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.

Butternut Squash and Chickpea Tagine over Saffron Couscous

Wow. This morning, exhausted and feeling lazy, I decided to soak some chickpeas to have for dinner, without any sort of plan for how I wanted to use them. At some point this afternoon, I pulled out my trusty copy of Plenty and took a peek to see if any new chickpea recipes would inspire me, and discovered this one, which called almost exclusively for ingredients I already had at home (the squash, cilantro and tomatoes came from the garden, and the rest was all in the pantry- I keep harissa and preserved lemons in my fridge at all times), except for parsnips and carrots, which I left out. The dish has a few different components- the chickpeas (which I cooked with the tomatoes, bay leaf, coriander seed, and garlic), the couscous (cooked with saffron, and I added some ghee at the end for extra yumminess), and the squash (which I roasted in a dutch oven with shallots, more bay leaf, cardamom pods, star anise, cinnamon, and a myriad of other recommended spices)- but in the end it is pretty simple, and if you have the patience to let some chickpeas soak and wait 45 minutes for them and your squash/root veg to cook, the rest comes together in no time. And boy oh boy is it good! I am already anticipating the leftovers...

Toasted Fresh Cannellini Beans, Early Girl Tomatoes, Mascarpone

The dollop of mascarpone made this a very decadent lunch.

Eggs with Arugula, Yogurt, Fried Sage, and Chillies

Guess where this came from? Yep, Plenty. What can I say? Every recipe looks better than the last, and I don't think there's a single one I'm not dying to make.

Roasted Autumn Fruit with Custard

Our friends from Seattle were in town so Erik and I made this to take to a lovely dinner in their honor. We used two kinds of figs and two kinds of pluots, cooked with a little lemon juice, orange zest, sugar, and vanilla bean.

Tarte Tatin with Creme Fraiche Ice Cream

I wanted to make something using my dad's current crop of extra tart apples, and as it happens, apple pie is a favorite of the dinner guest I was having over this week. Instead of an American apple pie, I decided to try my hand at the classic French version- tarte tatin. I've made banana tarte tatin, and tomato tarte tatin, but never the traditional apple. I followed Jamie Oliver's recipe, which was very simple, but I got impatient waiting for the liquid from the apples to reduce before adding the puff pastry, and it got a little soggy. When I reheated the tarte for this photo, it got a little close to the broiler, so my apologies for the unsightly burnt edge. Either way (soggy or burnt) it still tasted great, and the ice cream (for which I used David Lebovitz's recipe) was fabulous and the perfect tangy accompaniment to this sweet dessert.

Fig and Basil Salad with Goat Cheese

Inspired by yet another recipe in Plenty, with Genovese and Thai Basil, Arugula, and a pomegranate molasses dressing.

Braised Short Ribs and Rapini over Fresh Corn Polenta

I have been eyeing this recipe for fresh corn "polenta" in Plenty for a while now. The corn was so sweet, I would happily eat it for breakfast any day of the week. Last night I served it with braised short ribs and some sauteed rapini to cut the richness of the beef. I cooked the ribs for about four hours with beef stock, red wine, and lots of aromatics. Yum!

Charentais Melon, Buffala Mozzarella, Basil, Sea Salt, Olive Oil

I guess this is just a fancier version of cantaloupe and cottage cheese, but boy is it good...

Roasted Butternut Squash with Lime, Chillies, Cilantro, and Yogurt-Tahini Dressing

Another Ottolenghi recipe (the squash is marinated in cardamom and allspice), made with the first of my homegrown butternut squashes! I am so proud of this little squash- he started as a seed that I saved last year, sprouted in my kitchen, planted and nurtured, and tonight he made a delicious dinner!

Shakshouka

Shakshouka is a North African dish. I followed Yotam Ottolenghi's recipe in Plenty, which includes a bit of sugar, and I think next time I'd probably just wing it instead. Either way, it was a delicious breakfast!

Fresh Butter Beans with Tuna, Onions, Capers and Chillies

This is a preparation I use a lot for quick pasta dinners (sautee onions until translucent with chilli flakes and capers, add tuna packed in oil to warm through, and toss with pasta), but I had these fresh butter beans from the market, and I thought I'd use them instead. Cannellinis and tuna are a classic combo, and I thought this worked out really well.

Tomato Party!

Erik came over and we made this dish from Plenty, which is actually called "Tomato Party." It consists of: couscous, fregola, roasted and fresh tomatoes, garlic, tarragon, mint, and oregano. It was good warm but I think it would be even better as a cold salad for a picnic or barbeque. Also, it made me think of this song.

Bruschetta with Braised Fennel and Salumi

Strawberries with Creme Fraiche and Sugar

Early Girl Tomatoes with Fleur Vert Goat Cheese and Basil

Whole-grain Mustard, Rabbit Rillettes, and Peach on Walnut Toast

Spicy Chickpeas, Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Spinach

Tomatoes and Chevre with Blistered Padron Peppers

It's time for late summer produce, which means the dry-farmed Early Girl tomatoes are back! I can guarantee that I will be eating this for lunch almost every day for the next month.

