Excellent Potato Pancakes (gluten-free)

I am not sure if my potato pancakes are Rosti or Latkes or Hash browns but they are truly excellent.  The ingredients and technique for making these pancakes are simple. The secret is in the tools….An old fashioned coarse grater called The Wonder Shredder and a well seasoned, wide cast iron skillet.  I got my Wonder Shredder…

Perfectly Seasoned Creamy Cauliflower Soup (with no cream)

Today, Chris and I ate cauliflower soup and a pear, blue cheese, hazelnut salad (see Salads with Pears on this blog).  It was a good wintry meal…lots of white and green.  I am not always a fan of cauliflower.  I like it in Indian food and I like this soup.  I can’t really remember where…

Hot Borscht and all of the good feelings that come with it

My borscht recipe is adapted from one of the Moosewood cookbooks that I learned to cook from in college.  I did a lot of cooking during that time…..enough to occasionally wonder if I should have been at culinary school rather than at Sarah Lawrence College.  At Sarah Lawrence I had an amazing academic don named…

Green Bread & Green Soup!

Erin got me the book “Classic Indian Vegetarian and Grain Cooking” for Christmas this year, and this interesting bread is the first recipe that I’ve made out of it. It is called Hara Paratha, Collard/Kale Bread. It’s a fried bread that is similar to roti in consistency. It has a spicy flavour and, of course,…

Quick Curried Tomato Soup

I adapted this recipe from a quick, low-fat microwave cookbook that my mother gave me when I went to college.  It is still terrifically quick and also low-fat but I do not own a microwave anymore.  It is good with spicy chick pea pancakes  or grilled cheese (like any tomato soup).  I find it particularly delicious…

Braised Red Cabbage with Apples

Cabbage is cheap, healthful and good even in the winter.  The local green markets in NYC hit a point at this time of year when they have only cabbage and collards and root vegetables and the last few squashes and apples from the autumn. My cousins took me to a green market in Los Angeles…

Gumbo Z’herbs and Skillet Cornbread (Gluten-Free)

I got this gumbo recipe from an old copy of The American Heritage Cookbook.  Gumbo Z’herbs is an old creole recipe for Lent, when you are not allowed to eat meat.  However this recipe includes meat stock and sausage or smoked ham bone for flavouring, so that is confusing to me…..  Maybe this is only…

Acorn Squash and Adzuki Bean Pancakes

This comes from a cookbook called Lean Bean Cuisine by Jay Soloman. My mom’s best friend, Valerie, gave it to me years ago, and I still reference it to find new and exciting ways to cook different kinds of beans. Adzuki beans are definitely one of my favourites. They are the sweetest of beans. If…