We all have our likes and dislikes- and things towards which we feel ambivalence. I have a predilection towards vanilla bean, bright green herbs like cilantro, cauliflower, winter squash, florals (like jasmine, rose, lemon verbena, lavender or rose geranium), berries, chilies, and citrus. Ah yes, fresh, bright, punchy, slightly tart, like a burst of sunshine through the cold grey wet weather.
My friend Irvin of Eat the Love knows about my citrus crush (I’ll stop short of calling it an addiction). When Irvin brought me as his +1 to this year’s Chocolate Salon, he was able to steer towards bars and confections that he knew I’d love “That one is so you” he said about the lovely confection with lime and cardamom, and he was so right. When he needed advice about bergamot, he pinged me. I flushed with warmth and affection, not only does my friend know my tastes, he trusts my strange, quirky, area of expertise… citrus.
I don’t mind, on a personal level, being known as a girl with strong tastes, but I’m careful to try to pepper this blog with a good variety of marvelous seasonal things. If you knew the consistency with which I eat cottage cheese, kale, arugula, grapefruit, farro, and oat berries, you might think me a bore- you also may not need my recipes anymore.
In an effort to shake things up a little, I made a pretty outstanding pot of chili, my very first with … get the recipe
Home. It feels really good to be here. It’s funny how, even after just a few days away, I appreciate the safety, sanctuary, and calm that Home provides. Oddly enough, 48 hours ago, I really didn’t want to be here.
Friday night, in the midst of the first real winter storm we’ve had in California this year, we hopped in the car for a vintage Sabrina & Joshua-style road trip. Everything about our trip, from leaving a little too late, to the dramatic weather was perfect. We reminisced about the days when we lived in Southern California and made that drive back and forth to the Bay Area more times than I can count- only then it was often in a classic Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham.
In 1999 we were a couple of broke kids who had just moved in together in a sweet little apartment in Venice Beach. Joshua’s dad lived on Naples Island in Long Beach. He had a little sailboat where we would sometimes go and spend the night and go for a sail the following day. I’d always bring a homemade quiche and bottle of port. Before heading off to sleep on the boat, Joshua, his dad, their longtime friends, and I would sit around the house on Ravenna Street and have a jazz jam session, passing the bottle until late into the night. I still think of these salad days as some of the happiest of my life.
The last twelve and a half years seem … get the recipe
One year ago, I began what was supposed to be a 28 day vegan cleanse. A day or two in, my husband jumped in with both feet. For this cleanse, Joshua and I cut out all meat, dairy, gluten, refined sugar, alcohol, and caffeine. In total, we stayed off of meat and dairy for two and a half months.
The impact of those 70 days has been much deeper and longer lasting that we could have ever imagined. As we added the meat and dairy back into our diets, it was in smaller portions and much less frequently. My love for fresh fruits and veggies is well-documented, but I came to love grains, nuts, and seeds like never before as well- and don’t even get me started on nutritional yeast!
Whether you are vegan or not, the choice to incorporate more plant-based meals is a healthy one and (as evidenced by this list) incredibly tasty. Preparing vegan meals also made me a better cook.
Here is a list of 44 fabulous vegan recipes- a few from this site, a few I’ve written for other sites, but mostly just some drool-worthy food you probably need in your life.
Breakfast
Banana Nut Waffles
Vegan Rice Pudding
Springtime Tofu Scramble (gorgeous—just add nutritional yeast to make it over the top amazing)
Fluffy Vegan Pancakes
Sweet Potato Hashbrowns
Veggies & Salads
Roasted Broccoli with Sriracha, Honey, and Soy Sauce
Lentil and Pomegranate Salad
Kale Salad with Toasted Coconut and Sesame Oil (YUM!)
Roasted Pumpkin … get the recipe
As Valentine’s Day nears, it seems that everything is tinged with sweetness. I love the movement towards DIY Valentines, and old-fashioned handmade candies make me squeal.
Who cares if Hallmark popularized the day, take it back! Celebrate this time by treating yourself , your friends, your family, and your sweetie (if you have one) with love and kindness and special treats.
Of course, I can’t go around eating cake balls, and truffles, and lollipops for the entirety of the Valentine’s Day season, but does that mean I should miss out on pretty pink things and polka dot paper straws? It most certainly does not.
This raw and vegan cashew milk is thick and creamy and so luxurious. It almost doesn’t seem fair that cashews are lower in fat that almost all other nuts, and the fat they do contain is mostly unsaturated fatty acid. To be specific, it’s the same fatty acid found in olive oil! Love that. To that, we’re adding freeze dried strawberries which are full of antioxidants, dietary fiber, and crazy deliciousness (scientific term).
