Couscous with Basil Pesto and Cherry Tomatoes

(Pesto recipe here.)

Lentils and Squash

Last week it was summer here in the Bay Area- 80 degrees and sunny- and yesterday it turned cold and cloudy, with even a bit of rain. Although the weather report promises highs in the 70s for the forseeable future, my palate is starting to shift towards cozy foods like this wintertime classic. I probably eat some variation of this dish every day during the colder months, maybe with chickpeas or black beans instead of lentils, or sweet potato instead of squash, or the addition of some hearty greens or even a grain like couscous, farro, or rice. Sometimes I'll add cheese in the form of buffala mozzarella, homemade ricotta, or chevre. But the basics are always the same: roast the squash for about a half hour with spices and olive oil (I like a combination of coriander, clove, nutmeg and chilli), cook the lentils at the same time with herbs (thyme, sage, or even just a bay leaf can be great) and garlic, and combine.

Lentils with Cherry Tomatoes and Goat Cheese

The last of the cherry tomatoes from my garden...

Chickpeas, Avocado Toast

Pear Clafoutis

When I was in Paris a couple of years ago, I had the most amazing clafoutis in a tiny wine bar near the Louvre. It wasn't on the menu, but the woman behind the bar brought a slice out for another patron and I pointed and somehow managed to order one myself. This recipe was Julia Child's, and it wasn't quite as custardy as the one in my memory, but it was still a delicious way to use up more of my dad's pears and the perfect finish to a French themed picnic dinner this weekend.

Spicy Squash, Black Bean, and Herb Salad with Lime

Black Cod Baked with Tahini, Spicy Roasted Squash, Chickpeas and Spinach, Herb, Orange and Olive Salad

A team effort: three dishes from Moro and one from my imagination. It is still hard to get good lighting at night without some sort of fancy rig. I'm working on it...

Caramelized Fennel with Goat Cheese, Shelling Beans, and Arugula Salad

The caramelized fennel is a recipe from Plenty.

Roasted Jerusalem Artichoke and Cherry Tomato Salad with Haloumi

This is the first Ottolenghi recipe I haven't loved. I love all the ingredients individually, but there was something about the combination of the Haloumi (admittedly, the recipe calls for Manouri, but suggests Haloumi as a substitute) and the sunchokes that just didn't work for me. I roasted the sunchokes on a tray instead of in a covered dish as the book recommends- I wanted them to get a little caramelized and I thought that with all the liquid in the dish they would just steam. I think I probably should have just put the tomatoes on that same tray, instead of caramelizing them in a frying pan as the recipe specifies, if only to save dishes.

*Addendum! In my hurry to eat, I completely forgot to add the basil oil, which is supposed to be drizzled over the top of the salad. Not sure if that would have changed my opinion or not...

Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges with Lemon Grass Creme Fraiche

Another from Plenty. The yams are roasted with ground coriander and olive oil, and the sauce is made of lemongrass, ginger, lime juice and zest, and creme fraiche, and garnished with chillies and cilantro.

Green Couscous

Another one from Plenty; I guess if it weren't for the sections on eggplant and mushrooms, I would just give in and say I'm doing one of those "work your way through the cookbook" projects. But it's hard not to keep going back to the book, when every recipe I've tried has been a winner, including this one. It's couscous with lots of herbs (dill, mint, parsely, cilantro, tarragon), caramelized onion, toasted pistachios, chillies, and arugula.