Grains and Pasta
Roasted Tomato Sauce, Make Pasta, Freeze the Rest
I didn’t have a huge harvest this week, but that’s the great thing about this method. 10 tomatoes, 60 tomatoes, it works either way. Just halve them, roast them, puree them. Use them today, in this easy pasta, or freeze the sauce for later. My small pile of tomatoes made about 3 cups of puree, and I used 1 cup for this pasta. The rest went into the freezer, for winter pasta feasts, soups, and other uses.
Inari and Onigiri with Fresh Shiso Leaf
You can easily enjoy the flavors of your favorite sushi without learning how to make rolls. Onigiri and Inari are the perfect answer to a sushi craving, with no special tools or much investment of your time. I made this with the Shiso leaves I grew in my garden, but you can enjoy this without, it too. Inari and Onigiri are entry-level Japanese rice shapes that anyone can make.
Sesame Noodles with Peapods, Yum!
Sesame noodles are a classic Chinese restaurant dish, and are a regular in the rotation at my kitchen, too. The flavor of sesame is endlessly appealing, a combination of nuttiness and richness that can swerve to the sweet or the savory for delectable results. In this easy noodle dish, we’ll build umami and depth with a few easy additions-including brewed black tea. As the weather warms, cold meals like Sesame Noodles with Peapods will be perfect for a light meal on the patio.
Long Life Lunar New Years Noodles with Tofu
Let’s celebrate the Year of the Tiger! It’s Lunar New Year, celebrated in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam, and Southeast Asia, as well as everywhere people who trace their origins to those places have landed. After two years of pandemic, worries, I think it’s fair to try a few lucky foods from Asian traditions. We can use all the Lunar New Year luck we can get!
One-Pan Spaghetti with Chickpeas
When I’m out in the world, teaching and speaking about food, I meet people who say they are too busy to cook. Life gets crazy, things pile up, and the next thing you know, you’re eating chips out of a bag, or picking up take-out. Either of those options will fill you up, but it’s probably not going to nourish you the way you deserve to be nourished. It is also a waste of money to eat take out, when you can make a meal for just a few bucks at home.That’s where this One-Pan Spaghetti with Chickpeas comes in. Grab a big pot and start sautéing half a chopped onion, and while it softens, chop some garlic, grate some lemon zest, halve grape tomatoes, chop a carrot. Don’t bother to put on a pot of water to cook the spaghetti-it’s going to cook in the pot with the veggies!
Make Spicy “Tuna” Maki, Plant Based
Do You Love Sushi?
If you follow my instagram, you have probably noticed that I have been teaching sushi classes for many years. In fact, sushi is one of my great loves, and I respect the traditions. I also can’t stop myself from occasionally making a completely untraditional riff on sushi. So it’s out of love that I took a popular roll, the Spicy Tuna Roll, and made a plant based version. Instead of fish, I made watermelon tuna.
Craving Creamy? Avocado Ice Cream and Pasta!
Craving Creamy?Avocados Hit the Spot!
If you’ve been eating a low-fat diet, or have just gone plant-based, you may find yourself craving high-fat foods. Research shows that we are hard-wired to seek out fat. The best way to stay in balance is to eat the kinds of healthy fats that are in avocados and extra virgin olive oil. Even if you aren’t eating low-fat, we all find creamy foods pleasurable and comforting to eat. Why fight it?
Jane Goodall Wants You to Eat Meat Less
For Earth Day, it’s time to take a look at your impact on the Earth. Recycling, driving and flying less, and planting pollinator gardens are all good places to start. But if you want to have a powerful impact on the health of the planet, the lives of animals, and more, you might want to eat more plants. That’s the underlying message of the new book Eat Meat Less, from the Jane Goodall Institute.
Kimchi Noodles with Tofu- a Riot of Flavor
This dish is made from plants, from the grains in the noodles, to the beans that were transformed into soy sauce. That’s a given. But whenever I cook, I try to add a few more vegetables. Get that noodle to veggie ratio just right, so it feels like a bowl of slippery noodles, but it’s also a bowl of fresh, crunchy veggies. I love my carbs, and I look at them as the comforting, lovable friends they are. But the veg to noodle ratio should be balanced a little toward the veg side. This dish achieves the right mix, with just enough noodles, and just the right amount of snappy snap peas and crisp carrots.
Weeknight Quickie Summer Pasta-Tricks for a Quick Meal!
Think you are too busy to cook? Not when you can make this easy, plant-based pasta in minutes! Good extra virgin olive oil is key to the flavor, so you need to learn more about where your oil comes from.
Stalking the Wild Morel for Stuffed Morels!
I’ve always been intrigued by the hollow shape of the morel, and decided that I wanted to make stuffed morels, if I did find any. I toyed with ideas for fillings, and settled on one that is so simple that it makes perfect sense. A saute of shiitakes, another intense mushroom in their own right, would make a dense, woodsy puree that I could stuff into that cavity. Then, each mushroom would explode with over-the-top mushroomy-ness when you took a bite.I’ve always been intrigued by the hollow shape of the morel, and decided that I wanted to make stuffed morels, if I did find any. I toyed with ideas for fillings, and settled on one that is so simple that it makes perfect sense. A saute of shiitakes, another intense mushroom in their own right, would make a dense, woodsy puree that I could stuff into that cavity. Then, each mushroom would explode with over-the-top mushroomy-ness when you took a bite.
Make Taco Rice for a Japanese-Mexican Bowl
Take two foods we love, put them in the same bowl, and you have Taco Rice. It may sound like an American invention, like the Korean Taco, or the Pizza Bagel, but it's not. No, this delicious bowl-ification of the tender rice we love in sushi and the spicy filling we...
