Blueberries and Granola

This blog has really evolved into less of a recipe collection and more of a documentation of the simple foods I like to prepare for myself at home, rarely requiring any instructions at all. I am contemplating changing the header to reflect this- the fact that these are things that are relatively quick and easy to make for just one person (but also adaptable for more diners)- but I'm not quite sure what I should say. Any thoughts from the readers?

Chickpeas and Kale with Vegetarian Grain Sausage and Corn Tortillas

Truffle Cake aka The Second* Easiest Cake in the World

This is a combination of two different River Cafe "truffle cake" recipes- one had a more mousse-like filling that used egg yolks and butter with the chocolate on top of a hazelnut praline crust, and the other was simply chocolate and cream, or 100% ganache. I opted to make the praline crust with the simple ganache on top and the combination was perfect. I used Mission almonds instead of hazelnuts, which my mother doesn't like. Aside from an hour of chilling in the fridge, this cake came together in about a half hour and required almost no effort at all, and only five ingredients, all of which I had in my pantry. I served it with whipped cream and it was such a huge hit at our Passover meal that I will definitely be making it again.

2 C Mission almonds (or hazelnuts)
6 Tbs Demerara sugar (you could also use Turbinado or brown)
1/2 C butter (I used salted and I thought it was a nice compliment to the bittersweet chocolate)
450 g dark chocolate (70% is recommended)
10 oz heavy whipping cream

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Butter the bottom of a 9" springform pan, line with parchment, and butter the paper as well. Roast the nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet for about 10 minutes, and then pulse in a food processor until coarsely ground.

Melt butter in a saucepan and add sugar, letting it boil until a light caramel forms (not very long). Add the nuts and stir for a couple of minutes so that everything sticks together. Pour the mixture into the cake pan and spread into an even layer while still hot. Let cool.

In a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Heat the cream and then stir it into the chocolate until combined. Pour on top of the praline crust and refrigerate for at least an hour until you are ready to serve.

When you are ready to serve the cake, wrap a towel soaked in hot water around the sides of the pan for a few seconds to melt the ganache slightly so that the ring will come off smoothly. When serving, dip your knife in warm water between slices for super clean cutting.

* the easiest cake in the world is Icebox Cake.

Lentil and Veggie Tacos

I love that you can put anything in a tortilla and call it a taco. In this case, I used leftover lentil salad (lentils, shallot, garlic, herbs, red wine vinegar) that I heated up, leftover veggies (peas, asparagus, spinach and spring onion), and a little goat cheese. Yum!

Rigatoni with Roasted Tomatoes and Goat Cheese

I freeze lots and lots of roasted tomatoes every summer so I can eat them year round. This is one of my favorite ways to use them. It's so easy- I just chop up the tomatoes and let them thaw, and toss them with the hot pasta when it's cooked. The tangy goat cheese crumbled on top is the perfect compliment to the sweet tomatoes.

Beets with Preserved Lemon, Chickpeas with Harissa, and Asparagus

Spring Veggies Over Polenta

Black Beans and Quinoa with Kale, Celery, and Onion

Also: coriander and oregano, and celery leaves, cilantro and green onions tossed in at the end.

Chickpeas and Asparagus with an Egg

Mezze-ish

I had a bunch of recipes with a bit of an Eastern bent bookmarked (okay, Nice is not really Eastern...), so I made a meal out of them for a tv viewing party. Clockwise from top: herb salad (parsley, cilantro, mint, arugula, spinach, and preserved lemon), olives, socca (so easy!!), pickled watermelon radishes, roasted beets with harissa, green bean raita, and (middle) sweet potato, kale, and quinoa cakes.

Shaved Fennel, Asparagus, and Arugula Salad

I had this with a sliced, hard-boiled egg on top... yum!

Kale, Yellow Beet and Barley Salad with Red Onion and Feta Cheese

Adapted from this recipe. This was even better the next day.

Egg in the Middle

I know most people call this Toad in the Hole, but my mom always called it Egg in the Middle. Instead of making soldiers out of the cut out bread, I tore it into breadcrumbs that I toasted with a little garlic and lemon zest. Yum!

Poached Salmon with Lentils

I really need to work on my night photography skills. Lunch always looks so much nicer than dinner!

Asparagus and Goat Cheese Bruschetta, Beet Salad

Bruschetta is the perfect vehicle for almost any salad. Inspired by this recipe, I dressed the shaved asparagus with some finely sliced shallots, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Beet salad recipe here.

Arugula, Mandarin Oranges, Smoked Almonds

Chilled Asparagus with Crab, Lemon Yogurt Sauce, and Breadcrumbs

For the lemon sauce: grind garlic into a paste using a mortar and pestle. Season with salt and pepper and add lemon juice to achieve the desired consistency. Finish with freshly grated lemon zest.

