Ah, fall, a perfect time for a spicy pumpkin soup! This soup comes together quickly, and has warm notes of ginger, curry, cumin, coriander, and black pepper. Great flavor additions that enhance not detract from the pumpkin.
Continue reading "Spicy Pumpkin Soup" »
If you've been to my house at any point in recent months, you've likely had these dates. They take only slightly more effort to make than placing dates unadorned on a plate. And, there must be something unusually captivating about them because people always ask me how to make them. I think the idea stems from a flight I took years ago from San Francisco to Santa Fe, New Mexico. I was sitting next to a young man, dressed head to toe in hemp, on his way to a spiritual retreat. :) We started chatting, and he offered me a date from little plastic baggie. He proceeded to tell me the dates were an Ayurvedic staple for him on flights. Massaged with ghee, ginger, and saffron, they weren't pretty in the plastic baggie, but they were a flavor revelation. In this version I soak saffron in a small amount of almond extract, and toss it with melted ghee (or clarified butter) and dates. I usually opt out of the ginger. Place the dates in an oven-proof baking dish and broil just long enough for the insides of the dates to get unctuous and tacky, just long enough that the skins start caramelizing. Serve warm. They're good as part of a cheese spread, or as a sweet bite at the end of a meal - simple with a bit of a wink.
Also! I've started to post event information related to Near & Far on this events page. I hope to see, meet, and chat with many of you at each of them! Event information here. xo -h
Continue reading Broiled Saffron Dates...
Looking for a great holiday side? How about a drop dead delicious, healthy kale and squash sauté that is surprisingly easy to put together?
Roast cubes of butternut squash so they get tasty caramelized edges. While roasting the squash, prep the onions and kale and then sauté them with balsamic vinegar, adding the squash, pecans, and cranberries at the end. Simple. Beautiful. Packed with flavor and color.
Continue reading "Roasted Butternut Squash Kale Sauté" »
Oh la la. This is not your grandma’s broccoli cheese casserole. Ever since Christopher Kimball challenged people to Google broccoli casserole, insisting they would be disappointed with what they found, I’ve been meaning to post a killer broccoli casserole. And dear readers, this is it.
Continue reading "Broccoli Cheddar Casserole" »
Hi everyone! For the last couple of months I’ve been working behind the scenes with Mary Egan, co-founder and CEO of Gatheredtable, a powerful, really easy-to-use menu planning service to create customized Simply Recipes meal plans. I’m honored to be Gatheredtable’s first food blog partner!
Mary’s team and I have been sifting through over 1500 recipes on Simply Recipes to find the ones that we think will work best together for nutritious, balanced meals. We’ve set it up so there’s a variety of meat, fish, and vegetarian dishes, and mains are paired with sides that work well with them.
Continue reading "Introducing Simply Recipes Meal Plans with Gatheredtable" »
Just hearing the words “sloppy joe” from my mother used to send us kids into a tizzy. There was something wonderfully fun about getting to eat a burger/sandwich that was messy by design.
I first posted this recipe in 2008, after making it for my visiting young nephew. Sloppy joes really are a quintessential kid food, aren’t they?
Continue reading "Best Ever Sloppy Joe" »
I've started to post some of the events and book signings I'll be doing in September and October related to the release of Near & Far. First up is a dinner cooked in the amazing fireplace at Camino in Oakland - details here. After that, there will be a number of free signings in October on the West Coast starting with this one with Omnivore Books at the Quitokeeto studio, and then finishing with an event in New York (details to come on the NY event, but it's shaping up to be exciting)...See the full list of events here - details are evolving, but I wanted to let you all know in case you wanted to mark your calendars. I'm very much looking forward to seeing and chatting with as many of you as possible! -h
