I wanted to make a whole grain pizza, which by the way, I never have done successfully before. So, I decided to go straight to the source. The man! One of the most popular Italian chefs in the world… Mr. Mario Batali. And of course viola, he hooked me up and oh yeah, it turned out oh so yummy.
I’m giving full props to the man because I just substituted spelt flour for the all purpose he uses. The consistency of your crust will depend on how thick or thin you wanna shape it. The thicker you go the more bread like it will actually be.
It’s still cold here. And I don’t mean kinda cold. I mean freaking cold. Like snow is still in the forecast. It’s almost April?! I don’t think I am the only one having trouble accepting this very out of control weather pattern. So, this (chilly!) afternoon I am gonna do what any full blooded California girl does when it snows….pretend that spring has sprung and make a Spring Sweet (frozen) organic pea soup!! And it worked. Well, that is until I went outside…brrrrrr… :)
When I was in Italy over the summer I had lemon pasta for the first time and was in heaven. You see, lemons are one of my most favorite fruits. I use them probably everyday, but I never had it in a pasta before! YUM! A lovely brightness to add to your winter meal…
Eating black eye peas on New Year’s Day is thought to bring prosperity for the new year so… eat this yummy stuff UP and have a very very happy successful delicious new year!! And don’t forget your greens!
This is one of my favorite comforting gluten free winter desserts. Your house will smell divinely festive too! Any firm apple works well here: Gala, Fuji, Jonagold, Rome, Winesap, Mutsu. If you use soft apples such as Macintosh or Red delicious you will get more of an apple sauce texture. Hey, could be good too! Try it all I say!! Oh and I like to leave the apple skins on, being that much of the nutrients are in the skin, but if you prefer them without, by all means peel away. Also any seasonal fruit works wonderfully so have fun experimenting with your favorites. You can make this with or without nuts, use any dried fruit, substitute rolled oats for the quinoa flakes and another all purpose whole grain flour for the quinoa flour. Serve warm with a scoop of Nutmeg Ice Cream. Mmmm Mmmmm
I love making vegetable soups. They can be very nourishing and are for the most part very easy to create. And since we got such a wonderful response for my Cauliflower soup, I figured I’d share my Broccoli Leek soup with you all. See which one you like betta…
I came across this recipe many years ago in some foodie magazine and thought I’d try it as a side dish for a winter holiday brunch I was making for a friend. I changed a few things and added a few things and it was a huge hit! Huge. And, yes, it goes perfectly with a nice big green salad and an organic egg omelet.
We escaped the cold ass east coast winter and are staying in a cabin along the Pacific Ocean. It’s warm and beautiful. Winter is a distant memory right now. It is wonderful. We are also staying on a property that has, of course, an incredible organic garden abundant with carrots, garlic, cilantro, greens and lettuces. So I picked up one of my favorite cookbooks, Chez Panisse Vegetables by Alice Waters, for a little inspiration. I had to make a few adjustments here and there, but this recipe is all Alice and it was good. It turned out so delicious that my BF went for his camera. Unfortatley the Monkie left it at the office, so we did the next best thing. We made an iphone video. Now go bite this one!
I love cookbooks. Especially the ones with all those pretty pictures. I fall into those beautiful images and then dig into those recipes. If you can snap a pretty picture, you have me.
This recipe was inspired by a beautiful photo and recipe in a new cookbook by Kim Boyce, called “Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole Grain Flours”. I adapted her recipe to be wheat-free and vegan. In other words, “G” approved. These scones are really best eaten the day of baking them. But if you got leftovers, I would recommend toasting them the next day. Either way, yumminess…. :)
Yogurt is an ancient wonderfood, brimming with beneficial bacteria to keep your gut running good ‘n healthy. But standard yogurt is made with dairy milks – blech – which contain hormones and carcinogens and acids and allergens and irritants. Oh my! But no worries, making your own alt yogurt is *super* easy and totally fun. It also saves a small fortune versus buying prepackaged products (which contain a slew of additives as well).
If you already have a yogurt maker you’re super stoked – and you can still use this recipe, but follow your machine’s directions when it comes time to culture. If you’re interested in making lots of yogurt at home, a yogurt maker may be a good investment for you. They’re really quite cheap – especially if you can find one secondhand (check Craigslist!).
But, a yogurt maker isn’t necessary! I make yogurt in my crock-pot, which is one machine that’s worth the money for all sorts of reasons. (I <3 my crock so much!) But even if you have neither a yogurt maker nor a crock-pot, you can *still* make yogurt at home! Just see the note at the end of this post. Continue Reading / Additional Photos / Videos
This is not one of my typical nice and easy recipes, but it’s so delicious that I couldn’t help myself and spend half of my day in the kitchen trying to recreate something I ate a couple of days ago. To be more precise, these should be the infamous mini bites with cashew, vegetables and portobello mushrooms as stated on the menu of the Food Forum list. They were part of our free lunch menu, created by the Chefs of Menu magazine and tasted so good that I ignored my natural sense of shame, got back to the table and asked for one more :)
The main problem with preparing the bites at home was that I had absolutely no idea what’s in them except for the obvious part – vegetables and mushrooms. So I decided to trust my palate and cooked them combining most of my favorite vegetables – broccoli, cauliflower, aubergines, carrots, garlic, red peppers and baby spinach. A feast for all the senses with the added portobello mushrooms, cashews, ginger and powdered indian pecans.
Except for the divine food the Forum was also rich in interesting lectors and visitors, a bunch of raw chefs, vegans, Ayurveda specialists, nutritionists, all kinds of healthy foodists and some misguided adventurers like my paraglider instructor. The best place to meet “one of your kind” and share ideas. Like the girl who offered to sell me earrings made of small jars filled with flaxseeds… really cute. Or a vegan canadian woman working for the bulgarian Cru restaurant. People like “uncle Mitko” who decided to start a biodynamic agriculture farm at the age of 55 and working in it for 15 years now! That man looked better at 70 then most 50 years old you can meet on the street. A marvelous event, which I wish will happen more often from now on, because the 400 seats theater was sold out well in advance and lots of people couldn’t attend. Great job, Gorichka, for the Food forum!
“Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die” – a graffiti quote seen in Belgrade from one of the Food Forum lectors, Yana Petkova.
You will never make hummus again. Well, maybe you will but I promise you will make this recipe more! It’s one of my all time favorites. So full of flavor and so satisfying. Toast some whole grain bread or pita and you’ve got a wonderful appetizer for your holiday dinner parties.
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