Fall Kale Salad with Spicy Garbanzos

I’m back on the kale salad band wagon, but this time, I’ve taken a decidedly Autumn turn with my Fall Kale Salad with Spicy Garbanzos. This salad is definitely hearty enough to eat for dinner and it’s great vegetarian or with the bacon. When I make it vegetarian, I double the garbanzo bean part of the recipe. In fact, I pretty much always make double the garbanzos, or even triple, because whatever is leftover makes a delicious snack. I for one am always looking for ways to make healthy and delicious snacks to keep the munchies at bay. And the spicy garbanzos are definitely a delicious and healthy snack. If you aren’t just adding extra garbanzos and you are indeed using bacon, make sure you keep it separate until just before you’re going to serve the salad. That way it stays extra crispy, which is a great contrast to the squash which shouldn’t be mushy, but isn’t crunchy either. Finally, it’s time to get apple picking, because apples are not just for dessert; they’re great in my Fall Kale Salad with Spicy Garbanzos. I often add fruit to salad, but in this particular Fall Kale Salad with Spicy Garbanzos the … Continue reading

Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs

I love pesto sauce, like all Summer sun worshippers and Italophiles and these Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs encourage pesto for breakfast. And this time of year, when basil is still abundant, but it’s time to thinking about preserving Summer’s abundance, I make lots and lots of pesto and freeze it. After all, there’s only so much pesto al pasta and pizza with pesto sauce that you can eat in any given week, but when you make it and freeze it for winter, the number of pesto dishes a person is able to consume is (thankfully) greatly increased. But it doens’t have to be pasta that you make for pesto all winter long. When you need some variety, these Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs are a delicious use that makes Pesto great for an easy weeknight dinner, or even a great brunch. It’s really simple; we’re just making an alternative potato salad and then topping it with soft-boiled eggs, instead of my standard poached. Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs are also a great shoulder season meal, as the potatoes feel a little more substantial and fall, or perfect for getting to enjoy some of your fresh basil in the dead … Continue reading

St. Brie LT

Considering I grew up in a household that prized St. André cheese and fresh from the garden tomato and lettuce BTSs (otherwise know as Summer BLTs) above pretty much all other things epicurean, it was surprising to me when my friend Susan turned me on to the St. Brie L.T., and not the other way around. I mean, I don’t even like mayo and often have experimented with other condiments to sub in for mayo. Perhaps it’s because I settled upon avocado so long ago that I stopped my quest before I set upon adding the brie necessary to make a St. Brie L.T.? I’m not sure. Regardless, I’m happy to share it with you now, even if the addition of brie can’t be attributed to my genius. The name though: St. Brie L.T., that’s all mine. After all, you’ve probably figured out I like a good food pun, and this one has it all, a reference to the ingredients, a play on the traditional name, and the elevation of the perfect sandwich (with bacon!) to divine status… St. Brie LT covers all my food naming preferences. And even if bacon isn’t your thing, vegetarians, this one’s for you. Between … Continue reading

Spicy Tuna and Avocado Tartar

Dear readers, you may have noticed that I (unintentionally) took a week off of blogging, but I’m finally back with Spicy Tuna and Avocado Tartar. Whoops. I have excuses of course: it was a busy week, I was out of town, we had lots of social obligations, the light wasn’t right for photos… But the truth is, I only drink cocktails and eat salads in the summer, so sometimes there isn’t much to write about. I mean, how many “recipes” can there be for G&T’s? And this past week, it’s been all about Caprése. Which is great, but not for blogging purposes. You already have my creative take on that in the Peach Caprése Salad. So I finally went to the store and bought some ingredients so I could make you a new salad. This Spicy Tuna and Avocado Tartar has been in my repertoire for years, but I’ve been keeping it from you. Devious, I know. Especially since it’s one of my go-tos for hot summer nights when you don’t want to cook-but you have guests coming over-so you need something that appears fancy. … Continue reading

Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo

I love these Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo. They came about during my time teaching Public Health Law at the University of Pennsylvania. One of the easiest ways to get lunch at Penn is from food trucks, and many of us eat from the trucks almost every day. So you can imagine how exciting a new truck is. New options, new everything. One of the new trucks that opened while I worked there was called Tyson’s Bees. It was Korean Taco fusion and it was really really popular. So popular that sometimes the line was so long that I couldn’t wait for tacos, even if I really wanted to. And one of my favorite lunches was their, you guessed it, Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo. They were really simple and good and just enough spice and I realized that I needed to learn to make them myself. So this is my take on Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo inspired by the original Tyson’s Bees truck. These Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo, quickly became one of my all-time favorite weekday meals (especially in the summer). They are really quick and easy and light and refreshing. But in our house, we eat … Continue reading

Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes

It’s true; I should probably just call this Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes a frittata. But that’s the Italian version. And my croquet party was a French, Old Fashioned Croquet Party. So Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes it is. After all, sticking with the theme is what counts, right? I mean, I got the guests to the garden, all in white, I had the croquet set up, I made french salads with french herbs and had a lovely lavender lemonade. We’re sticking to the theme on the quiche! In all seriousness, regardless of your theme, or what you call it, the Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes is a great make ahead dish for a party any time of day for a variety of reasons. One great feature of this dish is that it’s composed of all ingredients you can buy ahead of time, from the French onion dip, to the sundried tomatoes. Furthermore, it’s a breeze to make, you can serve it warm, cold, or room temperature, like I did, and if you cut in on the bias, the diamond shaped pieces look really fancy. This is definitely a repertoire sort of dish to know because you can whip it up for … Continue reading

Asparagus and Dill Roast Beef Rolls

I struggled a lot with a name for these Asparagus and Dill Roast Beef Rolls. It was hard to come up with something that was descriptive as well as appetizing. Something about Beef Rolls doesn’t quite sound right to me, so if you have ideas, I’m all ears. That said, the goal that led to the creation of the Asparagus and Dill Roast Beef Rolls was a dish for my Old Fashioned Croquet Party Menu that was really easy to make (I think these took about 10 minutes) and a little bit playful, since I knew I was going to have lots of children (old and young) in attendance. I loved how these Asparagus and Dill Roast Beef Rolls turned out. Again, it was nice to serve only dishes that could easily be made ahead. I was able to set out the spread at the beginning of the party and then relax. I check on things a couple of times, but I even got in a game of croquet. The beef rolls were no exception. They were actually the easiest dish to make aside from washing the strawberries and all of the moms commented that they felt like aside from … Continue reading

French Red White & Blue Potato Salad

My French Red White & Blue Potato Salad is a great change of pace after all of the mayo-based salads that have been out and about at recent parties. I realize that I’ve just missed the 4th of July, which would have been a timely publication date for a salad with Red, White and Blue in the title, but have no fear, Bastille Day is still to come! Any excuse for a party, right? Here in Philly, there’s actually a big Bastille Day party at the Eastern State Penitentiary (yes, you read that right). It features a play of sorts surrounding the beheading of Marie Antoinette and TastyKake is a big sponsor of the rather silly affair. They feature prominently in the celebration- when Marie Antoinette says, “Let them eat TastyKakes,” they’re thrown to the waiting crowd. It’s quite the to do, complete with lots of French beer and all the local restaurants put out French menus and cocktails. While the day is quite fun, the truth is, I didn’t make the French Red White & Blue Potato Salad recipe for a holiday at all, but rather for a French Garden Menu I put together for an Old Fashioned Croquet Party. … Continue reading