Fresh Black Eyed Peas and Smashed Sweet Potato

All summer long I have been eagerly anticipating the appearance of this little box tucked away at the back of the market, and yesterday it showed up! These fresh black eyed peas are so good, nutty and sweet, and cook up really quickly with some herbs and a tomato from the garden. I like to eat them with smashed, roasted sweet potatoes, finished with really good olive oil and sea salt.

Lentils and Celeriac with Toasted Hazelnuts

Another one from Plenty. I had some celery root that I was planning to use in a salad, but when I saw this recipe I knew I would make it instead. This is my idea of the perfect easy dinner for one, and boy was it good! The hazelnuts and mint together with the tang of the vinegar reminded me a lot of a lamb and rice dish my mom would make when I was little, almonds, mint and lemon. You can buy the ingredients for this any time of year but I feel like this would be especially delicious on a cold winter or autumn day.

Start by putting hazelnuts on a baking sheet in the oven at about 300 degrees for 15 minutes. While they are toasting, put lentils in a pot of water seasoned with a bay leaf and thyme, and start to boil. Start a second pot of salted water boiling for the celeriac. Cut the celeriac into large chunks (or "chips" as Yotam puts it), and add them to the water. Let both pots simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the celeriac is tender and the lentils are al dente. Roughly chop the hazelnuts and coarsely chop the mint and set aside. When the lentils are done, drain them and toss immediately with salt and pepper, a little red wine vinegar, olive oil, and hazelnut oil (about 1.5 parts olive to one part hazelnut). Add the celeriac, mint, and hazelnuts. All told, this shouldn't take more than a half hour and it is well worth every minute. As far as quantities go, I like to make about 1/4 cup of dry lentils per person, and you can portion out the other ingredients accordingly... I think I used about 1/4 cup of whole hazelnuts, a small handful of mint leaves, and one medium celery root (about the size of a baseball), and that was good for two servings. I eyeballed the oil and vinegar but I'd bet I used about a half a tablespoon of each oil and half a tablespoon of vinegar as well.

Green Bean and Pea Salad

This was adapted from Ottolenghi's Plenty. I bought the most beautiful, dark purple beans to use, thinking they'd look stunning next to the traditional green ones, but in the cooking process they lost all their color and this is what I ended up with. They are dressed in toasted mustard seed and coriander, red onion, tarragon, and lemon. I also added some baby beet greens to bring in some color.

Finocchiona, Ricotta, Caramelized Fennel and Olives

It's National Sandwich Month, so I thought I'd use a few of the things in my fridge to make one for lunch today. Finocchiona is one of my favorite salumi, made with fennel seed, so I caramelized some fennel to go with it, added some chopped olives and a little ricotta to temper the saltiness of the meat.

Fried Lima Beans with Sorrel, Sumac and Feta Cheese

I met Yotam Ottolenghi last month and when I saw this recipe on David Lebovitz' blog recently, I knew it would be the first dish I'd try from the new cookbook, Plenty. When I was a kid, there was nothing I hated more than lima beans. I even made a list of 10 reasons I refused to eat them, and my babysitter helped me illustrate it. Everytime my mom made something with lima beans, I'd have to eat five of them before I was allowed to pick the rest out and I would always grumble about it. But those were frozen, or sometimes canned lima beans, and it wasn't until recently that I tried dried ones and even fresh ones that are considerably less mushy (my major complaint with the beans of my childhood). In this dish, the sumac and sorrel make a really nice lemony contrast to the toasty beans. I'll definitely be making this again!

Roasted Plums with Baked Ricotta

My dad has an abundance of Satsuma plums and has been offloading them onto me regularly. I baked these with some honey and spices (vanilla bean, cloves, cardamom), and had them for breakfast. They were a bit tart (the skin can be very sour on this variety of plum and that comes out when they are cooked) so next time I would add a good handful of brown sugar as well.

Open Faced Goat Cheese, Roasted Tomato and Arugula Sandwiches

Fresh Shell Beans Over Polenta

I picked these Cranberry and Scarlett Runner beans from my garden today and there were just enough to make dinner for one. I simmered the beans with some marjoram, slowly cooked onions with thyme, and served them together over creamy polenta drizzled with a little good olive oil. Let me tell you: this was a winner! I will definitely be making this again once more beans start showing up in the market, and next year when (hopefully) my harvest is a little more plentiful.

Zucchini Flower Frittata with Sweet Corn, Basil, and Homemade Ricotta

Braised Fennel with Olives Over Polenta

Have you ever wished you hadn't followed a recipe? This was one of those dishes that I could picture in my head and probably would have made much better if I'd winged it. In the end I felt like I could have left out the vinegar, used less tomato paste, less chillies (although maybe the ones I used were especially spicy) and more salt. Next time...

