Winter Farro & Kale Salad

This 6-ingredient winter kale salad is sweet & salty, crunchy & crisp, and it's doused in a delicious gingery dressing. Make it for an easy weekday lunch!

All you want for Christmas is a Christmas salad – right? Ok, maybe not, but in between all of the cookies and other sweet treats, doesn’t it just feel so good to eat something nourishing before your next cocktail? This salad is packed with so many things that I crave, like dark leafy kale and hearty farro; and to make it extra festive – hazelnuts and pomegranates. It’s the salad that looks like a Christmas tree. You can use either lacinato kale (pictured) or curly kale for this recipe. I usually find curly kale to be a little bit softer, but this pretty bouquet of local…

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Edible DIY Gift Ideas (+ printables!)

I have to say that my favorite part about Christmas is wrapping the gifts. When I was in college in Chicago, I had a part time job wrapping gifts at the infamous Marshall Fields on State Street. Their gift wrap room was full of rolls of beautiful wrap, ribbon, and bows – it was a small haven from the holiday chaos that was happening everywhere else outside in the city. So recently, when I was given the opportunity to go through The Container Store’s “Gift Wrap Wonderland,” I was positively giddy. Of course they have gift wrap galore, but they also adorable jars, tags,…

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Creamy White Bean & Tomato Soup

A delicious, healthy & comforting tomato soup thickened with blended white beans. Leftovers are great for packed lunches! Vegan, gluten-free, and simple.

It’s been a soupy week around here. I’ve said it probably one hundred times before, but I just love the process of making soup. It makes me feel grounded and fancy all at the same time. Simmering flavorful things in a pot (with a glass of wine on the side) is my idea of a perfect night. It could be Tuesday night, it could be Friday night – it doesn’t matter to me. I made this one last weekend when my mom came to visit and again a few days later for Jack who had been out of town. The best part…

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Lemony White Wine Capellini

The simplest elegant pasta dish made with spinach, herbs, lemon-white wine sauce & a toasted pine nut topping. A fantastic weeknight dinner! Gluten-free.

This recipe describes how I like my holidays: simple and with wine. I don’t get too wrapped up in holiday craziness – I don’t fight crowds at the mall, I don’t bake ten million cookies, and I don’t cook a Christmas ham (is that what people still do?). But I do enjoy making easy elegant dinners like this one. This pasta is bright and merry, with squeezes of lemon and splashes of Barefoot Pinot Grigio. The recipe starts with a very light lemony white wine sauce made with olive oil, shallots, and garlic. Then, I toss in a few handfuls of spinach before…

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Sweet & Spicy Popcorn

Easy 6-ingredient homemade Sweet & Spicy Popcorn is a great holiday gift! Vegan, gluten-free & healthier than classic kettle corn, but just as good.

Hello everyone, Jack here, pinch-hitting for Jeanine. She’s been busy making this very popcorn, so she asked me to write about it. Popcorn this time of year makes me think of something that has become a bit of an American tradition – gigantic multi-gallon tins of flavored popcorn. You know the kind – they’re the size of an oil drum, separated into three sections on the inside with a literal ton of popcorn inside. It seems like a good idea – popcorn is cheap, so why not preserve it in a sticky, sugary shell to enjoy over the entire month of December? Well,…

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Kitchen Gift Guide – Our favorite things

Are you done with your holiday shopping? I didn’t think so. Today, I’m here to help cross a few people off your list (and maybe add a few things onto your own list). Here are some of my absolute favorite kitchen items. These are things I personally have, love, and I hope you (and your friends & family) love them too. Staub Mini Cocottes (Graphite Grey) or Cherry Red Staub 4 Quart Round Cocotte / 7 Quart Maple Kitchen Tools Lodge Mini Skillet Aiya Organic Matcha / Matcha Whisk Glass Teapot (ok, this one is on my list – hint, hint, Jack) Le Parfait Jars (I use these for…

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Healthier Holiday Recipes

I don’t know how it happened. Just yesterday it was July and here we are, it’s almost Christmas. In the spirit of the holidays, I thought I’d share a few healthy-but-not-too-healthy recipe ideas. These are some cheery favorites, organized into 3 simple menus for various types of holiday gatherings: Party Food (pictured above): Vegan Kale & Artichoke Dip  Minty Pomegranate Spritzer (my go-to holiday cocktail!) Curried Avocado Chickpea Salad Sliders Cranberry Pistachio Chocolate Bark A Cozy Christmas Morning: Strawberry Vegan Waffles Mini Spinach & Sun dried Tomato Frittatas Apple Mimosas Almond Milk Chai Lattes Dinner Party: Ginger Kombucha Cocktails Minty Millet Pomegranate Salad Sweet…

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You’re invited! A Homemade Gift Workshop

Hi friends! If you’re going to be in Austin on December 12th (next Saturday), mark your calendars! I’m hosting a super fun event at the Container Store. I’ll be cooking up yummy treats and showing you how to turn them into simple & pretty gifts using all of my favorite jars, tags, ribbons & more from the Gift Wrap Wonderland at the Container Store. Hope to see you there! It’s a free event, but click here to RSVP! The Details: Saturday, December 12th 11:00am – 1:00pm The Container Store 9629 Research Blvd. Austin, Texas RSVP here

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Roasted Delicata Squash Tacos

These easy, spicy vegan Delicata Squash Tacos are perfect for fall! Filled with kale, mushrooms, squash & pumpkin cashew cream, they're healthy & delicious.

I almost posted these last week as an “alternative Thanksgiving” vegetarian option, but then I decided that the “T-day Taco” was a bit of a stretch. Personally, I’d love to eat tacos for any holiday feast, but would you? Raise your hand if so – I’m taking notes for next year… Delicata squash is one of my favorite squashes for a few reasons: 1. you can cut it without worrying about cutting your arm off, and 2. you can roast it with the skins on – no peeling necessary – and it’s so sweet and tender. I’ve been on a cashew…

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A Trip to Sonoma

The ultimate trip to Sonoma. A visit to the original WIlliams Sonoma, handmade pasta from Flour+Water, and wine at Silver Oaks Winery.

I love my job more than anything, but working from home can sometimes get a little isolating. So when opportunities like this come my way, I’m all in! Last month, I spent an amazing few days with Williams Sonoma, Fortessa, The Fairmont, and a group of lovely bloggers in Sonoma. We were wined and dined and wined some more… Here’s just a quick recap! I’m a sucker for kitchen gear so it was fun to visit the original Williams Sonoma store. It just reopened this year – many of the charming details were replicated from the store that Chuck Williams first opened in 1956. If you’re in Sonoma,…

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2015 Cookbook Gift Guide

Cookbooks make the best holiday gifts. Here are some of my top picks of 2015!

I say this every year – but I think cookbooks make the greatest gifts. Here is a collection of some of my favorites that have come out this year. (If I’ve missed any good ones – let me know in the comments below!). Also – be sure to glance over at last year’s gift guide because there are some goodies on that list too! Travel Inspired: Rosewater & Orange Blossoms by Maureen Abood Near & Far by Heidi Swanson Mexico the Cookbook, by Margarita Carrillo Arronte (*see note) Books from restaurants we’ve loved: Nopi by Yotam Ottolenghi Gjelina by Travis Lett Flour + Water: Pasta by Thomas McNaughton Veggie Forward:…

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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.