I was initially doubtful when I looked at the recipe because I’m completely lame when it comes to combining new flavors. Since I’d never seen this combination before, I just didn’t know what to think. I’m so glad I tried it though. It was amazing on its own last night for dinner, and just as good today for lunch, tossed with fresh spinach.

The best thing about this salad is the roasted tomatoes. I love that it’s tomato season and I wish it could last forever. As tempting as they are plain…

tossing them with oil, a little sugar, and a pinch of salt and baking them for about 40 minutes elevates them to a whole new level of buttery sweetness.

I am slowly starting to love having time to do domestic things like roast tomatoes in the middle of the afternoon and make breakfast for Mike in the morning.

Fried eggs + avocado + hot sauce on toasted wheat bread.

I even packed his lunch.

We were joking last night about how I’m turning into a housewife. I don’t think I could ever actually be a full-time housewife but it’s kind of fun for right now. I’m hoping that the online course I’m taking for professional development helps prevent my brain from atrophying.

Recipe:
(adapted from Super Natural Every Day)

1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
2-4 tbsp olive oil (eyeball it – a good drizzle is fine!)
pinch salt
2 tsp sugar
3-4 cups black beans (2 cans, rinsed and drained)
crumbled feta (about a handful)
toasted sliced almonds (about a handful)
juice and zest of one lemon
fresh spinach (optional)

First roast the tomatoes: Toss the tomatoes, salt, sugar, and oil together and bake on a rimmed baking sheet at 350 F for about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

In a medium bowl, toss beans, feta, toasted almonds, lemon juice and zest, and cooled tomatoes together and adjust ingredients to taste. Toss with spinach if desired.

Omelets are not just for breakfast. Really. I mean, neither are pancakes (which I will happily consume at any hour of any day) or cereal, but this omelet in particular just screams DINNER.

I’ve been busy in the kitchen lately, but the blog has been a little neglected. Oops. It’s not that I haven’t been making good stuff, I just feel like my 7.5 – 8 hours of sleep are non-negotiable, and when the alarm goes off at 5 AM every morning I MUST go to the gym, so if 9 PM rolls around and blogging isn’t done, well too bad. It’s great to be back to teaching after a 2 week break but it’s KIND of draining after basically lounging on the couch for days on end.

I made a VERY important find this weekend. Although I gave up meat on November 1, 2009, I never really called myself a true vegetarian, because I still ate fish sauce (I’m addicted to Thai food and I just couldn’t, or I guess I should say wouldn’t give it up). BUT, thanks to a random Asian grocery store in San Francisco, I am now a REAL vegetarian because I got my hands on a bottle of vegetarian fish sauce!

Here’s one of my lame excuses for not blogging much this week: Baby shower cupcakes for a co-worker took up my whole evening

And I’ve been making an entire separate lunch instead of just taking left overs, because apparently Mike and I are eating far more than ever before and we never have anything left after dinner. I don’t really know what’s going on there, but I DO know this bent-box type concoction was awesome.

Brown rice, steamed broccoli, nori, liquid aminos, sesame seeds, pan-fried tempeh, and avocado. This will be a staple for sure.

So with random stuff going on, the best thing about this meal is that it’s pretty quick. You want to get everything prepared before you start cooking because it moves so fast, but that’s not hard, it just takes some chopping.

Whisk together eggs, curry powder, and coconut milk.

Cook the filling.

And make an omelet. I think this is only the third omelet I’ve ever made in my life, but it’s amazing how easy it is if the pan is hot and has plenty of oil in it!

Note: Garlic chives are MUCH bigger than regular chives and are flat, kind of like giant blades of grass. They can be found at Asian grocery stores, and regular chives are NOT a substitute. Seek them out, it’s worth it! They’re also great in stir fry.

Recipe:
(adapted from Asian Vegetables by Sara Deseran)

makes 2 omelets

4 eggs
2 tbsp coconut milk (light is fine)
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
pinch tsp salt

1 tbsp canola oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 medium shallot, chopped
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/2 cup chopped garlic chives
1-2 tbsp vegetarian fish sauce
1/4 tsp sugar

Whisk the eggs, coconut milk, curry powder, and salt together in a bowl.

Heat the oil in a wide skillet and and add the garlic and shallot. Saute for about 30 seconds, then add the tomato, chives, fish sauce, and sugar. Cook for about a minute more, then taste and add more sugar or fish sauce if needed. Remove from heat and wipe out the pan.

