Plenty of “convenience” foods are far more convenient to make yourself — while the commercial versions tend to have unpronounceable ingredient lists and a mind-boggling amount of sugars/sweeteners, you can whip up a homemade version with a few simple healthy ingredients…and in less than a minute. Sixty seconds spent preparing AND at least 30 minutes [...]
Continue reading about DIY Yogurt (or How to Make “Convenience” Foods Truly Convenient)
What’s a grain, a flour, and a sweetener? Hint: it used to be a popular foodstuff in the U.S. back in the pioneer days, and it’s still popular in African and Indian dishes. You can make beer out of it, too. It has more fiber (and iron) than and nearly as much protein as soy [...]
Continue reading about A Grain Too Useful to Ignore — Especially for Breakfast!
If you visit my e-kitchen on a regular basis, you know that when I like an ingredient, I tend to use it a lot. The only thing better than having plenty of [insert favorite ingredient here] on hand is getting creative with it! Recasting a favorite is also a delicious way to love your leftovers [...]
If you’re in the mood for an unadorned artichoke, nothing beats a freshly steamed one, but if you want to make a dish featuring artichokes as the main ingredient, the canned route suddenly gets a whole lot more appealing. To make this savory baked custard — which is fantastic for either breakfast or lunch — [...]
Continue reading about A Heart(y) Breakfast, Artichoke Style
Who says you can’t have a fiesta in the wintertime? (Especially when it’s 48F outside. It’s like spring in the winter!) Unlike mexicanized restaurant food in the U.S., actual food in Mexico is fresh, vibrant, and light in a satisfying and hearty kind of way. Case in point: a crisp, refreshing version of pozole, served [...]
Continue reading about A Wintertime Fiesta for Your Taste Buds
Raw bell peppers are delicious, but roasted bell peppers are even better. They’re also ridiculously easy to roast yourself: just put the pepper(s) on the center oven rack and roast for 20 minutes at 425F. Immediately drop the pepper(s) into a plastic zip-loc bag, seal, and let sit until cool enough to handle. (The cooling-off [...]
They call it raita in India, tzatziki in the Middle East, and tarator in Bulgaria. We call it tartar sauce, and we make it with pickles instead of cucumbers and mayonnaise instead of yogurt. Frankly, though, it’s time to revisit the original versions for some inspiration, because rich, creamy Greek yogurt kicks commercial mayonnaise to [...]
Continue reading about Adventures in Sauce (or How to Make the Dip Your Own)
Remember the Ranch days? The days when everything was dipped in and topped with Ranch dressing? Ranch fries, Ranch burgers, veggies swathed in a sea of slightly speckled white. There’s no denying Ranch’s creamy, herby appeal…but you can create a much tastier, much more nutritious version of it using plain Greek yogurt and fresh or [...]
Continue reading about Giving a Favorite Dressing a New Wardrobe
I’ve been on a yogurt kick lately, and there’s a darned good reason for that: I finally found sheep’s-milk yogurt! Old Chatham Sheepherding Company sells their sheep’s-milk yogurt in various grocery stores to the lucky folks on the East Coast and through their website to sheep-curious shoppers who aren’t within shouting distance of New York. [...]
Continue reading about Being Sheepish Can Be a Good Thing When You’re Talking Yogurt
Until I took my first bite of this fruit-filled crepe, I had forgotten about blintzes, but then fond memories of the frozen blintzes from Trader Joe’s came rushing back. If you haven’t had a blintz, though, don’t worry — you’ll still be amazed by how creamy, rich, and sweet these crepes are. Happily, they’re a [...]
