Creamy Leek & Almond Pasta

A healthy & light creamy pasta made with almond milk, cremini mushrooms, greens, lemon, basil and sun dried tomatoes. Vegan option.

Meals like this are the reason I love cooking at home. These are the kinds of dishes that my lactose intolerant self can’t order at restaurants. The amount of butter and cream that go into pastas and risottos… I don’t even want to know. I worked on this a few different ways. I was going to make an almond version of cashew cream (similar to this one), but I decided I didn’t want to ask you to break out the blender. At least not this time. The winner was this version where I simmered leeks & mushrooms in almond milk. Such…

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Rosemary Lemon Pasta

A trip to Italy is in the works. Did I just say that? Ok, an idea of a trip to Italy is in the works. You’re the second to know… I just informed Jack the other night. Even though we have a long list of places we have not been to, somehow every few years we (the royal we) feel a calling to go back. Whenever I even hear someone mention a trip to Italy, I become insane with travel envy. So you can imagine the kind of envy I felt when I heard the story of a couple who moved to the Italian…

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Ginger Citrus Soba & Snow Peas

ginger-citrus soba noodles / loveandlemons.com

I realize I posted soba noodles only a few weeks ago, but I’m back with more. This time, they’re stir fried in a sweet, tangy orange-ginger soy sauce with some crunchy snow peas and edamame. While that one was best served cold, this one is best piping hot. And aside from the tedious task of cleaning the snow peas, this comes together rather quickly.  

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Shells & Brussels Sprouts

shells & brussels sprouts / loveandlemons.com

Growing up, I was made to eat vegetables just as much as the next kid. Broccoli was at the top of my hate list, closely followed by mushy cooked carrots (one of the only veggies I still won’t eat). But I never had to face brussels sprouts. My mom didn’t like them as a child, so she never subjected them to our family. I felt lucky about this… if the adults in my family wouldn’t eat them, they must be that bad. I don’t know what prompted brussels sprouts to go from America’s most hated veggie to darn near the most loved one, but…

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Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower, Feta & Sun Dried Tomatoes

This roasted cauliflower pasta is a simple & healthy vegetarian weeknight dinner. Lemon, basil & sun-dried tomatoes give it irresistible pops of flavor!

This cauliflower pasta was my birthday dinner last week. My sister called while the pasta was cooking, and the message she left said, “I hope you’re out doing something special and not at home photographing your dinner.” Well, what can I say, I was obsessed with my cauliflower mission. Plus, it was a cold and rainy night, and this dinner felt warm and cozy. (Well, ok, it was warm when I reheated it after the photos were done… but still). I’m strange about holidays… I just think celebrations should be random. If I made a list of my favorite life…

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Sweet Potato Surprise

A creamy noodle casserole with mac n' cheese style vegan sweet potato sauce. Spinach, shallot, scallions + sage are baked in for extra nutrients and flavor!

I first made this months ago with the very first butternut squash of the season. I had decided ahead of time that it would be a “non-photo” night since casseroles are not the easiest subject matter. Of course, after we made it, I was regretting not having the camera out because it tasted way too good not to share. For the second go-around, I made it with sweet potatoes only because that had a better ring than “butternut squash surprise.” If you’re vegan, this will taste like a baked mac and cheese. If you’re not vegan, it will just taste…

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Ginger Miso Eggplant Noodles

Crispy tofu, mushrooms, and eggplant are tossed with gluten-free noodles and sweet Asian-inspired sauce to make a healthy weeknight summer dinner. Vegan.

I know I say this a lot here… but my absolute favorite meals are the ones that became something out of nothing. I realize this doesn’t look like quite nothing – some of you (mom) are thinking this looks like a lot of ingredients to happen to have on hand. But I promise… a half opened thing of mushrooms on one shelf, a couple scallions in the bottom left drawer, and these few poor eggplant counting down their last days… were not exactly screaming “yay dinner” in unison. “Old me” would have left these things aside, and gone to the grocery store…

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Tahini Zucchini Noodles

Light zucchini noodles are coated in creamy vegan tahini sauce & tossed with kale, baked tofu & crunchy pine nuts. A healthy, gluten-free weeknight dinner.

Let’s just call this a seasonal transitional dish. It’s like wearing shorts with a chunky sweater because you’re not quite sure if you are warm or cold, and most days you’re a little bit of both. This tahini sauce is rich and creamy… while the cold zucchini noodles are on the lighter side. I got the idea from this pin that caught my eye… which led me to the blog Earthsprout, a beautiful raw food blog with some amazing recipes. To be honest, I wasn’t sure Jack was going to be into this one. Don’t get me wrong, he’s not a finicky eater, and he…

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Edamame Dumplings

These homemade dumplings filled with edamame, basil, ginger, miso & tahini make a delicious 30-minute vegan dinner! Perfect for spring & summer weeknights.

Somehow we ended up with a lot of photos for this one… so with that, I’m going to keep the words short. Our countdown continues… just 2 days until our trip and many many errands left to go. Thanks to everyone who left such thoughtful comments and suggestions the other day; it’s been such a huge help. This recipe was the first one I bookmarked in the Sprouted Kitchen cookbook. I realize we’ve already posted about their beautiful book before… Funny thing is that I actually made this with no intentions of photographing it… but then it was just looking so pretty… and then of…

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Summer Squash & Corn Orzo

Use up your summer zucchini squash haul with this light pasta recipe. Pine nuts & corn add crunch to this healthy 30-minute dish. vegan & gluten-free option

I brought these little cuties home from the farmers market last weekend. If you’ve been following, you might have noticed that I have a little obsesssion for all things mini, so I just couldn’t resist the these teeny tiny patty pan squashes. I’m going to chalk it up to the heat, but I’ve been spacey lately. When I was ready to start cooking, I stood in my kitchen and realized the only thing I had intentionally planned to go with my sautée of mini squashes were some chives. I mean, there’s something to be said for turning vegetarian “sides” into…

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Roasted Tomato Brown Rice Pasta

Roasted cherry tomatoes burst over gluten-free pasta, basil, and arugula in this simple summer dish. Perfect after a visit to your Farmers Market. Vegan.

Did you know that slavery is happening in today’s tomato fields? Did you know that it is happening, not in a distant land, but right here in the US? They are calling Florida’s tomato fields “ground-zero” for modern-day slavery. I didn’t know this, but it sure inspires me to become even more aware of where the food I eat comes from. Nicole Gulotta, who writes the beautiful food philanthropy blog The Giving Table, has organized today as Food Bloggers for Slave-Free Tomatoes. A whole bunch of food bloggers are posting their slave-free tomato recipes today as a collective voice for change. Here’s the…

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A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.