Peaches with Greek Yogurt

Roasted Sweet Potato and Cranberry Beans with Ricotta

This is a River Cafe dish that's become a staple in my kitchen. I love making it with fresh cranberry or Borlotti beans when they are in season because it speeds up the cooking process, but it's just as good with dried beans soaked overnight. The beans are cooked with sage, garlic and a tomato, and the sweet potato is cut into chunks, tossed with olive oil, marjoram, and chili flakes, and roasted at 400 degrees for about a half hour. Fresh mozzarella is amazing with this dish but I didn't have any... to be honest, the ricotta just wasn't the same.

Zucchini and Arugula Frittata with Goat's Milk Feta

Frittatas really are the best way to get lots of veggies into a meal. I had some zucchini that was starting to wrinkle, and a big bag of arugula in my fridge, and half an hour later: lunch! I don't use a recipe for frittata- in this case I just sauteed the onions with some herbs and garlic, added in the zucchini and arugula and let them wilt, and then poured in beaten eggs. I scrambled them around a little and then let them set around the edges before crumbling some feta on top and sticking the pan in the oven for a few minuts, until the center was set. Finally, I put the frittata under the broiler for about 2 minutes, just to brown the cheese a bit and puff the eggs up.

Basil Devilled Eggs with Fried Capers

Yesterday what I expected to be a quiet holiday with a couple of friends turned into a big party. I made lamb and beet burgers, a couple of salads, grilled corn with garam masala and lime, sangria, Eton Mess, and these devilled eggs, inspired by Orangette's recipe. Instead of topping the eggs with the basil aioli, I mixed it into the egg yolks, and I thought that worked out really well. The fried capers on top were a great addition and I will definitely be finding ways to use them in other recipes too! Sadly, this was the only picture I got of the eggs before they were devoured... if anyone else took a better pic, let me know!

Summer Sangria

I am a sucker for Moscato d'Asti and as great as it is on its own, it also makes an amazing sangria. Here I used a combination of peaches, plums, and a handful of cherries, but really any summer fruits will work. I also added some green apple and grapefruit to give it an authentic sangria feel.

Lamb Burgers

For these, I mixed ground lamb with finely chopped red onion, fresh Greek oregano, ground cumin, and salt and pepper. I served them with mint chutney, feta cheese, and chopped olives, on rosemary focaccia.

Beet Burgers!

When I was in Austin a couple months ago I had an amazing veggie burger at 24 that was made with beets, lentils, and brown rice. I found this recipe on the Kitchn that looked similar, and with a couple of small modifications I think it came out great! Here's how I made mine (warning- lots of prep work is involved). I used chickpea flour so that the burgers would also be gluten-free.

1/2 cup cooked brown rice (you should overcook it so it's very soft)
1 onion, diced very fine
3 large red beets, also chopped very fine (you could use a food processor for this)
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 C cooked lentils, slightly mashed
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 Tbs ground coriander seed
1/2 C chickpea flour
salt and pepper
olive oil

Sautee the onions with a little olive oil until translucent. Add the beets, garlic, and coriander and season with salt and pepper. Once the beets have softened (shouldn't take long since they are chopped so fine), add the mixture to the rice and lentils in a large bowl. Check for seasoning and add the lemon juice and chickpea flour to help bind the mixture together. Form into patties.

When you are ready to serve the burgers, heat olive oil in a very hot pan and cook the patties until browned and crisp on one side before flipping (about 2 minutes per side). The patties may fall apart a bit in the pan, but you can just push them back together with a spatula and once they are cooked they should hold together pretty well. If you have time, form the patties ahead and regfrigerate for an hour or two before cooking them- this will make them hold together much better.

Serve with roasted tomatoes, goat cheese, and arugula lightly dressed in lemon juice. I think the burgers eat best on a softer bun, since they are relatively fragile- a harder roll will squash them and make for a messier meal.

Farro with Cucumbers and Radishes in Buttermilk Dressing

Recipe from 101 Cookbooks.

Shaved Carrot Salad with Harissa, Mint and Feta

I like Amy Chaplin's harissa recipe, and I usually keep a little jar of it in the fridge to season veggies and chickpeas easily.

Ricotta with Peaches and Acacia Honey

Roasted Beets with Spiced Chickpeas, Avocado and Arugula Salad

Black Bean and Avocado Tacos with Cotija Cheese

I cooked the beans with chillies, cumin, oregano and garlic, and then garnished with fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime. The only thing that would have made this dinner better: an ice cold watermelon agua fresca.

Strawberries and Cream

One of the best things about living in the UK (in my opinion) is the amazing variety of dairy products; your average grocery store has at least four kinds of cream to choose from, and when I lived in London I loved to buy double cream to pour over the incredible strawberries that were available in the summer. The heavy cream one can buy here in the States is much thinner but makes a decent substitute when I have freshly picked berries in my kitchen.

Pistachio Mortadella and French Mustard on Seeded Wheat, aka Bologna Sandwich