tomato paste

Fall-inspired kabocha and parsnip ratatouille

December 27, 2011

This dish was my first attempt at Ottolenghi’s “Tamara’s Ratatouille” from his marvelous book, Plenty. He promises that by following all the steps, the veggies will retain their shape and when done the dish will not become excessively mushy or wet, like the typical ratatouille everyone’s used to. I like wet, but Steven struggles with [...]

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kabocha pumpkin gnocchi with walnut pesto + cheesecake challenge invite

July 11, 2011

Kabocha is one of my favorite types of pumpkin. It has a nutty, sweet flavor with an intense, beautiful yellow color. It is perfect served as a side dish. The classic Brazilian way to prepare it is one of the simplest: sautéed with garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper, and a bit of water, until [...]

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spaghetti con acciuche e mollica AKA spaghetti with anchovies and breadcrumbs PLUS an invitation for a food blogging chocolate truffle cooking challenge

May 6, 2011

This recipe comes from another Mary Taylor Simeti book, SICILIAN FOOD: Recipes from Italy’s Abundant Isle. I’m fascinated by Sicily right now and have gotten more into making food that hales from there. Torta Paradiso from her book, Bitter Almonds, was just the beginning.  (For the chocolate truffle challenge, see the end of this post.) [...]

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Tensley syrah cioppino

March 25, 2011

Last July when Steven’s parents were here for a couple of days, we took them sightseeing in Sausalito. We got hungry so they took us to an early dinner at Scoma’s, a beautiful seafood food restaurant nestled by the Bay with amazing views of San Francisco, Alcatraz, and the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges. Overall [...]

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tofu and green-pea dal

February 4, 2011

By now my Indian dal soups are all about improvisation. I feel comfortable using most of the Indian ingredients and can sort of predict what a soup will taste like if I add more of one spice versus another. It is fun to have that confidence because now I can utilize whatever ingredients are available [...]

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harrisa, pigeon pea and saffron studded bulgur

January 13, 2011

The Jan/Feb 2011 Vegetarian Times magazine just came out. They’ve an interesting recipe for bulgur to accompany a roasted broccoli with tahini sauce. I made both dishes the other day but couldn’t resist altering the bulgur recipe. The original calls for it to be cooked with raisins, vegetable broth, tomato paste and that’s all. Don’t [...]

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vegetarian Bolognaise ragu

August 17, 2010

I’ve been thinking about what to make from “soy chorizo,” that mystery product that Hegui discovered lurking on the shelves of Trader Joe’s recently. I guess it’s intended as a meat alternative. So what could be better than taking a stab at the ultimate Italian meaty pasta dish: Bolognaise ragu, or as we called it [...]

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sundried tomato pesto

July 12, 2010

This makes a wonderful and intensely flavorful spread for sandwiches and can kick up tomato dishes and pasta sauces into high gear. It’s a simplified variation of grilled vegetable tapenade, though if you had some of that lying around, it would work perfectly well, too. sundried tomato pesto 1 jar of sundried tomato packed in [...]

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penne with bitter Thai eggplant

January 19, 2010

The guy selling me this lovely bitter fruit at the UN Plaza Farmers’ Market swears that it’s called Thai eggplant. I don’t know. It reminds me of a bitter vegetable that’s very popular in Minas Gerais, my home state in Brazil. There it’s called giló or jiló, which sounds like “jell-o” in English. Yeah, I [...]

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linguine with harissa, chick pea, mushroom and spinach

September 17, 2009

Harissa is a spicy chili paste commonly associated with Moroccan cooking but it is widely used all over North Africa. Harissa is made with hot chili peppers, sweet peppers, tomatoes, preserved lemons, olive oil, salt, cumin, caraway, coriander and other spices. The flavor may sometimes vary, depending on the brand you buy. When you taste [...]

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