Broccoli Manchego Melts on Seeded Wheat Bread

Roasted Squash and Avocado "Panzanella"

This is loosely based on this recipe from Jamie Oliver. I roasted squash with his mixture of cumin, chilli, garlic, thyme and orange and lemon halves, and tossed that with the avocado, arugula, and some red wine vinegar. Then I added some torn up bits of toasted whole wheat seeded bread at the end. I think it would have been nice with the addition of some toasted seeds like Jamie suggests, since the bread ended up sopping up all the dressing and not providing much crunch, but it was delicious anyways!

Citrus Salad with Avocado

Elk and Cheddar Melts with Piper's Pickles

Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

Piper whipped up this tomato soup for us after a couple of hours of romping in the snow; I made some grilled cheese using her beautiful homemade bread to go with it. (Bourbon hot chocolate not pictured.) What a perfect snow day lunch!

Elk Loin with Pan Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Turnips, and a Red Wine- Rhubarb Apple Sauce

Amazingly enough, at Piper's house this was another pantry meal. She had the elk in her freezer from a hunter friend, and the brussels and turnips from her CSA. We rubbed the elk with a spice mix (black pepper, juniper berries and herbs), seared it on the stove and then roasted it in the oven. The Brussels sprouts and turnips were cooked in bacon fat until they caramelized, and we improvised the sauce using rhubarb, apples, red wine, rosemary, and a little gin to compliment the juniper in the meat.

Beet Bruschetta

Stuck in Chicago during "Snowpocalypse 2011," my friend Piper and I have been working with what food she has in her pantry... by which I mean, the most amazing assortment of ingredients! Inspired by a meal we had at Lula before the blizzard, I used the beets from her last CSA box to make my favorite salad, and served it atop her incredible homemade sourdough with her homemade farmers' cheese. Yum!

Roasted Beets with Olives, Capers, and Oranges; Smashed Chickpeas and Toast

Cauliflower and Caramelized Onion Tart, Reprise

We made this tart again. You have no idea how good it is!

Coconut Rice with Squash and Black Beans

From Tartelette... Terrible picture, but this was delicious! The lime zest and lemongrass in it really give it that something extra.

Cherry Custard Tart with Anise

This came from the Moro Cookbook- the cherries (which I had frozen from last summer) are cooked in anise liqueur, and then you make a syrup with the juice to pour over the finished tart. Please note that due to the low lighting, this looks much more yellow and eggy than it really was!

Penne with Olives, Capers, and Breadcrumbs

Cranberry Beans, Roasted Squash and Apples

Lentils and Spicy Squash with Avocado Toast

Spiced Almonds

Inspired by Moro, these are just almonds I roasted and tossed with olive oil, paprika, salt, and a little cayenne and white pepper.

Mashed Sunchokes and Millet with Cranberry and Purple Shelling Beans, Caramelized Onion, and Arugula and Persimmon Salad

Inspired by this post. I am not a big cauliflower fan, and I had some sunchokes in the fridge so I decided to use them instead. I think it came out great, and it was delicious with the sweet, caramelized onions and fresh shelling beans.

Roasted Beet Salad with Yogurt Dressing and Nigella Seeds (Reprise)

I made the beet salad from Moro again for our pumpkin carving party, and served it in these adorable little cups, with some daikon sprouts on top.

Leftovers

Spicy, roasted squash and hand-pulled mozzarella from our party the other night, served with lentils.

Pluot Galette

Inspired by a tart I had at Chez Panisse last month, we served this with rosewater whipped cream, which really brought out the fragrance of the pluots. (Pictured below with our favorites from the River Cafe books: Chocolate Walnut Torte and Pear Almond Cake)

Spicy Squash and Hand-Pulled Mozzarella Skewers

Erik pulled the mozzarella just moments before we served the skewers. Recipe from Jamie.

Smashed Canellini Beans with Thyme and Garlic, Arugula Salad, Toast

Arugula and Avocado Salad, Avocado Toast

Black Cod Tagine with Green Peppers, Tomatoes, Potatoes, and Olives

Also from Moro.

Fava Bean and Cucumber Soup

I had this at Moro when I was in London this summer, and now that I have their cookbook I've been dying to make it myself. It was just as delicious as I remembered and surprisingly easy to make. We made it with fresh fava beans instead of the dry ones in the recipe, which made it even quicker to put together.

Tagliatelle with Roasted Tomatoes, Olives, Capers, and Arugla

Inspired by River Cafe, as always...

Cranberry Beans with Arugula and Corn Salad

I cooked the beans with garlic, tomato and sage.

A Very Camino Dinner (Polenta, Cranberry Beans, Roasted Tomatoes and an Egg)

Leftovers

Smashed chickpeas, toast, roasted cherry tomatoes, pot roast from Chez Panisse, beet and carrot salads.

Smashed White Beans and Roasted Cherry Tomatoes on Toast

Roasted Carrots with Lemon and Cumin

Made with carrots from my garden!

Beet Salad with Yogurt and Nigella Seed

This is from the first Moro cookbook.

Tagliatelle Carbonara with Zucchini