Salads, Sides & Such 
Strawberry Meal Salad
(2)In my last post, I shared a “template” for what I call a Strawberry Dessert Salad. It’s a classic salad with berries, nuts, and sweet poppyseed dressing that I eat after a meal, as a healthy “dessert”. Or, on hot summer mornings I will sometimes eat it for breakfast. But what if you want something… Read More ›
Strawberry Dessert Salad or Breakfast Salad
Spring may have finally sprung in Charlotte! Only a few days after a freak April snowstorm, Charlotteans are running around in shorts and flip flops and blasting the air conditioning. I’m driving home in daylight, even when I work late. There are lots of baby birds and bunnies and … insects. Not to mention pollen!… Read More ›
Five Easy Baked Sweet Potato Variations (That Require Zero Cooking Skills)
“Every leaf speaks bliss to me; fluttering from the Autumn tree.” – Emily Bronte Ok, so yesterday I showed everyone how easy it is to cook luscious, inexpensive, healthy sweet potatoes in my post Perfect Baked Sweet Potatoes. And today, I’m going to give you five easy ways to modify a basic sweet potato. The… Read More ›
Perfect Baked Sweet Potatoes
“You say witch like it’s a bad thing.” – Unknown So far this Autumn, I’ve spent a lot of time writing about pumpkins and pumpkin spice. However, there are other Autumn favorites that are on my Autumn bucket list as well – such as sweet potatoes! I was a late convert to sweet potatoes, because… Read More ›
Spicy Indian Quinoa with Chickpeas, Cherry Tomatoes, and Wilted Spinach
“It was a beautiful, bright Autumn day, with air like cider and a sky so blue you could drown in it.” – Diana Gabaldon, Outlander The seasons are transitioning. In Charlotte, it’s subtle. Daytime temps are still in the 80’s. Leaves are still green. But the humidity has eased. Nights are longer and cooler. The… Read More ›
Cherry Tomato and Basil Pasta (Or Quinoa) in Garlicky White Wine Sauce
Summer cooking doesn’t get any easier – or more delicious – than this. This is one of my mom’s pasta sauce recipes, one that she made only in the late days of Summer, when perfectly ripened tomatoes and sweet basil were plentiful. It’s one of those perfect summer meals. It’s fast – you can… Read More ›
Cinco de Mayo Salad With Spicy Avocado Dressing
Oh, all right. I know what everyone’s thinking. “Another salad recipe? Isn’t this the woman who HATES raw leafy greens?” Yes, I AM the woman who hates raw leafy greens. I’m also the woman who has decided to experiment with raw vegan for a few months. (Don’t panic, gentle readers … I’m not going totally… Read More ›
A Shameful Secret … And My California Salad Recipe
I have a confession to make. A big, shameful one. I am vegan, and …. and … I don’t like salads. Don’t get me wrong … I love almost everything that you put on TOP of a salad. Cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, bean sprouts, avocado, beets, olives, walnuts, grapes, sweet Vidalia onion. I just don’t like… Read More ›
Carolina Collards – A Primer
As a Carolina native, I am passionate about my collards. My heart breaks for those unfortunate people who have never experienced collards. It also breaks for those people who have tried collards, but collards that were poorly prepared – usually over-smoked and under-cooked. So it’s time for me share a primer on cooking traditional Carolina… Read More ›
Waldorf Salad (Vegan, Gluten Free)
Some people think October is all about pumpkin spice, but I’m all about the apples. Let’s see, there’s apple sauce … apple butter, apple chutney, apple ginger smoothies, apples and acorn squash apple and butternut squash soup, apple crisps, apple pie … And Waldorf Salad. Waldorf Salad has an interesting history. It was created in… Read More ›
Tal Ronnen’s Sweet Potato Latkes With Spiked Applesauce (Vegan, Gluten Free)
I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! Last week, I shared Part One of a two-part recipe – Tal Ronnen’s Sweet Potato Latkes with Spiked Applesauce (from his new book, Crossroads, published by Artisan Books). If you missed it, check out the recipe for Spiked Applesauce – it’s great on its own, and can be… Read More ›
Tal Ronnen’s Spiked Applesauce (Vegan, Gluten Free)
Applesauce. So quintessentially Autumn. It’s fun to make in September and October, when the stores start carrying dozens of varieties and orchards offer to let you pick your own. It’s perfect in November, as a Thanksgiving side or light dessert option. And in December? What on earth would potato latkes be without applesauce? (Potato latkes… Read More ›
Vegan Squash Casserole
Winter squash have arrived! I see them at the grocery, hinting of Autumn holidays. In magazines and on blogs, I see the most delicious, tempting recipes for acorn, butternut, and spaghetti squash. But, here in the south, I’m still caught in the stranglehold of yellow crookneck squash and zucchini. Summer squash flourishes here. Everything else… Read More ›
Happy MoFo … and A Recipe For Cold Pasta Puttanesca Salad (Vegan)
Happy MoFo, Everyone! Yes, I know … like usual, I’m a day late and a dollar short. I swear I’ll be late to my own funeral … Which is not such a bad plan. I’m thinking about writing that into my will … haul my ashes in an hour late, and whoever’s sad or stupid… Read More ›
Easiest Ever Okra Etouffee! (Vegan, Gluten Free)
Okra can be a perplexing little vegetable. Cook it the same way you would most other vegetables, and you’re likely to wind up with a slimy mess. Frying it (whether in the breaded style of the American South, or the unbreaded, spice-laden style of India’s Bhindi Masala) yields delicious results but can take some serious… Read More ›
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