Friday, July 18, 2008
Adios
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Hummus
This recipe, however, was pretty straight forward: puree in a food processor chickpeas, tahini, garlic, cumin powder, lemon juice, oil, salt & pepper, and liquid from chickpeas if necessary.
Done!
Thoughts: this was a great recipe! I think after it has time to sit in the fridge, it will taste even better!
Corn Salad
Ingredients and Directions
1) Take off the kernels from the corn and saute in oil for about 5 minutes. Take off the heat, add chopped red onion and chili powder
2) Meanwhile combine seeded and chopped tomato, cubed avocado, chopped cilantro, lime juice and chopped pepper (Bittman said to use a red pepper, but at $2.60/red pepper, I decided to be a bit more money conscious and chose a green pepper)
3) Once the corn has cooled, combine with the rest of ingredients. Season with salt & pepper and serve
Thoughts: At first I was really excited about this recipe because I love tomatoes and avocados. Once I made it, I thought it was a bit mediocre. However, after it sat for a bit, the flavors be-friended each other, and the taste improved.
P.S. I'll admit I'm not crazy about the photo. It is what it is.P.P.S. I had this salad for lunch today: it was good, but the avocados have turned brown. Unless you are planning to eat the salad directly after you make it, add avocados only directly before serving.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Huevos Rancheros
1) preheat the oven to 350
2) make 4 eggs over-easy and season with salt & pepper (the picture is not of finished eggs)
3) cook tortillas in oil for a 5 seconds on each side and smear with refried beans
6) top with salsa and cheddar cheese
7) bake in the oven about 5 minutes, or until the cheese melts; top with cilantro and serve immediately
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
The Simplest Bean Burger
Ingredients and Directions
1) In a food processor pulse cooked or canned beans (I used kidney beans), oats, chili powder, an onion, an egg, and salt & pepper (do not let the mixture get to the pureed state)
2) Let the mixture rest for a bit
3) Form the mixture into patties and let rest
4) Cook the patties in oil for 5 minutes on the first side, turn, and cook for a few more minutes on the second side
Thoughts: the flavor was pretty good, but the patties did not really hold together too well. Not sure I'll make this exact recipe again. Sorry, Mark. If you happen to read this, I'd love to hear your suggestions for improvement :)
Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Red Pepper Vinaigrette
vinaigrette
The Salad
Thoughts: good thing I like sweet potatoes and that this recipe turned out awesome, because there is a lot of it! I think next time it would be beneficial to roast the red pepper before pureeing it in the vinaigrette.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Raw Beet Salad with Carrots and Ginger
I love beets, but have never tried them raw.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Chickpeas and Arugula salad
Curried Potatoes
Directions: Cook cumin seeds in oil, add 1/2 of a finely chopped red onion, grated Yukon potatoes, garam masala and a pinch of cayenne. Season with salt & pepper and cook for about 10 minutes. Add fresh cilantro, take off the heat and serve with a garnish of raw chopped red onion.
I added a bit of homemade yogurt to cut the heat.
Thoughts: I think this will be a fun way to make mashed potatoes with an Indian influence: instead of adding butter, add cumin seeds, garam masala and cilantro. Or use the original recipe and pour eggs over it for a quick omelet.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Bulgur and Tomato Salad
The salad was ridiculously easy to put together: tomatoes, red onions, feta, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt & pepper, oregano and of course bulgur. This is something I make quite often with cous-cous and a variety of vegetables, but I would never have put oregano in as well (it addde a really nice flavor).
Confession: the recipe called for red pepper flakes, but I was out of them and was too lazy to walk over to World Market.
Thoughts: I think I'll start using bulgur instead of cous-cous from now on. Why? Because bulgur is actually wheat and has more of a bite and texture than cous-cous.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Lemony Lentil Salad
The recipe was very simple. Cook lentils in water with a bay leaf and a few garlic cloves (I smashed mine to release more flavor). Then drain and combine with the vinaigrette prepared from lemon juice, lemon segments, minced red onion (or chives or shallots), capers, olive oil, and salt & pepper. The warm lentils soak up the vinaigrette right away.
Thoughts: good combination of flavors. Not sure if I overcooked my peas slightly or whether I'll make this again, but a good first try nonetheless.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Welcome to my new blog!
Why another blog?
1) I LOVE Mark Bittman (I read his Minimalist columns in New York Times, watch his videos, and enjoy his shows on PBS)
2) I never use cookbooks and instead make up my own recipes. This will be a fun and new way to answer "what's for dinner?"
3) This will be a theme-specific blog: nothing about shopping, jewelry, flowers, etc, but don't be afraid! You'll still be able to read about these topics in my original blog.
4) No, I'm not going to be a vegetarian: I love meat and fish too much. But with the prices of food going up, it would not hurt to learn a few new vegetarian dishes.
I ordered the cookbook today and will start posting as soon as it comes! Check back soon :)