Category Archives: Vegetarian Dishes

Cheese Dishes, Easy to Prepare, Pasta Dishes, Recipes, Salads, Vegetarian Dishes

Orzo Salad with Arugula and Mizithra Cheese

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Orzo is like a dependable friend – versatile, mixes well with others, but distinct and fun on its own.  I’m an out and out fan.  In lieu of the traditional radiatore pasta or bowties for a potluck stunner, why not outstanding orzo?  This particular combination features peppery arugula, sweet tomatoes and salty mizithra cheese all gussied up with a light vinaigrette.  It looks sunnier than Miss America in the Sahara desert.

Mizithra cheese is a rather fun addition – a hard sheep milk cheese made in Greece.  It’s salty like feta, but drier and crumblier – perfect for a lively pasta salad.  If you can’t find mizithra, you can certainly use ricotta salata or feta cheese.  Also, try to use the best olive oil you can get your hands on – when you have a recipe with so few ingredients and little to no cooking, it helps to keep the flavors strong.

Recipe for

Orzo Salad with Arugula and Mizithra Cheese

Ingredients
1 lb. of orzo
2 heirloom tomatoes, diced
3 c. of arugula leaves, loosely chopped
1/2 c. of olive oil
6 oz. of mizithra cheese, crumbled
1/4 tsp. of salt
1/4 tsp. of pepper
4 tbs. of rice wine vinegar
3 tbs. of sliced green onion

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt heavily.  Add the orzo to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions.  Drain and cool with running water.  Drain again well and add to a large mixing bowl.  Toss the orzo with the tomatoes, arugula, olive oil, cheese, salt, rice wine vinegar, pepper and green onions.  Chill for at least 20 minutes and then serve.

Easy to Prepare, Lighten Up, Recipes, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegan Dishes, Vegetarian Dishes

Summer Salad of Fingerlings, Heirloom Tomatoes and String Beans

Summertime has always meant trips to the farmer’s market – from the dripingly ripe tomatoes to the sweetest ears of corn, I couldn’t help but swoon over access to ingredients as flavorful and delicious as these.  Despite my dependence on the convenience of grocery stores, shopping at the market was a reminder of the fact that we can all make a commitment to using the freshest ingredients possible.  Summertime meant easy access to the most incredible veggies, and took the focus off of planning before shopping.  You could go with a blank slate and a lack of a menu, and just resign to be inspired by what was available.  It was liberating, really.

This salad is a winner for the spontaneous and the planners alike – during the summer, heirloom tomatoes are readily available and simply begging to be tucked into.  Green beans are crisp and sweet and ready to snap the ends and crunch away.  You can even access buttery heirloom potatoes for use in this salad that come in just about every shade.  The entire salad is held together by a basil vinaigrette that manages to brighten and highlight all of the flavors of the veggies.  It makes a gorgeous potluck and the perfect accompaniment to grilled meats, but it’s nourishing enough as a main course and absolutely vegan.  Like I said before, the perfect summer celebration.

Summer Salad of Fingerlings, Heirloom Tomatoes and String Beans

1 lb. of haricots vert or string beans, snipped of stems
1 lb. of fingerling potatoes
1 c. of heirloom cherry tomatoes, halved (or 1 c. cubed tomatoes)

juice of half a lemon
3 tbs. of red wine vinegar
2 cl. of garlic
1/2 c. of basil leaves
1/4 c. of olive oil
1/2 tsp. of black pepper
1 tsp. of salt

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt heavily.  Add the potatoes to the boiling water and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.  Drain with a slotted spoon and cool with running water.  While the water is still boiling, plunk in the haricot verts and blanch for 1 minute.  Drain and cool with running water.  Add chilled potatoes and green beans to a large bowl.  Add the tomatoes to the bowl and set aside.

In a food processor, add the garlic, basil, salt and pepper.  Blitz to mince finely.  Add the lemon and vinegar and blitz again.  While the motor is running, stream in the olive oil.  Turn off the food processor and pour dressing over the vegetables.  Toss and chill for at least 15 minutes.  Serve.

