tarragon chickpea salad sandwich

In the sorority house, we always knew it was a special occasion when the chef would make tarragon chicken salad sandwiches. I nibbled these little sandwiches when I was decked out in pastels, wearing the most subtle heels I own, with a signature half up-do. Just like Reba said, "I's gonna be a lady someday, but I didn't know how...".  Here's your one chance Fancy don't let me down.  I'd be on my best behavior, at my most civilized.

The chicken salad was chock full of grapes and nuts, laced with tarragon, and served on pillowy and sweet little brioche rolls. This sandwich recipe is a twist on the chickpea of the sea salad sandwich, and is less savory, sweeter and juicier, and texturally more interesting. This sandwich would be great on a menu for a baby or bridal shower, served on mini-rolls.

So fancy.

'fancy' chickpea salad sandwich (makes one sandwich)
 
1/3 can chickpeas
handful of grapes, cut in half
.5 handful of walnuts, crushed and toasted
1 small celery stalk, finely diced
handful of tender greens
1 tbsp tarragon
1 tbsp veganaisse
pinch of salt
crack of black pepper
squeeze of lemon juice

Mash the chickpeas. Mix the tarragon, veganaisse, salt, black pepper, and lemon juice. Stir together all of the ingredients gently. Spread generously on your sandwich!

the best hummus- the *BEST* hummus (and quinoa tabbouleh)

Hummus often serves as the "token vegetarian option" on party platters, but the ubiquitous and lackluster bean spread can be disappointing enough to make you forget about how delicious hummus can be!  But there is no need to accept mediocrity. Gilt Taste has cracked the code on the most velvety, sumptuous, and silky hummus!

I usually make my own hummus; store-bought hummus can have preservatives like sodium benzoate, and you never know the quality or amount of oil they put into the hummus. Unfortunately, I have never reached the kind of heavenly smooth hummus achieved by the really good Mediterranean restaurants. I have tried everything from blending the garbanzos with ice cubes to heating the beans before blending them, with very little success. Fortunately, I found this article on Gilt for 'elevated' hummus. I followed all of the instructions exactly (which go against all of my instincts) and it's worth it!

With out further ado, the recipe copied exactly from Gilt Taste:

"1. If you want great hummus, you must use dried chickpeas--the canned ones will never become transcendent. Buy the smallest ones you can find, and plan ahead to soak them overnight.

2. Soak and cook the chickpeas with a little baking soda to make the beans very tender. Baking soda creates an alkaline environment that allows water to penetrate the chickpeas more easily; it make an enormous difference, giving you a hummus that’s as smooth as satin.

3. Remove all the skins from the chickpeas after cooking. This takes a while, but it’s a meditative process that I find enormously pleasurable. Don’t rush it.

4. Cool the chickpeas before you puree them: The starch crystals in the chickpeas break down more easily when they are warm; this is not a good thing, since it will make the puree pasty. Cool your chickpeas, and you’ll have lighter hummus.

5. Use the best tahini you can find. Its flavor will dominate the hummus, so if you’re using one that is bitter (like the most commonly available commercial kind), your hummus will suffer. Taste it before adding it to the puree; it should be slightly sweet and quite nutty, and it doesn’t have to be fancy—I use one I buy at a kind of earthshoe / vegetarian store.

6. Use good garlic - and not too much. The flavor of hummus is so subtle that one bad clove of garlic is a death sentence.

7. Hummus will keep for a couple of days, but like many things, it is at its peak the moment it is made. (The great hummus places in the Middle East all make theirs daily.) Rush your hummus to the table as soon as you have made it.

8. Serve your hummus with good pita and an array of condiments, allowing your guests to tailor their hummus to their own tastes.