Eat Curry, Feel Better, Try Fonio
Butternut Squash Curry is Comfort Food Sometimes you just need comfort. A gentle, easy Butternut Squash Curry is just the ticket. Tender, sweet squash cubes, bathed in just enough coconut milk and spice to make it creamy will make you feel warmed and nourished from...
Make Purple Sweet Potato Gnocchi for a Colorful Bowl of Comfort
Gnocchi are pillows of joy. I've been teaching gnocchi-making classes for over 10 years, to sold out crowds. People just love the idea of making their own gnocchi, and we all get to roll up our sleeves and make mountains of tender dumplings. What few people realize...
Celebrate Valentine’s With Brilliant Beet Handrolls
Valentine's Day Sushi! Valentine's Day always calls out for a splash of red on the plate. Crimson hearts and ruby red beets just go together. So, for a heart-healthy flash of red, try my Pickled Beet Handrolls. There is pink pickled ginger, pink tofu, and curly...
You Need a Comforting Pasta to Keep You Warm This Winter. Try Farfalle with Roasted Tomatoes and Pistachios
I know, it's a crazy-busy time of year. We are all running around trying to get things done, as the temperature drops and it gets dark earlier and earlier. It's disturbingly easy to take refuge in bad choices, and comfort yourself with fast food and snacks. For the...
Roast Rainbow Carrots to Pour Over Wild Rice for a Colorful Meal
I've spent many hours of my life contemplating the phenomenal success of certain foods, and the seeming failure of others to break through. You might think, " well, oh, of course the winner is the most delicious, right?"It may in fact be a delicious food. But I fear...
Roast Your Tomatoes for Effortless Pastas and More
After a summer of watchful waiting, watering, and wondering, the tomato harvest is finally here. The cherry tomatoes came first, giving us the taste we craved, as we hovered over the green tomatoes hanging heavily on the vine. Now I can stroll out to my tomato garden...
Gochujang Makes an Easy Bowl Pop
As the author of a whole book on bowl food, I've explored bowl cuisine in all its forms. But I have to give all respect to the OG of bowl food, the folks who created Bibimbap. Yes, Korean cooks made a feast in a bowl long before American hippies started piling up...
Make An Easy Chimichurri and Chipotle Cauliflower Bowl for Balance in 2018
It's almost the middle of January, the time that most New Years Resolutions fall by the wayside. If I might make a suggestion, let's all drop any crazy juice fasts and extra hours of extreme cardio right now. What we really need now, and all year long, is balance. And...
Try Sushi for Thanksgiving-With Wild Rice, Sweet Potatoes, and Apple!
Try Thanksgiving Sushi, Really Last week, I posted an updated Shepherd's Pie, with a few delicious tweaks that made it oh so delicious. This week, I'm giving you a Thanksgiving option that might seem a little bit radical. Are you ready for Thanksgiving Sushi? Before...
Beautiful Buckwheat, Brazil Nuts, and a Great Breakfast
Have you ever had two separate experiences, and as they percolated in your mind, the combination inspired something else entirely? That's exactly what happened to me at last month's Grain Gathering, and my inspiration was buckwheat. Buckwheat is Beautiful As I wrote...
Cross-Pollinating Ideas at the Grain Gathering
Some people take time off at the end of July to visit a white sand beach. But there's no barley at the beach. Instead, at 3;45 am, I found myself driving in darkness, about an hour North of Seattle, navigating country roads to get to an experimental grain field before...
Cook Kale on the Grill, For an Easy Pasta Meal
I have big news! I finally bought a new grill. Yup, just a run of the mill, under $200 number. No bells, no whistles, no LED lights or motorized spit. Because, really, I don't need anything fancy. Just heavy grates and consistent heat. It took me some time, after...
Wild Rice “Minnesoba” with Shiitakes and Hazelnuts, for Mindful Eating
These days, I think often about gratitude. It's so easy to slip into focusing on what you want and don't get, and to forget how incredibly lucky you are. One of the things that I am consciously grateful for on a daily basis is good food. A visit to the farmer's...
Sushiritos, Make Fusion Cool Again!
Is Fusion Wrong? Fusion cooking had a heyday, back in the 90's. It was all good until it went too far, until monstrous hybrid experiments roamed the land. We all tried to walk the line between cool-fusion and con-fusion food. Strange combos became all too common. Soon...
Need Comfort Food? Noodles with Peanut Sauce Hits the Spot
Some Days You Need Comfort Food Sometimes the World is a hard place. There's nothing like a trying day to send me to the refuge of my kitchen, looking for something that will make me feel better. And if you ask me, comfort food is a bowl of noodles with ever so...
End of Summer Roasted Squash and Tomatoes over Whole Grain Polenta for a Fall Feast
Few foods are as comforting and satisfying as polenta. Cornmeal polenta is soft and creamy, but with just enough texture to give it a toothsome crunch, and perfect for grilling to a crisp golden crustiness. Grilled polenta offers the best of both worlds, with the...
Black Ramen with Ginger Tomato Sauce, A Quick Recipe for End of Summer
It seems like only yesterday that I was sneaking out to the Farmer's Market in the bracing chill of Spring, trying not to wake my sweetheart as I stumbled over shoes in the dark bedroom. Now, we are on the other end of the season, and the early morning chill is a...
Get into Whole Grains Month with a Granite Grain Bowl!
Have you heard? It's National Whole Grains Month. I started early, and posted last week with a FREE COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY, so click here to enter to win, and check out Sweet Potato Toast on Toast. The whole month of September you can be on the lookout for whole grain...