Kale Stem Pesto

You know all of those kale recipes? The ones that say to use just the leaves and save the coarse stems for another use? Well friends, this is your “other use”. The same way I collect stale tortillas for the eventual tortilla soup, I save chopped up bits of kale stems (and sometimes other stems) for this eventual pesto. Tiny little bags, all over my freezer. When I’m ready to make this, I mix them with freshly chopped stems so the whole thing doesn’t taste too “frozen.” I just love making this in the colder months when bounties of fresh…

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Miso Sesame Squash Salad

fall / salads / yuzu

Does anyone else have a fascination with grocery stores in other countries? In Japan, we spent lots of time at food markets, but we spent countless hours wandering the aisles of grocery stores. It was so fun just trying to figure out what everything was. I collected non-perishable(ish) items to bring back – miso pastes, spice mixtures, etc… We also had a short list of items to get for a very good Japanese friend back home. A few of them were a little hard to find – buttered peanuts, and a specific brand of salad dressing. She eventually sent us some photos so…

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Nasu Dengaku {Miso Eggplant}

eggplant / japan

If you need a reason to try (and love) miso, this is your recipe. I’m hoping eggplant is still in season where you are. I was excited to find these little nearly-black beauties at our farmers market last weekend. If you don’t have eggplant, this sweet & salty glaze is amazing on cod, tofu, and even sweet potatoes. There are many variations to the dengaku recipe – some use sake along with mirin, some add a bit of ginger… I’ve even made it with agave syrup before (although that would probably not be approved by the Japanese, shh). I like…

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Grilled Veggies with Basil Miso

vegan / gluten free / summer

The “summer’s not over yet” recipe theme continues. Right now Jack and I are in Seattle for a few days before we head to Japan. I feel inclined to write about how we spent the last few weekends at home savoring the last of our local late-summer produce… But seriously, it was 104 degrees when we left so I’m sure there will be plenty of summer (and it’s veggies) waiting for us when we get back. With Japan on the brain, I’ve been in the mood for miso. Although, I realize nothing else about this recipe is remotely Japanese… the…

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Serrano & Corn Salsa

summer / vegan / gluten free

This recipe started as an idea for a salad. My salad “testing” often happens during lunch – I experiment with a variety of veggies, usually a concoction of whatever I happen to have around. When I come across an especially good combo, I save the idea and make it again later to shoot for a post. The afternoon I sat down to eat the salad-version of this, I was sure it would be a winner. Corn, peppers, cucumber, tons of lime… an easy recipe to use up tons of late summer produce. Well it turned out to have a little…

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Grilled Potato & Arugula Salad

summer / vegan / gluten free

I might be from the land of meat and potatoes, but you all know how that my heart lies with the green stuff. I rarely eat potatoes, but I just couldn’t pass up these little cuties. And since it’s summer, I felt I needed to share a true picnic/cookout side dish. These little ones grill up so well – they cook through without having to boil them first, and they get that nice charred edge. Off the grill, I drizzled them with a lemony dijon dressing. I let that soak in for a bit and then tossed them peppery arugula,…

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Chile-lime Grilled Veggie Skewers

Chile-lime Grilled Veggie Skewers - mango, zucchini and red pepper are SO good on the grill. Serve them on skewers or wrap them in tortillas with tomatillo salsa. Perfect for memorial day or 4th of July cookouts.

summer / vegetarian / grilling

Cookouts are not always a vegetarian’s best friend. Over the years, I’ve eaten more dry cardboard-flavored Boca burgers than I care to remember. And for no good reason other than I suppose most of the parties we used to go to were single-dude cookouts. You know the kind: burgers, buns, and beer. Done. Since my younger veggie days, I’ve learned a few things: #1: Veggies are (of course) amazing on the grill. and #2: Make foodie friends and life will be a lot tastier. Vegetarian or not, these would make a delicious addition to any summer bbq.

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Cherry Tomato Basil Salad

A simple summer salad - perfect for picnics and BBQ's when tomatoes are in season!

summer / salads / gluten free

I realize… this hardly counts as a recipe. In fact, I can list a whole slew of “recipes” I’ve posted that don’t reinvent any wheel or involve genius ingredient combinations. But it’s summer, and I’m of the opinion that when summer produce is at it’s peak, you should do little with it. That, or I’m starting to get lazy, I’m not sure which. Either way, this not-rocket-science salad was dinner last Sunday night. A simple & pretty way to welcome the first official weekend of summer. It’s a glorified caprese salad, with sweet basil oil and some crunchy raw corn.…

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Mexican Street Corn Salad

This Mexican street corn salad is one of my all-time favorite summer sides. Fresh, bright, lightly creamy & spicy, it's easy to make and sure to please.

summer / salads

This Mexican street corn salad is my at-home version of all the elotes we ate in Austin. Creamy, tangy, and a bit spicy, it’s one of my favorite ways to showcase summer sweet corn. If you’ve been reading the blog for a while, you know that fresh corn is one of my all-time favorite foods. Crisp, juicy, and sweet, you just can’t beat it. Of course, I’ll always love it straight off the cob, but this Mexican corn salad takes it to a whole new level. Mexican Street Corn Salad Recipe Ingredients If you’re not familiar with them, elotes are…

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Cold Cucumber Soba

A healthier noodle dish that uses spiralized cucumber in place of half of the noodles. Fresh, healthy, vegan and gluten free.

summer / vegan

I guest posted the other day at Turntable Kitchen. Kasey and Matt are in Japan, which is one of the places Jack and I loved the most. We spent a week in Kyoto and one of the first things we set out to find was soba. It’s served in teeny tiny hundred-year-old restaurants. The noodles are handmade, and cold soba is served plain with a dipping sauce. Just dip and slurp. The louder the better. Since the soba I make at home comes from a box I, of course, add stuff. But I try to keep it simple. We’ve been…

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Green Bean & Avocado Quinoa Salad

spring / salads / gluten free

It’s been so inspired by the bounties of spring veggies that have been available lately. I think I’m the only person on the internet that has not gotten my hands on any ramps this season (do they even grow in texas?), but I really can’t complain because I still have tons of amazing options. They key to any great salad is a variety of tastes, textures and colors. Although I find that sometimes it’s easier to come up with new ideas if I set some kind of limitation. This particular day I had leeks, green beans, and dandelion greens I wanted to use.…

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Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.