Hummus

1½ cups dried chickpeas
1 tablespoon baking soda plus ¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ to ½ cup raw (as opposed to roasted) tahini
1 lemon, juiced
1-2 garlic cloves
salt, to taste
olive oil, to taste
cumin, to taste

1. Put the chickpeas in a colander and go through them carefully, discarding small stones and broken peas.
2. Wash the chickpeas, and put them in a bowl with enough water to allow them to double in volume. Stir in a tablespoon of baking soda and soak them overnight.
3. Drain and rinse the chickpeas and put them in a large pot. Cover with about 5 cups of water (the water should be about 2 inches above the beans) and add the remaining ¼ teaspoon of baking soda. Bring the water to a boil, turn the heat down, cover, and cook over low heat until the chickpeas are very soft; it should take about two hours. If the water cooks away, add more. Drain, but reserve the cooking liquid.
4. Rub the chickpeas between your fingers under cold running water to remove the skins. Put on some music; it’s a time-consuming process.
5. The chickpeas should be cool now. Put them in a food processor with the garlic, and lemon juice, a quarter cup of the cooking liquid and the tahini. (How much you use will depend on your taste; traditionally you’d use about half a cup, but I find that makes the sesame flavor too dominant for my taste.) Process for 4 or 5 minutes, until it is smooth and creamy, with the dreamy texture of just-made frozen custard. It should be very soft and smooth. If it’s too thick add more liquid. Add salt to taste."

BONUS! My proteinaceous tabbouleh 

quinoa tabbouleh

1 c quinoa 

1.5 c water

as many ripe tomatoes as you can find

fistful of cilantro

bunch of green onions

lime juice from 2 limes

salt

Cook the quinoa over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, or until it is tender as you like it. Carefully dice the tomatoes, slice the green onion (break up the rings so you don't get big chunks) and finely chop the cilantro.Gently toss the cooled quinoa with the chopped ingredients and lime juice. Salt to taste.

tempeh bacon sandwich

After 3 weeks, 4 states, and 55 hours of travel, I have finally landed back home. On my drive from New York to Pennsylvania, I stopped by a Trader Joe's and I picked up some tempeh. After a spectacularly unsuccessful attempt to make tempeh shepard's pie, I have been gun-shy about using tempeh for the last few years. But, after having the BLT at Blossom in Chelsea, I was willing to give tempeh another chance. As soon as I got home, I soaked the tempeh in this marinade, and the next day whipped up this sandwich.

tempeh marinade (makes enough for two sandwiches)

1/2 package of tempeh
1/4 c soy sauce or Bragg's
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 shake of BBQ seasoning, spice rub, or a combination of cumin, paprika and cayenne
1 tbsp sesame oil
splash of liquid smoke

Marinate as long as you can stand it. When ready to make the sandwiches, cook the tempeh in a thin sheen of oil until it browns and caramelizes.

sandwich, assemble! (for one sandwich)

2 slices Ezekiel 7 grain bread
4 slices tempeh bacon
butter lettuce
1/4 avocado
vegenaisse
mustard

Smash the avocado into one slice of bread. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread a combination of the mayo and mustard on the other half of the bread. Layer the tempeh and lettuce.

vegetable stir-fry with peanut-molasses sauce

Sugar has been getting a bad rap lately. From being compared to heroin, to being called a poison, we can expect that BigSugar will be launching some PR control soon. I am apathetic about sugar- I think it tastes too sweet, and prefer a pickle over chocolate any day. But cooking is about balance, and often you need a touch of sweet to balance the savory. That is why I put honey in my tahini sauce, and why I was looking for a sweet addition to a stir fry with peanut sauce. I don't buy sugar, but I keep molasses in the house (recipe for BBQ sauce to come!) This stir-fry was pretty run-of-the mill: buckwheat noodles, lots of vegetables, and baked tofu with roasted edamame. You can use any combo of veggies with this, and I bet it would be good over brown rice, too. The ingredient that made this transcend was the molasses in the peanut sauce. I can't wait to make it again.

Vegetable Stir-Fry

1 bundle of buckwheat noodles
3/4 cup of shredded red cabbage
1/4 red onion, chopped
1 carrot, sliced
6 stalks kale, sliced
1/2 c snap peas
1/2 c edamame
1/2 block baked tofu
Soy Sauce

Peanut-Butter Molasses Sauce

1 tbsp peanut butter
1/4 c soy sauce
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 inch of ginger, grated
 1 tbsp molasses

Microwave the peanut butter with the soy sauce and the molasses for 30 seconds. Spoon a few tablespoons of boiling water from the buckwheat noodles (or hot water if you are making rice). Add pressed garlic and grated ginger to the hot mixture, and whisk with a fork. 

blue corn tamales with purple potatoes and smoked mozzarella

I'm not sure why there is the "Young and the Restless" haze on this tamale, but let's go with it.