Easy to Prepare, Friends Recipes and Hacks, Recipes, Sauces and Condiments, Vegetarian Dishes

Chef Tim’s Caramelized Onions

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As much as I love techniques that save time and effort, sometimes you have to go for broke and forget all the shortcuts.  When I read Chef Tim Ma’s recipe for his caramelized onions (“carmies” for short), I paused for a beat.  3 to 4 hours?  For real, dude?  Yes, for real.

As I peeled and chopped away, I wondered what the final product would be like given the sheer amount of time expended on the dish.  And as the onions sweated away, the house started to smell good.  And then it smelled better than that.  And then better than that.  And then so good that I began to question why I didn’t cook all onions in this way.

Sandra Lee and Rachel Ray be damned (although I could see that maybe, just maybe, Rachel Ray would cook these babies earnestly on a weekend – maybe that’s a little too much faith in humanity), this recipe is the most perfect exercise in reminding ourselves why we cook at all.  When we give the ingredients we’re working with the exact amount of time that they need to become the epitome of deliciousness, we have the ability to create dishes that excite and delight.  I say all of this with the utmost of sincerity – why would I ever waste time making boo boo when I could make these onions?

Recipe for

Chef Tim’s Caramelized Onions

Ingredients
6 sweet yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 tbs. of butter
1 tbs. of salt
1 tbs. of sugar

Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add onions and season with salt and sugar.  Reduce heat to as low as possible and cook onions slowly until they become a deep golden brown, stirring occasionally.  You’ll be cooking these guys for about 3-4 hours.

Roast Beef Sandwich with Caramelized Onions

This is barely a recipe, but so delicious it’s well worth listing here. Layer these onions on foccacia with rare roast beef, fresh arugula, horseradish cheddar and mayo, salt and pepper. It’s lovely for the spice, particularly the peppery arugula playing up the sweetness of the onions. Yes!

 

Kitchen Soundtrack

Languishing in the kitchen by myself, I found myself thinking about the incredible movie “The Wackness” and ended up jonesing for some old Mary J (pronounced Murr J) and the song “Reminisce” – the irony is not lost on me.

Baked Goods, Cheese Dishes, Main Courses, Recipes, Vegetarian Dishes

Tiropita (Greek Cheese Pie)

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Back when I was young, I remember my mom hosting a baby shower in my childhood home – gosh, it must have been for my cousin Sydney, but my mom or aunt would have to confirm.  She hit up our Greek market for olives and fresh feta and grape leaves, none of which interested me at the young age of 10.  But she also scored triangles of spanakopita (spinach was still gross to me at that age) and these miraculous cheesy alternatives called tiropita.  I had my first taste of them sneaking one before the guests showed up and man, what a treat.  Salty feta and crisp, buttery phyllo folded into golden triangles of deliciousness.

All of this was well before phyllo dough and phyllo appetizers became common fare at the market, and I’m kind of happy that it’s so easily accessible now.  I’m able to pop into the grocery and make a lavish cheese pie of my own, all without any crazy trips to the market.  I cut down on the traditional amount of feta and amp up the flavors with nutmeg and dried mint.  I keep things creamy with a bit of ricotta as well, but feel free to substitute other cheeses such as cottage cheese or even crumbly, salty mizithra.  Though I typically make this in a 13x9x3 inch pan and cut it into squares, this also works exceedingly well in a deep dish 9 inch round pan cut into triangles.  If you’re planning a party of sorts, consider making this tiropita with a spinach pie as an accompaniment and a greek salad to tie the whole thing together.  It’s a whole lot of buttery goodness without any fuss.  And we all know that fusses are way overrated.

Recipe for

Tiropita

Ingredients
6 eggs
1/2 tbs. oregano
1 tsp. dried mint
12 oz. of feta, crumbled
1/4 tsp. of nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. of parmasean
16 oz. of ricotta
1/4 tsp. of black pepper
1 stick of butter
1 box of phyllo

In a standing mixer (or with an egg beater), mix together all of the ingredients except for the phyllo and butter until well incorporated.

Grease a 13 x 9 in baking pan. Working carefully and quickly, lay out a sheet of phyllo and butter with a pastry brush. Keep on alternating melted butter and phyllo until you have laid down half of the phyllo. Pour the cheese mixture on top of the phyllo. Top with alternating layers of phyllo and butter. Once you’ve finished with all of the sheets, cut the pie into squares before baking.

