hot, I mean spicy-variety — in this case, a simple blend of curry powder and cilantro. (Technically, cilantro is an herb, but I’m going to lump them together under the concept of “spice.”) The slightly sweet carrots provide the perfect canvas for [...]
I’ve written about crepes before, but they’re so versatile that I just had to cast them in a starring role yet again. This time, the supporting actors are chicken, feta, tomatoes, and dill … although you can include whatever fillings you’d like in your triple-decker crepewich. You can also mix and match the flours you [...]
Although whole grains require longer cooking than their parboiled or refined counterparts, it’s hands-off cooking — you don’t have to stand over the stove while the grains quietly burble away. All you have to do is stir it once or twice. And if you put your grains in their water/broth a few hours ahead of [...]
Our lawns are lush, our gardens are already going gangbusters, and we’ve been topping 80 degrees for over a week. (I just got back from Spain, where it was even hotter — it was more like 95 in Córdoba. Thank goodness for refreshingly cool Moorish courtyards! The ones with flowers and fountains give new meaning [...]
Continue reading about A Must-Have Summer Pair: Sweet Berries & Fresh Herbs
If pizza had originated in Morocco rather than Italy, I have a sneaking suspicion that lamb would have been the meat of choice, not pepperoni. (Or perhaps pepperoni made with lamb. Hint, hint… I can only hope the American Lamb Board is reading this!) And perhaps the sauce would have been been made the way [...]
From ras-el-hanout to harissa to preserved lemons, Moroccan cuisine features some of the most stunning flavors on the planet. Sadly, there’s no Moroccan restaurant in my neck of the woods, but it’s easy to include some signature North African inspiration when you’re in your own kitchen. To make this batch of salsa, I blended sautéed [...]
Continue reading about Blending the Familiar with the Exotic: A Taste of North Africa
Ever since I had baked Feta at a lovely out-of-the-way restaurant in Panamá, I’ve been wanting to make it myself. The idea is just so simple! I’d had baked Camembert plenty of times in Germany — when I lived there, baked Camembert with rote Grütze was one of my favorite dishes, right up there with [...]
Compared to fish, clams, scallops, mussels — even lobster — shrimp strikes me as the richest, smoothest morsel of the sea. Wild shrimp are especially sweet and creamy. The only trick is not to overcook them into tough rubberiness. Seeing as everyone loves a speedy and delicious dinner, though, the fact that they cook so [...]
The best part about roasted vegetables isn’t the fact that they’re ridiculously easy to make. It isn’t even the fact that they taste so good that avowed vegetable haters have just as much of a penchant for roasted vegetables as vegetarians do. No, the best thing about roasted vegetables is that leftover roasted veggies can [...]