Some days, it takes everything you've got just to get dinner on the table. On days like that, I almost always churn out some version of a brown rice bowl. Other days, I feel like I can do anything: dominate a TRX yoga class, win DinoRush, or even try a new mermaid braid- MERBRAID. Today, I made tamales!

For these tamales, I used a combination of blue corn meal (higher in protein!) and Maseca. For the filling, I used purple potatoes and smoked mozzarella. These tamales turned out so cute; I served them with my bright green salsa.

Purple Potato Filling

12 purple potatoes, chopped finely
.5 white onion
pinch cumin
pinch coriander
.5 bottle Lost Gold IPA
salt

I sauteed the purple potatoes with onion and spices, and deglazed the pan with my favorite local IPA. You could use water or vegetable broth. Make sure the potatoes are completely cooked.

Blue Cornmeal

2 c blue cornmeal (I bought this in the bulk section of Central Market)
.5 c maseca
1.5 c vegetable broth
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp butter, melted
pinch salt

Mix the two corn meals with baking powder and salt. Whisk in the liquids until frothy.  This batter should be thicker than pancake mix.

 Tamale, Assemble!

Spoon a modest amount of cornmeal mix (about three inches) onto the corn husk, leaving a little well. Line up the purple potatoes, and place a slice of smoked mozzarella (or legit Mexican cheese) on the cornmeal. Roll up the husk, enveloping the filling with the cornmeal as much as possible. Wrap up the husk and tie the husk with strips of broken husk.

There are a few ways to steam the tamale. I have asian dumpling steaming baskets that work very well for tamales... you just stack them up over a pan of steaming water. Arrange the tamales flat in the steaming basket, giving them enough room to slightly expand. Or, you can stand the tamales upright in a steaming basket in a pot (if you have a chicken roaster or vegetable steamer).

Steam the tamales for 40 minutes, or until the meal separates easily from the husk (the cheese might slightly stick to the husk, and that's alright!) Open the tamale up like a little papoose and top with this creamy green sauce.

Creamy Green Sauce

I make this sauce for big parties where I can't afford to avocado everyone up. 'Cause I'm not RICH!

2 avocados
.5 a raw onion, chopped
2 poblano peppers, chopped
4 jalapenos peppers, chopped
juice of 1 lime
handful of cilantro
2 cloves of garlic
salt

Blend up all of the ingredients, adding dribbles of water to loosen the sauce. This simple sauce is so delicious, even homemade tortillas are just a homely vehicle for this liquid gold on it's journey to my mouth.

tomato soup

What a crazy month. I finished my first year of PhD, ran a half marathon, and moved our five bedroom house across town into an old bed and breakfast. I love our new house; it has all of these old nooks and crannies, and I have been able to do a lot of home improvement. The kitchen is of course the first thing I set up in a new house. Because I have a little more free time, I have been taking the time to make the elaborate dishes that I never have time for. A massive pile of fresh corn tortillas, vegan French onion soup, and leek broth have made it on the menu in the last two weeks.

Tonight, I made something simple: grilled cheese and tomato soup. Y'all know how I feel about tomatoes, so I started with Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes. For tomato soup, I wanted to achieve deep flavor, and eliminate the taste of canned tomatoes. I have recently been reminded about the importance of using the secret weapons that make things tasty. This is especially important for vegetarian and vegan foods that unfortunately, can sometimes be bland. Here are my secret weapons of flavor:

1. Herbs. If they are available to you, buy as many fresh herbs as you can. Today, I have used both thyme and tarragon I bought at a farmers market. For thicker, woody herbs, crush them to get all of their flavor. With thyme and rosemary, I like to crush it into salt if I am not cooking with them (if they don't hit the heat).

2. Spices. Be sure to toast the spices to release any oils.

3. Fats. AVOCADOOOOOO. Sorry about that, I can't help myself. Because it adds calories, I try to be intelligent about the fats I use. If the onions and veg don't need a lot of olive oil, I save that fat for cheese on toast, or avocado in my salad. While I am judicious with the fat I cook with, we absolutely need fat to absorb nutrients, and our brain, skin, and other organs need it too! It's delicious. Don't be afraid of fat.

4. Salt. Salt brings out the flavor of food. If you are cooking at home, you are already eating much less salt than you would otherwise. If you need to avoid salt, make it front and center on the dish. I usually chronically under salt, and then add it as I am eating (unless I am cooking for someone else.)