Place in the oven and bake on 350° for 45-50 minutes. If the top starts to get too brown, cover with foil for the remainder of the cooking time. Let sit for around 5 minutes before cutting. Serve.

Main Courses, Pressure Cooker Recipes, Recipes, Soups and Stews, Vegetarian Dishes

Potato Leek Soup

The lovely leek is a tricky little bugger.  While its cousin, the onion, smells fragrant and marvelous immediately upon entering the pan filled with butter or olive oil, the leek can be downright funky.  But the patient are always rewarded for their efforts, and the leeks become luscious and silken if you let them hang out and do their thing.  Crown this glory with white truffle oil and breadcrumbs toasted with a little butter and you are in for a real treat. Continue reading Potato Leek Soup →

Baked Goods, Cheese Dishes, Easy to Prepare, Main Courses, Recipes, Vegetarian Dishes

Dionysi’s Spinach and Cheese Pie

Not to put his business out there, but my husband is not a fan of spinach.  Stubborn that I am, though, I try to work it into dishes to “convince” him that maybe, just maybe, there is requited love out there for him and the leafy greens.  You see, I didn’t always adore spinach myself.  When I was in preschool, I once had an abysmal lunch of macaroni and cheese (yum!) with canned spinach (ugh!).  When I refused to eat my spinach, I was told that I couldn’t have any chocolate pudding for dessert.  This was no matter in that I didn’t like chocolate (don’t really love it to this day unless it’s really, really good) – I pitched a fit and refused to eat the vile spinach.  With that, I was whisked off to timeout and my hatred of spinach was sealed.  Until…I decided to study Italian in high school before heading off across the pond for a school trip.  As we learned the different food names in Italian, a group of us made a face at spinaci.  “Oh no!” our professor assured us, “Fresh spinach sauteed with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper is delicious!  You must try it.”  Try it, I did, and I never looked back – spinach and I were meant to be together. Continue reading Dionysi’s Spinach and Cheese Pie →

Desserts, Easy to Prepare, Vegetarian Dishes

Lemon Pound Cake with Fresh Berries

Is This a Recipe?

Lemon Pound Cake with Fresh Berries © Photo by Angela GunderYou’re gonna laugh when you read this recipe.  Because it’s not.  Aside from the slightest, and I mean the SLIGHTEST, bit of doctoring of this amalgamation, it is scarcely a recipe.  When the name of the dish is “pound cake” and the first ingredient is *cough* pound cake, you know that there ain’t much goin’ on.  So why post this at all?  Because it’s good.  Damn good.

Recent trips to my grandmother’s house have all included a care package of countless cookbooks and photocopies of tried and true recipes.  It’s been glorious and at the same time humbling – so much to cook, so few mouths to feed, and above all else, so little time.  It’s as sad as the number of clichés that I used in the previous sentence.  She recently gave me the recipe for “The Best Damn Lemon Cake” which upon tasting, my husband and I agreed was the only name this cake could ever have.  But much like life, this good thing involved a hell of a lot of steps to mold it into majesty.  So what do I do, non-baker that I am?  Create a yummy lemon glaze for a Sara Lee pound cake, top with seasonal berries and garnish with whipped cream and lemon zest.  Let me tell you, it was sexy through and through, all the while saving me precious time to deal with the other courses of the meal I was preparing.  So maybe I should call this the gift cake.  I mean, it did manage to give me precious minutes of my life back.  L.O.V.E.

Lemon Pound Cake with Fresh Berries

Lemon Pound Cake with Fresh Berries © Photo by Angela Gunder1 pound cake
2 pints of mixed berries (I like blueberries, hulled and halved strawberries, raspberries and blackberries)
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 c. lemon juice, freshly squeezed
3/4 c. of sugar
1/4 c. of water
fresh whipped cream

In a small saucepan, heat the lemon juice, sugar and water until boiling.  While it heats up, take a chopstick and poke a crapload of holes into the top of the poundcake.  Pour the boiling syrup over the cake.  Let cool.

