Tag: Vegan

Guest Post: Fattoush Salad

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Fattoush

I have a special treat for you today! Actually, two special treats. I don’t think I’ve done this in the history of my blog, but today I will be double posting. I may have, er, double booked myself slightly. First up is this fattoush salad recipe and a guest post over at the wonderful Ang Sarap. If you haven’t visited Raymund’s incredible blog, then I highly recommend you head over there right now. Originally from the Philippines and living in New Zealand, Raymund makes wonderful, inspiring recipes from around the world. He’s introduced me to many new dishes, and I always love his spin on familiar ones. It doesn’t hurt that his photography is stunning as well!

 

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Homemade Focaccia for #BreakingBread

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I’ve wanted to try my hand at homemade focaccia for as long as I’ve been interested in food. I love bread of every shape, flavor, and color, but focaccia is at the top of that list. Yet I’d put off making it, like too many things, for years. And, having finally done it, I’m here to tell you: It’s easy!! I mean that. And this, coming from someone who is only partially recovered from an irrational fear of yeast. Fortunately for me the #BreakingBread Society, started by some of my favorite bloggers – Shulie of Food Wanderings, Lora of Cake Duchess, and Marnely of Cooking with Books – was just the catalyst I needed.

Focaccia

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Black Bean and Corn Salsa and a Bean Blog Hop

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With the weather heating up (and it is scorching here already!) I’ve got light, bright, fresh, raw salads, salsas, and sauces on the brain. I whipped up this delicious Black Bean and Corn Salsa to top the fish tacos that I just posted about, but I was also eating the leftovers with tortilla chips as a dip. It would be great with grilled chicken or fish as well. In addition to the black beans and corn, I also included pineapple for a hint of sweetness, tomato, cilantro, and lime juice. I could seriously eat this one way or another every day of summer. What are your favorite bean recipes? Link them up in the blog hop below!

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

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Strawberry-Rhubarb Cocktail

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Springtime is in full bloom and that means strawberry and rhubarb in endless wonderful, beautiful combinations. I’ve got a pie coming your way soon, but today I could use a cocktail. Rhubarb is hard to come by in Israel, so when I saw some at the market I snatched it right up and began contemplating the various ways I could put this tart stalk to good use. It’s a low-alcohol, easy-drinking, warm weather cocktail that goes down easy. It’s sweet and tart, but not in a way that will give you a headache (I don’t like overly sweet drinks), and has lots of brightness from the strawberry and lime juices. Don’t worry if you don’t have rhubarb bitters, although they add a nice herbal element and provide an extra layer of rhubarb. Seltzer finishes the drink and gives it that nice effervescence that I reach for in the warmer months.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Cocktail

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Potato Salad and a Virtual Picnic for World on a Plate

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The theme for this month’s World on a Plate is picnic food, and I couldn’t be more excited. I’m representing the US in this global group, and picnic foods are some of the most quintessentially American. I’ve already posted about many of them, so I’ve created a little virtual All-American picnic for you, capped off with a recipe for my favorite mayo-free potato salad. It’s a bit more like a French potato salad in that it is essentially coated in a mustard vinaigrette instead of mayo, but I’ve always found the idea of normal potato salad sitting out in the heat to be unsavory.

Potato Salad Ingredients
Potato Salad Ingredients

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Freekeh Salad Recipe and a Grain Blog Hop

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freekeh

Have you tried freekeh? Also called farik, frikeh, and green wheat, it is wheat that is picked when young (i.e. green), and then dried and roasted. It looks a lot like bulgur or farro, and can be used in many of the same ways. While it is an ancient grain that has been popular throughout the Middle East and North Africa for centuries, I’ve noticed that it’s starting to get its due in the US as well. Living in Israel it is readily available in the bulk bins, and it has become one of my favorite ways to add a wholesome grain to my meal.

 

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Eggplant with Tahina and an Eggplant Blog Hop

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Eggplant with Tahina and Pomegranate Seeds

In the Middle East there’s a saying that a woman is not ready to wed until she can cook an eggplant (i.e. aubergine) 1,000 ways. Before you start huffing and puffing about the gendered implications of this adage, I think the New York Times explained it well: “The saying is less about preparing women for marriage, though, than it is about the amazing versatility of the eggplant.” Indeed, living in Israel my appreciation for these humble, purple-skinned vegetables has skyrocketed. On a single dinner table they can appear in countless forms. Usually it begins with flame roasted eggplants, but after that they can be pureed with tahina for baba ghanouj, mayo for an entirely different dip, or lemon juice and olive oil for eggplant “caviar.” Israelis make a convincing vegetarian chopped liver (devised in the 1940s when times were tough and meat was rare) using fried eggplant and hard boiled eggs. Continue reading “Eggplant with Tahina and an Eggplant Blog Hop” →

Homemade Harissa and a Pepper Blog Hop

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Harissa Ingredients

This is one of those things that’s been on my list to make for a long time: homemade harissa. The fiery, vibrant red, North African pepper hot sauce is completely addictive and revs up anything you add it to. Stews take on new depth, dips get kick, and tagines will never be the same. Popular in Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco, harissa has also become a hip flavor in the States where you will find harissa aioli, harissa-marinated steak, harissa grilled shrimp, and harissa oil. Continue reading “Homemade Harissa and a Pepper Blog Hop” →

Miso Butternut Squash Ramen

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Miso Butternut Squash Ramen

One of my favorite things to eat in New York come winter is a big, steaming bowl of ramen (and not the package stuff that you subsisted on in college). A few years ago ramen became the trendy food du jour and, lucky for us, ramen spots popped up all over the city. In Israel it’s one of the foods that I find myself missing, especially when the weather gets chilly (yes, that happens here) or when I have a cold. Although I have yet to visit Japan, from what I understand every region of the country has its own version of this comforting noodle soup. Continue reading “Miso Butternut Squash Ramen” →

Tofu Tacos and a Tofu Blog Hop

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Tofu Tacos
Tofu Tacos

I know, tofu can be a sensitive subject. Every time I’ve posted a tofu recipe I’ve had multiple comments saying “looks good but I/my spouse/my children don’t like tofu.” Here’s the thing: tofu is what you make of it. It doesn’t have all that much flavor on its own, but is great at absorbing the flavors of whatever it’s cooked in. If it’s a texture thing, tofu comes in a variety of textures from silky to extra firm so you should be able to find one that suits your mood. I’m just saying, give tofu a chance. This coming from a meat eater. An avid one, in fact. But I think we all know that we should be cutting down on our meat intake for a variety of reasons, which will help the environment and our health. Continue reading “Tofu Tacos and a Tofu Blog Hop” →