This tomato soup uses all of these principles of flavor.

2 sprigs of thyme
1 can diced fire roasted tomatoes
1 c white wine
1 white onion
Cumin
Paprika
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 streak of olive oil 
Fresh ground pepper
Salt

Sweat the onion for five minutes. Add the spices and thyme sprigs (whole) and the crushed garlic. Deglaze the pot with the white wine and let it reduce. Add the tomatoes and simmer as long as you can stand it. Remove the thyme, and blend up the soup.

wheatberry vegan paella

I don't think I have ever eaten or made paella, but I was somehow was craving it last week. I wanted wheatberries, smokey flavors, and briney olives and artichokes. Apparently, paella should have a crust on the bottom, and my big blue le crueset worked perfectly to crisp up the bottom.

I made a huge batch of this for me and my roommates for our "Yay we got a house, let's drink two family-sized bottles of wine"! dinner. I served this paella with a huge salad with pumpkin seeds and this tahini dressing.

Vegan Paella

3 links Field Roast Italian Sausage
Smoked tofu
1.5 c wheatberries
a little under 3 c vegetable broth
1 can artichokes
10 olives, sliced thin
3 carrots, diced
1 c spinach
1 big can of fire-roasted tomatoes
1 diced red onion
2 cloves garlic
Paprika
Oregano
Thyme

Saute vegetables. Add spices and garlic, and cook for a minute. Then add the wheatberries and vegetable broth. While that is simmering, cook the smoked tofu and Field Roast until crisp in a separate pan. Cut the quartered artichokes in half, and slice the olives if they are not already sliced. Arrange the proteins, artichokes and olives over the rice.

blueberry dream smoothie

After eight months of living in the Branch Ranch, the motley crew and I are moving again. We have our heart set on a beautiful home in Boalsburg, 6 miles away. We hope that we can stay together, and are waiting to hear if our application for the home got approved. Fingers crossed!

In addition lots of uncertainty, this move means that I had to be ready to provide a $500 deposit with a few days notice. Since payday is still 8 days away, I vowed to not spend any money until my paycheck drops. So, I am getting creative with what I have in my pantry and freezer. This also means I am accepting my roommates' on-its-way-out fruits and vegetables. Last night, I froze some of Katie's dismal bananas for a smoothie. Right after I froze them, I read this article about bananas, and consulted our house dietitian (Katie) for her analysis. She said that it matters more what you eat with the bananas- note taken.

Today, my kitchen alchemy produced what I'm calling a "blueberry dream" smoothie. Amber is smoothie-obsessed (Vitamix in the house!), and I took some inspiration from a smoothie her mom made called "dreamscicle." I made this smoothie with a blender (and coffee grinder), so you don't need the all-mighty Vitamix to blend this one up. The protein from the silken tofu balances the smoothie, plus you get Omega-3s from the ground flax seed! This blended into a gorgeous periwinkle color, and the silken tofu made it super-creamy.

Blueberry Dream 

2 peeled, frozen bananas
1 c blueberries
cold filtered water
1 tbsp ground flax seed (I grind this in a coffee grinder)
1/4 c shredded, unsweetened coconut (I pilfered this from our baking lazy-susan)
1/2 package of silken tofu
toss some salt over your shoulder for good luck

Layer flax, bananas, blueberries coconut and tofu into the blender. Splash some water to get it going. Drizzle in water until you get the consistency you want (this could be anywhere from soft-serve to straw-drinkable.)

the token "between-seasons dinner" post: Ratatouille Edition

It’s time for the quintessential *finger in dimple*, “Gee, golly the seasons are changing again!” food blog post. In State College, we are bordering g the edge of winter and spring- this transition is somewhat imperceptible thanks to the PA’s Merciful Winter 2011-12. Before we know it, we will have farmers markets again, along with real tomatoes! In the meantime, I have been craving something light, but warm, so you can still wrap your hands around a mug of something steamy, in case you forgot your new “mittens.”

At school, for the last month, I have been assembling my committee. I wish this was as easy as “News Team, Assemble!” but it takes a lot of thought and communication. Asking someone to be on your committee is a bit like asking someone to prom, if the prom will last four intense, challenging years, with the expectation of a nervous breakdown or two (sounds  like a Gossip Girl Prom!). It looks like things are starting to come together (fingers crossed!), and I feel really lucky to be working with the incredible faculty at Penn State.