Return the pan to the heat and add about 1 tsp of oil. Swirl the pan so the oil coats the bottom. When it’s hot, add half the egg mixture but don’t stir! Let it sit until the edges are cooked and the center is just a tiny bit runny. Add half the chive mixture to one half of the omelet, then fold the other half over. Cook for about 2 minutes then transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining egg and filling.

This is one of those “throw whatever’s left in the fridge together and hope it’s edible” meals that I’ve been making pretty much weekly for at least a year. It never seemed like enough of a recipe to put on the blog, but since it’s reasonably healthy and is one of my favorite things, I guess now is a decent time to share it. And also I’m still not to the point where I’m okay with just blatantly talking about my life… I feel like I need to give you a recipe even though what I really want to tell you about is running 25 miles on the Leif Erickson trail.

At a little over 11 miles long, I had to do some sections of the trail a couple times to total 25 miles. Mike and I started out with my dad, who ran the first 6 with us then turned back and came to meet us later.

The weather was cold and cloudy but it never rained on us and we actually got to see the sun a couple times!

I LOVE this trail. And I’m feeling a lot more confident about my 50K (in 3 weeks. Dear lord.) now that I’ve done a 25 mile training run. I know the terrain will be a whole lot harder, but this was definitely a mental boost.

Sunday morning, sadly, we were back on the road to California. The drive was pretty uneventful…just endless cold pizza and energy drinks, and a really pretty stop at a Scenic View Point. I never stop at those, but the valley was just so pretty I had to.

And that is the last snow I hope to see for a really long time.

After the drive all I wanted was vegetables and lots of them. So I chopped up pretty much everything that was in the fridge, made my favorite simple dressing, and devoured it before collapsing into bed (WHY is driving so tiring?!)

This dressing is pretty spicy, but you can scale down the chili garlic sauce. You can also use just about any vegetable you want, but I’m listing my most frequently used mix.

Recipe:

dressing
4 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp chili garlic sauce (look near sambal oelek and sriracha in the Asian section)
2 tbsp warm water

1 heart of romaine, thinly sliced
2 roma tomatoes, diced
2 small carrots, chopped
1/4 red onion, chopped
3 tbsp chopped green onion
3 Persian cucumbers (or 1/2 an English cucumber), seeded and diced

Whisk the dressing ingredients until smooth.
Toss with the vegetables.

Sometimes I find it kind of shocking how clueless I was when I started this blog back in the summer of 2008. I put up crappy pictures (and sometimes no pictures at all) with maybe a sentence (or two if I was feeling particularly inspired) along the lines of “I really enjoyed this because of the succulent roasted beets and I’m sure you will too!”

No wonder I didn’t have many readers.

Well buried in the not-so-pretty archives of this very blog are some pretty good recipes that deserve more attention and a better post than they initially had, so I’m planning on periodically revisiting the best of them, and sprucing them up a little bit.

I knew my fattoush could use a little work, so I looked at a few rcipes for inspiration, played around with how I used to make it, and came up with this. Sumac has become such a favorite spice in our house that we have a quart-sized jar full of it, and our friends introduced us to the BEST pita ever (Mediterranean brand Plain Brick Oven Pita Bread…definitely worth searching for), so I’m ready to make this salad any time I feel like it, which is becoming pretty often.

Recipe:

1 large pita, cut into 1.5″ squares
1 head romaine
2-3 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 persian cucumbers (or 1 English cucumber), diced
3 tbsp sliced green onions
3 tbsp chopped fresh mint
3 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sumac

Preheat the oven to 425 and arrange the pita squares on a baking sheet. Toast for 5-10 minutes, or until golden.

Slice the romaine crosswise and wash with a salad spinner. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with the tomatoes, green onions, cucumber, and mint. To make the dressing, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, and sumac. Pour the desired amount over the vegetables (you may not need all of it) and toss well. Top with the pita pieces just before serving.

After baking 50 cupcakes for a summer school event, then following that up with cake, frosting, and fondant this weekend, I was ready for a good, healthy meal.

My favorite weeknight dinners are always the ones that just require a single bowl and fork or spoon. This one is awesome because it’s full of protein, and it gets a nice kick from the salsa verde. I don’t know why I don’t keep tomatillos around the house more often because they make the BEST salsa!