Once the cake has cooled completely, pour the excess syrup over the berries and toss.  Stack a piece of poundcake with whipped cream and berries.  Top with another piece of poundcake, whipped cream and lemon zest.  Spoon additional berries around the side and serve.

Desserts, Easy to Prepare, Lighten Up, Vegan Dishes, Vegetarian Dishes

Strawberries with Elderflower and Mint

I adore putting together a menu, but like a grocery shopper entering the store with a rumbling tummy, I find that I often set myself up for a challenge.  Between my need to feed my guests with reckless abandon, to a love of a seemingly daunting menu, I face the issue of running out of steam.  Couple that with my lack of prowess in the realm of desserts, I find that many of my menus end up being a bit front-loaded in terms of the serious cooking.  Which is why, lovely readers, I am a sucker for a dessert that is simple to prepare, with a heavy dose of wow factor.

Summertime on the east coast (or pretty much anytime on the west coast – you guys have easy access to berries!) always meant an abundance of ripe strawberries just begging to be picked up and taken home.  In my house growing up, we always kept it simple – cut the tops, halve the berries and toss with a few teaspoons of sugar.  As the berries hung out, they’d give off the most lovely scarlet juice, which we then used to sauce the little shortcakes you could pick up in the produce section of the store.  A little whipped cream, and we were in business. Continue reading Strawberries with Elderflower and Mint →

Cheese Dishes, Main Courses, Pasta Dishes, Vegetarian Dishes

Pasta with Camembert, Asparagus and Peas

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You should be ashamed of yourself.  I saw you eyeing the pasta on that Olive Garden commercial with hungry eyes.  You know it’s not delicious.  You know it wasn’t actually created in a Tuscan cooking school with Michelin star winning chefs.  Most importantly, you know you can’t trust any place that thinks variety in ingredients is a simple choice between chicken in cream sauce or sausage in tomato cream sauce.  For shame, OG, for shame! Continue reading Pasta with Camembert, Asparagus and Peas →

Easy to Prepare, Lighten Up, Side Dishes, Vegetarian Dishes

Fiddlehead Ferns with Gremolata

Fiddlehead Ferns with Gremolata © Photo by Angela GunderWhile many find themselves in the kitchen purely out of duty, I live for the moments of complete and total glory – the times where a new recipe, technique or ingredient inspire you to keep on plugging away at any new culinary quest you can get your hands on.  It’s like Dr. Seuss once said, “You have brains in your head.You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own.  And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.”  Replace the shoes bit for a knife in your hand, and that pretty much sums up my quest for culinary majesty.

In planning the Feast of the Seven Boars, a lovely array of dishes with the aforementioned protein as the focus, my buddy Karen recommended we do something fun with the veggies.  Off to Marx Foods for inspiration and lo and behold, the Wild Produce Pack.  Bleedingly fresh ingredients that we’d never cooked before left us excited for a new adventure.  In addition to the miner’s lettuce and stinging nettles, we received a glorious treasure trove of fiddlehead ferns.  These little gems are an aesthetic delight – vibrant green and perfectly curled into delicate spirals.

We had learned that they tasted of asparagus and are often served with hollandaise, so in an homage to their taste-profile companion, we decided to follow one of my favorite preparations of asparagus – a quick saute with lemony gremolata.  It seemed apropos in that the addictive combination of lemon zest, garlic, parsley and olive oil are as bright as springtime, and the fiddleheads themselves are a true indicator that spring is right around the corner.  How could we not all fall in love?

Recipe for

Fiddlehead Ferns with Gremolata

Ingredients
1 lb. of fiddlehead ferns, trimmed of black ends
1 cl. of garlic, minced
1 cup of loosely packed parsley leaves
zest of 1 lemon
1/8 tsp. of freshly cracked pepper
1 tbs. of olive oil
1 tbs. of butter
kosher salt

Begin by finely chopping the parsley leaves.  Add the lemon zest, pepper and olive oil and stir.  Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt.  Add the fiddlehead ferns and blanch quickly, for about a minute.  Drain well and rinse with cold water.  Set aside.

In a skillet, melt the butter.  Add the fiddleheads and toss to warm through, about 2 minutes.  Stir in the gremolata and sprinkle with kosher salt to taste.  Serve immediately.