Thanks to my habit of freezing meals, I have been able to cook for myself for most of this process, even though I have been short on time. Unfortunately, this means I wasn’t able to use all my vegetables before going on vacation. Right before leaving for Spring Break in Houston, Texas (that’s right, Mexican food post to come!), I needed use a huge eggplant, two bell peppers, mushrooms, kale, some carrots, and onion. The answer: Ratatouille! I served this with whole wheat pasta, but I would have liked it just on its own, or with some crusty multi-grain bread. We didn’t have tomato paste, so I thickened this up with some ground flax seed… I think this is what made the dish. The consistency was perfect. Bon Appétit! 

Ratatouille

1 eggplant, cut into small cubes, sprinkled with salt*

2 bell peppers, cut into the same size

3 carrots, cut into the same size

1 can of good** chopped tomatoes

Half a head of kale, sliced lengthwise and cut into ribbons

10 cremini mushrooms,*** cut into halves or quarters, as uniform as you can make them

2 tbsp ground flax seeds

1 c vegetable broth

1 Tbsp Herbes de Provence

2 tsp red pepper flake

Olive oil

Salt 

Brown mushrooms, push to the side of the pot. Add the rest of the vegetables, and sauté with the herbs, garlic, red pepper flake, and salt for about a minute. Add the vegetable broth, canned tomatoes, and flax seed. Let simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables look soft and ratatouille-y.

* I have heard that it is rare to find a bitter eggplant these days. I usually salt the eggplant, mostly because I like to see it sweat!

** I always shudder when Ina Garten says use “good” olive oil, vinegar, etc. But with tomatoes, you don’t want to skimp. If you can’t find “good” tomatoes (San Marzano, or Muir Glen fire roasted) don’t use them at all.

*** Some have argued that cremini mushrooms have more flavor. I have no scientific studies to support this, but I think it is true. But the most important thing to remember is how you cook them!

blood orange salad

I have often heard that food is tied to memory. The New York Times article reflecting on this connection muses, "In many ways, a great dish is like a great memoir: in both, the salty, the bitter, the sweet and the tart must be in perfect balance to succeed." For many of us, the taste, smell, and sight of a meal can recall a memory, transporting us through time and space to a connected experience that nestled itself in our consciousness. So often, food spurs the affect of safety; this is why we are drawn to what we call "comfort foods."

I think the "comfort" that comes from enjoying these foods does not come exclusively from the pleasure we experience by tasting fat, sugar, or salt, but also because we have a sense of connectedness to something. We are reminded, through visceral experience, of a time when we were content.

I am lucky to have many of these memories. I remember making flour tortillas with my Abuelita early in the morning while the rest of the family was asleep, her skilled hands transforming soft dough into pillowy tortillas. I love my Gramma's decadent mac and cheese, and our wonderfully elaborate and beautiful Christmas dinners in Boston. I used to request my mom's savory chicken simmering in tomato sauce with olives and carrots. The first time I really experimented with cooking, I doctored Hunt's plain tomato sauce with liberal amounts of black pepper poured over spaghetti- my brother used to request "my special spaghetti sauce".

In college, I refined my cooking skills. I hosted my first dinner party, and prepared Margherita paninis for my roommates and our dates before a sorority formal dance. I lovingly rubbed garlic on the hot toasted bread, tearing bits of floral basil to melt between fresh mozzarella and razor-thin slices of tomato.That meal wasn't just the result of an equation of studied recipes, fresh ingredients, and food chemistry. To prepare that meal, I gave a part of myself. Somehow, with the love I put into my cooking, the result is usually much greater than the sum of the parts. This love is where the meaning comes from; this is where the memories are.

Last week, I bought some blood oranges on a whim. I am not a fruit bat like my roommates, but I knew I wanted to make something special with this orange. I settled on making a blood orange salad, drawing inspiration from this recipe from Joy the Baker. This is a simple salad, but I hesitated when I began to prepare the orange. I wanted to recreate the gorgeous orange pinwheels from Joy the Baker, but was afraid to peel the orange with a knife. I was afraid I didn't have the skill to separate the peel without piercing the flesh of the orange.