Recipe:

salsa
4 medium tomatillos, papery husks removed, halved
3 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp salt
2 chopped serrano chiles (or less if you’re not into spicy food)
1/4 cup water

salad
2 cups water
1 cup quinoa
juice of one lime
2 cups black beans, rinsed and drained
1 large tomato, diced
1 avocado, diced
chopped cilantro, for garnish

First, make the salsa. Put the garlic and tomatillos under the broiler until softened slightly and browned in places. Transfer to a blender and add the cilantro, salt, chiles, and water. Blend until nearly smooth. Set aside.

Bring the water to a boil in a covered pan. Add the quinoa, stir, and turn the heat down to low. Simmer, covered, until all the liquid has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. Let stand for a few minutes, then add the lime juice and fluff with a fork. Let cool.

In a large bowl, toss the cooled quinoa with the black beans, tomato, and avocado. Stir in about half the salsa, taste, and add more if desired. Serve garnished with chopped cilantro, and pass the remaining salsa on the side.

I think I was in about 4th grade when a new gourmet pizza place opened in our neighborhood. I was kind of shocked when our family looked over the menu. Potatoes on pizza? Pizza with olive oil and garlic instead of red sauce? What were they thinking?

Fortunately my taste in pizza has changed a lot since I was ten. This is a ridiculously simple, red sauce-free pizza that makes the most of summer’s perfect tomatoes and basil. Now that we have a basil plant thriving on our porch and beautiful heirloom tomatoes are cheap and plentiful at the farmers market, we’ve been eating this pizza at least once a week for the past month.

The crust comes from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook and I’m not sure that I’ll ever make a different one. You need to plan at least a day in advance, as it’s best when it’s had at least 24 hours in the fridge (but I’ve also let it rest for as few as eight hours and it’s still pretty good). If you’ve got a stand mixer, it comes together in less than 10 minutes!

Recipe:
(adapted from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook)

crust
3/4 cup warm water
1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1 2/3 cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
cornmeal

pizza
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp olive oil
2-3 freshly picked heirloom tomatoes, thinly sliced
8-10 thin slices mozzarella
3 tbsp fresh basil, sliced into thin ribbons

Dissolve the yeast in water and let stand 5 minutes. Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer and add the flour and salt. With the dough hook, mix on low for 2 minutes, medium for 2 minutes, then high for 2 minutes. If the dough is too sticky, add a little flour. Divide into two equal balls and place on a plate, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least ten hours. Remove from the fridge about 45 minutes before you plan to bake pizza.

Preheat a the oven (with a pizza stone if you have one) to 475 F. Sprinkle a cookie sheet or pizza peel generously with cornmeal. Carefully stretch the dough into a circle and place on the peel. Brush with 1 tbsp of olive oil, and sprinkle with half the garlic. Layer slices of tomato and mozzarella over that.

Slide the pizza carefully onto the pizza stone.Bake for about 12 minutes, or until the cheese is brown and bubbly. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with half the fresh basil. Repeat with remaining dough and toppings. Let pizza stand for about 5 minutes before cutting into slices

Normally I can take or leave pasta, but for some reason, I usually make an exception for spaghetti. I wanted to make a more seasonally appropriate stand in for the usual spaghetti with marinara, and this is what I came up with.

With absolutely BEAUTIFUL tomatoes and basil all over the place at the farmers markets right now, I wanted to make a pasta that would feature them prominently, and this simple dish definitely does.  I drew inspiration from caprese salad, but left out the cheese to keep it light (and vegan).  I’m sure, though, if you wanted to put some fresh mozzarella in here, it would be really good.

Mashing up garlic with salt is a technique I learned from a friend who makes the best salads I’ve ever had.  Now it forms the base of pretty much any salad dressing I make.  Here, I just add olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper.  That gets tossed with some cooked, drained whole wheat pasta and fresh tomatoes and basil  making this a light, fresh dinner in under 20 minutes!

Recipe:

8 ounces whole wheat spaghetti (or whatever pasta you choose)
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
black pepper
1/4 cup basil, cut into thin ribbons
3 ripe tomatoes, diced

Boil the pasta as directed.

While the pasta is cooking, make the dressing: smash the salt and garlic into a smooth paste with a mortar and pestle. Combine with oil, balsamic, and a pinch or two of black pepper and whisk to make a dressing.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and rinse it. Put in a large bowl and toss with the tomatoes, basil, and dressing to taste.

Mike and I may not be ready for kids yet, but we just brought 3 precious living things into our home: a Thai chili plant, a basil plant, and a mint plant. These three fabulous additions live in terra cotta pots on a ledge in front of our living room window, and I’m already madly in love with them. When you do cost benefit analysis of buying those little plastic containers of fresh herbs versus keeping pots of your own, there’s a clear winner (and it doesn’t come in plastic).

