Lisa on January 27th, 2012

What do Brussels sprouts, potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms have in common? They were all in my pantry begging to be made into soup. The lentils looked lonely, too, so I threw them into the mix. Hearty soups are best made in the winter, after all, even if the term “winter” doesn’t seem to currently imply [...]

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Lisa on June 17th, 2011

Why taste one thing when you can taste three?  Or four or five?  Not only are nibbles — or “small plates,” if you want to get fancy about it — usually something quick and simple, if you have enough nibbles on a plate, you have a meal!  So the next time you’re in the mood [...]

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Lisa on February 23rd, 2011

Greek yogurt is the latest craze in the dairy aisle, and rightfully so: it’s thicker, creamier, and tastier (in my opinion, at least) than standard yogurt.  In large part, that’s because it’s double-strained instead of single-strained, which means more of the whey drips out, leaving a more concentrated, full-bodied yogurt behind.  Another difference is that [...]

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Lisa on October 22nd, 2010

Marinated mushrooms: those tasty fungi at the end of grocery-store olive bars that pretty much everyone ignores.  I must have passed by the garlicky little suckers a dozen times before I even registered their presence.  Once I tried them, though, I knew they’d be delicious in a wide variety of dishes … not to mention [...]

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Lisa on October 7th, 2010

Toasting and roasting.  Both techniques are simple and add incredible depth to whatever ingredient you’re emphasizing or dish you’re serving.  Recently, it occurred to me that toasted nuts have such a deep flavor that they could probably stand in for cheese.  I’m a huge cheese fan, but for those who can’t have cheese, toasted nuts [...]

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Lisa on July 26th, 2010

Grill them, stuff them, use them as hamburger toppings … portabello mushrooms are a favorite summer treat.  But my favorite way to enjoy them is to slice them very thin and sautée them with extra-virgin olive oil and a pinch of sea salt so that you wind up with portabello crisps.  It’s the perfect base [...]

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Lisa on May 28th, 2010

As already mentioned in my previous post, I love pineapples.  (When I was attending a Spanish-language school in Costa Rica, our chosen names were a combination of our favorite fruit + our favorite color.  That made me Piña Violeta, or “purple pineapple.”)  Most of the time, I cut up a fresh pineapple and eat it; [...]

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Lisa on February 8th, 2010

Americans eat oats for breakfast and in the occasional cookie.  Scots eat them for breakfast, too…and for lunch and dinner and everything in between.  They eat them in scones and stews and porridges and even with fish.  And why not?  Not only are oats one of the most nutrient-rich grains on the planet, they have [...]

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Lisa on January 11th, 2009

Why use a tool for one use when you can use it for five? Or six, or seven? Witness the ubiquitous egg-slicer, a tool that is capable of much more than its name implies. Assuming that you have a sturdy version (preferably made entirely of metal), you can slice anything soft and roughly egg-sized: strawberries, [...]

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Lisa on October 9th, 2008

Artichokes are wonderful vegetables–they have an exotic flair, they’re something of a delicacy, and their flavor is sweetly unique. They’re also rather time-consuming to prepare…although you’re sure to impress your dinner guests if you can expertly cut out their artichoke hearts. But here’s a way to serve artichokes that’s very simple: roast them. Serve on [...]

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