As I held my paring knife against the orange peel, I remembered watching my Papa peel fruit. Hands steady, Papa worked his way around an apple or orange, taking away the bitter peels so we could enjoy the sweet fruit. I had never attempted this technique, but I imitated my Papa: start at the top, and move slowly around, separating the peel in a smooth, circular motion. Peeling that orange took me back to a place thousands of miles away, and many years ago, when my Papa would carefully take away the bitter, and keep the sweet. He still does, even if he isn't close enough to peel my oranges for me anymore.

Blood Orange Salad

1 blood orange
Handful of toasted walnuts
Sprinkle of feta cheese
Spring greens or spinach
Fruity olive oil
Fresh-cracked black pepper
Salt

Peel the orange over a bowl to catch any orange juice. Carefully slice into pinwheels. Whisk orange juice (squeeze a pinwheel into the bowl if you didn't spill any juice) with a fruity olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss with feta, nuts, and greens.

pro tip: taste the rainbow

Have you ever heard that you taste first with your eyes? No matter what I cook, I always take care to focus on the aesthetic element. When you cook with a lot of vegetables, one advantage is that you have a diverse palate to draw from when cooking. Use a variety of colorful ingredients when cooking a stir fry, roasting vegetables, and like I made this weekend, cooking vegetable lasagna. A colorful dish has health benefits, and can make cooking more fun.

These vegetables went into my vegetable lasagna. I am admittedly a little irrationally carb-phobic (a product of growing up in an Atkins world), so for this lasagna, I used two layers of pasta, and one layer of Swiss chard. I also substituted smashed tofu for half of the ricotta. For the tofucotta, incorporate smashed tofu with half of the ricotta, and fresh cracked black pepper and salt. No one will notice the tofu, and it adds extra protein. To ratchet up the protein even more, I added TVP to the tomato sauce. Finally, I only put mozzarella on the top layer of lasagna, so it is front and center. Before you know it, you will be experiencing the Double Rainbow effect. 

Bubbly lasagna

introducing... magnificent millet!

For the last year, quinoa and kale have been the cool kids on the block- in my kitchen and on my favorite food blogs. For dinner last night I wanted to flip the script... so, here is the debut of lemon-scented millet and broccoli rabe! Millet is a source of magnesium, manganese, iron, and protein (Livestrong), and broccoli rabe is a lovely leafy green vegetable that sounds and looks pretty fancy. The flavor of broccoli rabe is like a melange of kale, broccoli, and asparagus. I like to think of broccoli rabe as the socialite Alva Vanderbilt of leafy greens- it's a little snobby, but it will surprise you by partying with humble grains like millet, or, you know, establishing the first suffrage settlement house (dark greens are amazing!). Don't get me started on the CZ Guest of leafy greens- arugula.

I cooked the millet in my rice cooker... it has been a miracle appliance for me (thanks, Amber). When I cook quinoa and wheat berries the rice cooker, I never burn it and it never overflows. Like my GPS 'Eglantine', the rice cooker knows best. The millet turned out perfectly fluffy,with a texture that I like better than rice.


So, remember this sauce? I drizzled it over the vegetables and millet, also used it as salad dressing the next day.

Pan-Seared Vegetables on Lemon-Scented Millet with Tahini Sauce

.5 c millet
1.5 c water
1 head of cauliflower broken into small florets
1 c chopped mushrooms
.5 bunch of broccoli rabe (about 5 stalks, trimmed like asparagus)
.5 sliced red onion
.5 sliced yellow bell pepper
1 crushed clove garlic
drizzle of olive oil
.5 a lemon
pinch of red pepper flake
salt

Tahini Sauce

Start the millet and water in a rice cooker or pot. Nestle a clove of crushed garlic in the millet and water. When finished, remove the clove, and fluff the millet with some grated lemon zest and salt. While this is cooking, get ready to sear the mushrooms.

Pause! This is important. :) Cook the mushrooms first. Starting with a drizzle of olive oil, give them plenty of room to brown in the pan. When they smell all mushroom-y (3-4 min on medium high heat), flip them, and let the other side brown. When both sides are brown, put them in the serving dish (or in my case, tupperware). Sprinkle them with salt, and let them chill. (I think mushrooms are magical little golden nuggets of flavor, but they are a little high maintenance if you want to make the most of them. It's worth it!)