This fabulous recipe from Kelsey’s blog features both mint and basil, and it really is a perfect, light summer dinner. I loved the rich flavor that comes from cooking the orzo in broth instead of water, and now that we’re coming into tomato season, this is a great way to use those adorable little bite-sized tomatoes. I cut back on the oil in the dressing and only poured about half of it over the orzo, which I thought provided plenty of flavor. I also topped each serving with a dusting of crumbled feta. This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Recipe:
(adapted from Apple A Day)

salad
4 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups orzo
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups red and yellow teardrop tomatoes or grape tomatoes, halved
3/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
a few tbsp crumbled feta

dressing
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp honey
1 tsp salt
a few pinches freshly ground black pepper

Bring the broth to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the orzo and cook until tender, stirring frequently, about 9 minutes. Drain then transfer to a large bowl and cool completely.
Add the onion, beans, tomato, mint, and basil, toss well, and season with a pinch or two of salt and pepper.

Whisk the dressing ingredients and pour about half the dressing over the orzo, tossing well to combine. Serve with a little feta sprinkled over the top, and pass the remaining dressing at the table.

I know spring has really started when my allergies go crazy, and this week, the fun began. I never had any allergy issues until I moved here, but now they show up right around my birthday every year, giving me really attractive red eyes and an awesome nasal-y voice. After about a week, I usually have so much congestion that I can’t really taste my food. And of course, nothing really works (I’ve tried pretty much every allergy drug there is).

So since I know that’s coming, I wanted to make something really flavorful and healthy, with lots of different textures. This is not only beautiful to look at thanks to all the different colors, it’s also loaded with nutrients. I am sure this peanut sauce isn’t totally authentic, because I looked up an Indonesian recipe and the real stuff has tamarind, lime, and coconut. But authentic or not, I love all the raw vegetables and the fragrant turmeric rice. The most crucial part is the crispy shallots on top. I know frying isn’t healthy, but it’s just a little bit, and the flavor and little crunch is absolutely worth it.

I diced up some of Trader Joe’s High Protein Tofu (extra firm) for protein, but if you eat meat, I think shredded or diced chicken would work well. The recipe also suggests diced hard-boiled eggs, which I could see being pretty good too.

Recipe:
(adapted from The New Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen)

serves 4-6

2 cups brown rice
3 1/2 cups water
1 tsp turmeric

6-8 cups washed, roughly chopped spinach
1 cup thinly sliced cabbage
3 carrots, shredded
3 tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 block high protein tofu, diced

1/3 cup peanut butter
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp sugar or evaporated cane juice
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/3 cup warm water

2 tbsp oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced and separated into rings

First make the rice, by combining the water, rice and turmeric in a rice cooker or by cooking on the stove.

Once the rice is cooked, fluff with a fork.

To make the peanut dressing, combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside

To make the crispy shallots, heat the oil in your smallest frying pan. When hot, add the shallots and stir occasionally until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

To assemble each salad: Put down a bed of spinach (1-1 1/2 cups). Top with about 1/2 a cup of rice. Top the rice with some cabbage, carrot, tomato, and tofu, then pour some dressing over that and sprinkle with the shallots.

As a kid tomato soup meant two things: Campbell’s and cheese nibblets. I don’t know how many cans of Campbell’s soup I ate growing up, but I’m guessing it’s in the thousands. Tomato was my favorite, followed closely by cream of asparagus and cream of celery. Cheese nibblets are really just little cubes of cheddar cheese (always Tillamook) that were an absolute necessity. I don’t know why we called them nibblets, but I still won’t eat tomato soup without them.

I recently decided that since I’m such a strong advocate of making things from scratch, it was time for me to make my own tomato soup instead of opening a can of Campbell’s. This is a quick, easy tomato soup with a little hint of creaminess. After a long cold run last weekend, it was absolutely perfect.

Recipe:
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup veg broth
1/4 cup whole milk
salt and pepper
1-2 ounces cheddar cheese, cut in small dice

Heat the oil in a medium sauce pan. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until the onion is soft (about 5 minutes. Add the oregano, tomatoes, and vegetable broth and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the milk and season to taste with salt and pepper, then puree with an immersion blender. If the soup is too thick, add a little more vegetable broth. Sprinkle with diced cheese to serve.