Blue Ridge Mountain Benedicts

This Spring, one of our mini adventures was a weekend trip to Charlottesville, VA. It’s a gorgeous town, situated at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains for which my Blue Ridge Mountain Benedicts are named. It’s a tiny town, but it’s packed with art, music and great food. We had lots of awesome meals, but the one I knew I had to recreate, and I dare say best, was a breakfast sandwich from the Bluegrass Café. It was a sweet little breakfast place that’s so good at what it does that it can afford to yell, “No Substitutions” at you. That said, if you’re famous for made from scratch biscuits and you’re located in the South, you should serve your breakfast sandwich on that, and not a store bought English muffin. Since there were “No Substitutions,” I ate it as recommended, but was wishing I had a biscuit all the while. So, when last Sunday night turned into a little party to toast, and well-wish, and “Bon Voyage!” some dear friends moving to California… I had a hankering of what to make: Blue Ridge Mountain Benedicts. And then they sealed the deal. “We’ll bring bubbles” they said. “All we … Continue reading

Smoky, Spicy Buttermilk Dressing

When I know I’m going to serve my guests something like the Seriously Good Extra Crispy Fried Chicken I’m about to unleash on my Updated Southern Supper Menu, I do more than start them off with a really light appetizer like my Spicy Mint and Dill Quick Pickled Beans and Carrots. I also make a lightweight salad that’s super simple, but packed with all the flavor of a Smoky, Spicy Buttermilk Dressing. The most important ingredient in this recipe is the buttermilk itself, so if you have a brand you love, or know where to get some from a local farmstand, it will make a huge difference. I love the buttermilk from Fair Food Philly in the Reading Terminal Market. They have amazing dairy in general; it’s where I get sheeps milk for my Lemon Verbena Ice Cream and they even sell raw milk there. It’s worth experimenting with different brands and figuring out what is most flavorful to you because it absolutely makes this salad special. The dressing is so good and the lettuce is so tender and mild that some super sweet tiny tomatoes and thin radish slices are all you need. Trust me, you want this Smoky, … Continue reading

Leftover Crab Dip Crêpes

Here’s one more nice and easy leftover crab dip idea: make savory Leftover Crab Dip Crêpes and serve with the leftover Snappy Green Salad. They work really well with any salad. But I definitely recommend something simple with a citrus dressing. Lemon or lime complements the citrus in the crab dip perfectly. Added bonus, these Leftover Crab Dip Crêpes are perfect for brunch, a ladies luncheon, or even a weeknight meal for guests. The presentation is very elegant despite its simplicity. And you know I’m a total sucker for that combination. I would have company for dinner almost every night, if given the opportunity, and that requires lots of dinner dishes that “wow” without being too time intensive. Recreating and reinventing leftovers is a huge part of how I do this. It also makes eating up leftovers a lot more fun, whether you have company over or not. You don’t even have to admit to your guests that they’re eating leftovers with you. Of course these Leftover Crab Dip Crêpes would be delicious even if you filled traditional Swedish Pancakes or crêpes with the crab dip, just nix the sugar. But I must say, the almond flour, coconut milk and turmeric … Continue reading

Leftover Crab Dip Melts

If decided to try out my Chesapeake Bay Crab Party menu and you have some leftover crab dip, then you’re going to be really happy the day after the party, because using up the leftovers with these Leftover Crab Dip Melts might be even better than the dip itself. But I’m not really sure, so you should probably judge for yourself. Since it’s still RAMPS season around Philly, I’ve been using them on everything. I know it’s a little cliché to be obsessed with ramps and it might make you feel like you’re in an episode of Portlandia, but the excitement seasonal cooks have for fresh ramps is well-placed. They’re so good! And one of my favorite ways to eat them is sautéed or grilled and added to a sandwich. Here, I’m using them for the base and the onion element in my Leftover Crab Dip Melts. If it’s not ramps season or you don’t live in an area where you can get your hands on them, grilled scallions or leeks can get you a similar effect. Either way, this easy brunch, lunch or dinner of Leftover Crab Dip Melts is going to put a smile on everyone’s face. The … Continue reading