I cook with wine…

Sacrilege, you say? Well, give this mayonnaise-free version a try and then let me know if you are still of that opinion. Although I’d like to transition to a mostly vegan routine, I am still definitely more comfortable in my current pescetarian state, and egg salad provides the protein my body has been craving. Plus it’s just delicious in the summertime. This salty, scrumptious, relatively less fattening version was delicious served on some toasted pumpernickel.

Ingredients:

6-8 eggs, hard-boiled

2 tablespoons+ Dijon mustard

Juice from one lemon

Olive oil

1-2 tablespoons capers

1 shallot, chopped

Freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:

Separate the egg whites from the yolks. Chop up whites into small pieces and set aside. Place yolks in a medium-sized bowl.

Add mustard and lemon juice; use a fork to break up yolks and mix ingredients together until relatively smooth. Add olive oil until mixture reaches a consistency of your liking. Add remaining ingredients and stir until well-blended. Drop in egg whites and mix until whites are coated with yolk mixture. Serve as desired.

I was tasked with bringing something healthy and vegetarian to a Super Bowl party this past Sunday. I had already planned a big trip to the farmers market on Saturday, so I also chose to stick with seasonally appropriate ingredients. Here were the delicious results of this quest. Apologies for the lack of pictures, I was running a little too late to take time to photograph.

Ingredients:

Salad

1 head cauliflower, chopped into small florets

2 large carrots, sliced into ½ inch thick disks

1 pound (approximately) Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and sliced in half

5-6 medium-sized golden Yukon potatoes

2 bunches kale, cut into approximately 2-inch squares

Olive oil

Sea salt

Dressing

1 head garlic

Juice of three lemons

2 tablespoons sesame tahini

¼ cup grated parmesan

1 red onion, diced

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice the top off of the garlic, exposing the tips of the cloves. Place in a large enough square of aluminum foil to cover and pour a tablespoon of olive oil on top. Wrap foil around garlic and place in the oven. Roast for approximately 45 minutes or until cloves are soft and light brown in color.

Meanwhile, toss the kale with approximately 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a few dashes of sea salt. Spread evenly over two large baking sheets and cook in the preheated over for 8 to 10 minutes, or until crisp. Remove kale from oven, place in a large bowl to cool.

Toss the rest of the vegetables with approximately 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil and a few more dashes of sea salt. Spread evenly over the two baking sheets. Roast in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until cauliflower begins to brown and potatoes are soft. Remove from over and let cool.

Heat two tablespoons olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft and translucent. Chop roasted garlic into very small pieces. Mix onion and garlic with lemon juice, tahini, and parmesan. Add salt and pepper and adjust any other elements of the dressing to suit your specific taste.

Combine vegetables and dressing in a large bowl and toss to coat. Serve with an additional sprinkling of parmesan cheese, if desired. Can be served warm or cold.

Oh, lentils, how I love thee! Tasty, quick-cooking, versatile and supremely healthy, lentils are the perfect food for a cold January evening. They are a great source of fiber, which can lower cholesterol, and are high in protein. Lentils are rich in essential vitamins, stabilize blood sugar and are good for your heart. And there are only 230 calories per cup! This flavorful soup helps them shine, while bitter arugula balances the smokiness.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cup lentils

3 cups water

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons cumin

2+ teaspoons smoked paprika

1 red onion, diced

5 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1 pound baby arugula leaves

3 cups vegetable broth or water

2 dried ancho chiles

Directions:

Put lentils and water in a large soup pot. Bring to boiling, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for approximately 30 minutes (depending on lentils), or until soft. Once cooked, add arugula, whole dried ancho chile peppers, and broth/water to lentils. Simmer for approximately 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a pan, then toss in the cumin and paprika. Sauté spices at medium heat until fragrant but not burned, approximately 30 seconds. Add onions and garlic; stir until coated with spices. Sauté aromatics until translucent. Afterward, mix in the tomatoes and sauté until heated through and bubbling.

Remove ancho chiles from soup pot. Remove tops from chiles and chop the rest into small bits. Add back to soup. Stir in the tomato mixture and add salt and pepper to taste, plus more smoked paprika if you deem it necessary (I had to up it a bit last night, although it would have been fine as is). Enjoy!

This recipe was really delicious, really healthy, and really turned into a big mess. I’ve been fairly lucky in my history as a home chef and have had few significant mishaps. This one, however, was a doozy. Basically, I learned that if you take a very hot substance which is mostly liquid with a few solids, like in this tomato soup, and overfill the blender even a little, it will explode everywhere. And I mean everywhere. I’ve included a picture but even it doesn’t do justice to the hilarious bit of kitchen chaos I experienced that night. Ah well, live and learn. I hope you enjoy the recipe, at least.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon cumin

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 red onion, diced

9-10 small to medium-sized tomatoes (I used Roma, but any flavorful variety will do), peeled, seeded and diced (reserve as much juice as possible)

2 cups water

Salt and pepper

1 bunch cilantro

½ cup pine nuts

Zest and juice of one lime

½+ cup olive oil

Directions:

Heat tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in cumin and heat until fragrant, about one minute. Add onions and sauté until translucent. Add tomatoes, salt, pepper and water, bring to a boil then simmer for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the cilantro, pine nuts, lime zest, lime juice and olive oil in a food processor and puree until smooth. Add more olive oil if necessary.

Let tomato mixture cool, and then, working in very small batches, puree in a blender. Pour soup into bowls and add swirls of pesto, plus cilantro sprigs for garnish, if desired. A dollop of sour cream or crème fraiche would also go well, if you’re feeling fancy.

Also, if you have extra pesto, which you most likely will, I would mix it with some brown rice, fresh corn, diced tomatoes, avocado chunks and cooked chicken for a salad you can bring to work – delish!

I love fall. One of the things I love most about it, is pumpkins. These large and attractive gourds can satisfy one’s urges to both be a kid again through  the magic of carving, as Kevin and I did this Halloween, as well as fill your tummy with the most wonderful sweet, savory and ultimately satisfying food. This pumpkin soup hit all of those marks.

Ingredients:

5 cups of pumpkin, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons turbinado sugar (you can sub brown sugar)

1 1/2 teaspoons hot paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika

2 teaspoons chili powder

2 teaspoons sea salt

2 1/2 cups chicken broth, or enough to cover pumpkin

Directions:

Roast pumpkin at 375 degrees in a baking pan for approximately 15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together sugar, spices and salt in a small bowl.

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and 1/2 of the spice mixture. Saute until fragrant.

Add cooked pumpkin and chicken broth to pot. Mix well and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Let simmer ten minutes then blend. Taste for spice and add more mixture to taste. I used it all and it was strong, but still good. Use your own judgment though! Top with roasted pumpkin seeds (seen above, with smoked paprika) or a dollop of creme fraiche.

This is not my own recipe, but a well-known summer treat that’s been around forever and constitutes one of my all-time favorite appetizers. Make sure to get high-quality buffalo mozzarella and ripe heirloom tomatoes. Italians prefer their Caprese tomatoes a bit green, so if you are not sure about a tomato’s ripeness, I’d err on the firmer side.

Ingredients:

2 3-inch balls of fresh buffalo mozzarella, stored in liquid

4 heirloom tomatoes of varying size and color

4 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh basil

4 tablespoons high-quality extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt to taste

Serves 4

Directions:

Cut the mozzarella and tomatoes into circles approximately ½ inch thick. Arrange slices on four separate plates on top of each other, with the largest forming the base and smaller slices at the top. Sprinkle each plate with one tablespoon of basil, and then drizzle one tablespoon of olive oil over each stack. Sprinkle with sea salt. Serve and enjoy!