Easiest of the Easy: Lentils Monastery Style with New-style Southern Cornbread

Well…. I’m still struggling with the fact that working in a commercial kitchen; however excellent, fruitful and fulfilling, diminishes my desire for cooking at home. Tonight I’m trying to convince myself that cooking is easy and satisfying by making two of the easiest and yummiest dishes in my repertoire. They are Monastery-style Lentil Soup and…

Vegetable Korma and Biriyani

The biriyani that we made for our wedding welcome dinner involved two major steps.  First, you make the vegetable korma, which elevates humble vegetables by braising them in an elegant cardamom nut sauce.

Baked Samosas (gluten-free or not)

Samosas are really supposed to be deep-fried and they are also supposed to be in a little triangular pouch.  My version is baked and they are in a half circle (like an empanada), but they are still delicious.  Baked samosas stay yummy for a few days where as anything deep-fried needs to be eaten right…

Blueberry Compote, Blueberry Salad Dressing, Blueberry Cocktails….

There are many amazing  foods that define the local cuisine of British Columbia.  It is one of the most bountiful and delicious places in the world….especially if your ideal diet consists of salmon, berries and hazelnuts. Blueberries are abundant and delicious in August. I realize that this post is coming late, but what can I…

Roasted Red Peppers

Chris and I used to go to Bulgaria in the fall.  In little villages all of the old ladies would be roasting the last of their pepper harvest on outdoor fires so that they could store them for the winter.  It is a very good smell.  It makes me want to eat sausages, feta cheese,…

Savory Sweet Corn Pudding

When I first moved to Brooklyn there was only one fancy restaurant in my immediate neighborhood.  It was called The New Prospect Cafe and it was on Flatbush, across the street from where the Jamaican Patty place used to be.  With its small seasonal menu, it was a harbinger of Brooklyn’s culinary future.  When I…