All of the health stuff, cannot begin to describe how good this little shake tastes and feels. I got a text yesterday from Joshua “Strawberry cashew milk, seriously, the best thing ever. I want to have it every day”. I guess that says it all. A little Valentine to my sweetheart, pretty, and pink, and sweet, each morning. I can do that.
A quick shout-out to my friend Tracy at Shutterbean whose amazing … get the recipe
My closest people would say that I rarely repeat a dish twice, and in a way it’s true. Once I’ve poked and prodded and looked at a recipe from the inside out, I’m ready to let it go.
But there is another type of dish, the dish that is not really a recipe, the one that comes naturally- without thought. These are the dishes Joshua and I eat throughout the week. Packed off to work in Mason jars, shared with friends who stop by unexpectedly. Never precious, never fancy, always satisfying… these are the meals that warrant lunchtime texts of “Mmmm… thanks for lunch. Soo good. Do we have leftovers?”
I was born with what people call a “sunny disposition”. Maybe it’s because I’m an August baby, ushered into the world at the height of summer. Or maybe I’m just wired that way. Though, like anyone, sometimes I get the blues.
With so many inspiring opportunities on the horizon, 2012 promised to start off with a bang and… a sniffle. Yes, a New Year’s Eve cold- one that lingered a bit too long- and two weeks later it was tonsillitis, a sinus infection, and a fever of over 100º. Rest and fluids seemed to do the trick, or so I thought, until last weekend left me with a stomach bug.
I guess my body might be telling me to take a break, be gentle, maybe get away from The City for a weekend and just sit in a hot tub while looking at the redwoods. But until then, there is always jasmine tea, a good book, an extra kiss, an extra blanket, cranking the heater up to 63º, and some homemade vegan rice pudding.
I love this rice pudding for a several reasons.
- 1. I can’t tell if it’s dessert of breakfast; therefore, it is perfectly acceptable to eat it whenever I please
- 2. It is completely culturally confused, part Thai with its sweet sticky rice and coconut milk, part Indian with its cardamom and pistachios, and part European grandmother because all European grandmothers make rice pudding
- 3. It is relatively healthy even though it tastes decadent and totally naughty.
… get the recipe
It wouldn’t be exactly true to say that I woke up to rain. Still, a heavy blanket of fog swaddled our little yellow house on the hill, and the ground was wet enough that I can imagine it may have rained overnight.
Bundled up in my red winter coat, I leashed up the pooch and went for a long walk in McLaren Park. Despite what folks say, we do have seasons in California.
Sometimes, we live with evidence of all of them at once. Just today, as Ruby and I tromped through mud and autumnal fallen yellow leaves, I also bathed in the smell of winter’s piney conifers. These firs, lush yet strangely expectant, as if they’re just waiting to be strung with shiny glass balls.
Just a short way down the path, I was surprised to find evidence of the first blackberry blossoms, a reminder that summer will come and provide mounds of juicy berries- rife for the foraging.
I found pink cottage roses wet with dew, spiders spinning sparkly webs, dazzlingly-bright yellow flowers, shy mushrooms peeking from beneath blades of grass, and nasturtiums- from whom I stole a sip of spicy nectar. When I left the cover of the tress and came upon a grassy playground, robins sang while hunting for fat little worms.
You see all the seasons, right there before me.
As we neared the end of our walk, a few raindrops fell. Tucking my camera into my coat and quickening my pace, I looked forward … get the recipe
I love the holidays. I like it when the air gets crisp. I love the tinsel and the flashing of Christmas lights behind drawn curtains as I walk the dog at night. I even love Christmas music.
I grew up in a family that made a big deal of the holidays. We had HUGE parties with lots of people- we hired a Santa at Christmas & an Easter Bunny when his time came around. Everyone was invited. While the fun and the chaos were always exciting, these parties were not my favorite part of the holidays. Christmas Day held gifts and a lovely family meal at my aunt’s stunning home in Napa. Still, this was not my favorite day of the season. It was always Christmas Eve when our closest family friends, The DeBonos, would come over for fondue.
I’ve known the DeBonos since I was five years old. The best thing about Christmas Eve was that nobody had to get gussied up, we didn’t have to be on our best behavior, and we always laughed until our faces hurt. Forget leaving pretenses at the front door, we could just pack them away in a box.
Much of my immediate family is gone now; it’s really just my brother and I. We’ve worked hard to build a family around us; people like (to mention a few) The DeBonos, our friends The Olivas, The Smiths, The Other Smiths, Miss Jackson, The Mackins, The Sloane-Frenches, The Jennings, Mr. Largo, Ms. Banana, and … get the recipe