Next, sear the rest of the vegetables with salt, red pepper flake, and a squeeze of lemon, and arrange over the fluffed  millet. Drizzle generously with tahini sauce, and commence feeling RICHER. I ate this meal while watching the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Reunion, and I felt almost as sophisticated as my beloved Lisa Vanderpump.

brussels sprouts hash with toasted almonds

Brussels sprouts have had a recent renaissance. Some have paired with with bacon, but I think the crispy greens work perfectly without adding too many accessories. This hash is composed of shredded brussels sprouts, lemon juice, and toasted almonds. This was absolutely fantastic with Field Roast smoked apple sage sausage (pricey, but worth it!).

Brussels Sprout Hash


Brussels Sprouts, sliced really thin
Slivered almonds
One lemon
Salt


Cook the brussels sprouts in a non-stick pan- don't move them around too much, or they won't brown. You can use olive oil; I like to drizzle a thin line of olive oil on one side of the pan, heat the oil and then move the pan around to coat in olive oil. When they get close to being done, push the brussels sprouts to the side and toast the slivered almonds. When the nuts are toasted (watch them!), squeeze some lemon juice, grate some lemon zest, and sprinkle salt. Mix this together, and enjoy!

New obsession: Rubbed Kale Salad

You can almost hear the cruciferous green exclaim, "take me to dinner first!" I love this salad because it will keep you full for hours, and do I need to you tell how healthy and delicious dark leafy greens are? I have also used mustard and other hearty greens in this salad- the key is to use a green that can hold up to a strong massage without wilting. The rubbed greens salad is more of a technique than a recipe, much like the formula for soup.

Start with fresh kale (or other leafy greens). Wash the kale and be sure the kale is completely dry. Chop the kale leaves into ribbons, and drizzle a small amount of oil into the kale leaves. Rub and massage the leaves on the cutting board or in the bowl. Squeeze lemon juice over the kale, or use some other homemade dressing. Sprinkle with salt and fresh-cracked black pepper. Set aside. Add one of each:

Christmas kale salad!

Nuts and seeds:

Sunflower seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Slivered almonds
Sliced almonds
Peanuts
Walnuts

+Pro-Tip: Toast the nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat before sprinkling them on your salad. The heat releases the oils and gives you the loveliest nut flavor.

Fruit:

Sliced Apples
Sliced Pear
Raisins
Dried cranberries
Dried blueberries
Dried cherries

++Pro-Tip: Look for the kind without added sugar or HFCS (high fructose corn syrup). If you are shopping at the regular grocery store, the raisins are usually unsweetened (Thanks for the tip, Katie!).

If it tickles your fancy, add cheese:

Feta
Parmesean
Ricotta Salata

+++Pro-Tip: Pick something salty and crumbly.

Recently, I ate the salad with some homemade smoked sun-dried tomato salad dressing I made for the week.This dressing is incredibly savory and delicious. After trying the dressing, one of my roommates said, "It tastes like... pepperoni!" This dressing gives the umami taste you might get from miso, mushrooms, soy sauce, and other savory flavors. After soaking the smoked sun-dried tomatoes in hot water, I blended a handful of the tomatoes, lemon juice, lemon zest,  and salt and pepper. After the tomatoes are pureed, I spun up a dribble of the tomato water, a small dollop of Veganiasse, honey, and olive oil, to get the consistency I wanted (I like a looser dressing).

Pro Tip: Rub garlic on toasted bread

Few things pair better than toasty, crunchy bread and melted cheese. No matter what variation you choose (mozzarella, basil and tomato panini, applewood smoked cheddar on multi-grain, or classic american on white bread), there is one element that will take your sandwich to the next level: Garlic!

Even if you do not have any garlic flavor in your sandwich, rubbing garlic on the hot bread will give your sandwich that unnameable "extra" something special. The trick is to rub garlic on the bread when the bread is still piping hot: when you flip the sandwich on the griddle, immediately rub garlic on that side, and then rub the garlic on the other side when the sandwich is done.

Extra tip: I don't like to get the garlic on my hands if I can help it- to avoid this, I cut the tip of the garlic (the hard part that connects to the bulb) and leave the skin on. Then, holding by the skin, I rub the cut part of the garlic on the hot bread. Sprinkle a little salt and I promise your sandy will go from The Real Housewives of Orange County to The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (UPGRADE!).