A raw strawberry tart with a side of perseverance

I don't normally talk politics here, but I was among the 39% who voted against Amendment One in North Carolina. It was a vote cast for progress, hope, and equality. We lost the battle. I am saddened that my home state was close-minded, and that I've witnessed many harsh words being flung from both sides. I wasn't going to post a recipe today, because it seemed trivial compared to other things. But I decided that there is good that comes from bad. The fight for equality is far from over. Just look at this amazing endorsement from the President yesterday.

All of this reminded me of these raw strawberry tarts. Tarts that I made for a dear friend who has been fighting her own battles for months, the strongest and most beautiful person I know. She finished her last round of chemo recently. And that made me smile. Here's to perseverance.

"If you fell down yesterday, stand up today." - H.G. Wells

Raw strawberry tarts
Makes 11-12 individual tarts
Crust
1/4 c raw hazelnuts
3/4 c raw almonds
3/4 c dates
1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract
pinch of sea salt

Filling
1 c raw cashews, soaked for 4 hours
1 c local strawberries
juice of half a lemon
1/4 c honey or maple syrup
1 tbsp coconut oil, melted & at room temperature
strawberry slices or raspberries to garnish

Line a 12-muffin tin with plastic wrap.

Put all the ingredients for the crust in a food processor. Pulse until combined and sticky. Add about two tablespoons of crust into each muffin cup, pressing into the bottom and a little up the sides.

Add the filling ingredients to the food processor (or Vita-Mix). Process until smooth, creamy, and very pink. Pour about two tablespoons into each muffin, right on top of the crust. Garnish with slices of strawberry or a single raspberry.

Place in the freezer to set. This will take about 4 hours. Let set at room temperature 10-15 minutes before eating. Perfect for those hot and humid days or for anyone looking for a light dessert.

Chard packages

Tired of eating sautéed greens? Liven up your plate by making these chard packages.

My crisper is overflowing with greens—kale, chard, beet greens, and lettuces—from our CSA. I wanted something different for dinner, so I decided to stuff my chard leaves. I had leftover brown rice and lentils that I knew would make a perfect filling. I spied a half full jar of tomatillo salsa that I decided to use for the sauce. These are similar to stuffed grape leaves you might find at a Mediterranean deli.

Don't worry this is a pretty easy and quick recipe. Simply select the six biggest leaves you have. Prepare the filling, about a cup's worth. Stuff your leaves and bake. Feel free to change up the ingredients in the filling or the sauce. I think tomato sauce or freshly diced tomatoes would be nice.

Chard packages with tomatillo salsa
6 large chard leaves, rinsed well
~1 c of tomatillo salsa
1 tbsp olive oil or ghee
2 small onions, diced small
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp oregano
pinch of sea salt
pinch of red pepper chili flakes
1 small carrot, diced small
1 celery stalk, diced small
1 radish, diced, small
1/4 c cooked brown rice
1/3 c cooked lentils

Preheat oven to 350. Pour half of the tomatillo salsa into the bottom of a loaf pan.

Cut the chard stems at about where the leaves start. I normally make an upside down V with my knife into the stem. Set leaves aside.

Prepare your filling. This is where you can get creative. I used what vegetables I had on hand. You really need about a cup of filling. Saute the diced onion in the olive oil until transparent. Add the garlic, oregano, salt, and red pepper flakes. Cook until fragrant then add the carrot, celery, and radish. Cook for another couple of minutes, then add the rice and lentils.

Fill your chard leaves. Grab a leaf, scoop about almost two tablespoons of the filling, and add to the middle of the base of the leaf (widest part). Roll in the sides, while rolling towards the end of the leaf (smallest part). Make sure to hold the filling with your fingers, so it doesn't go all over the place. After one or two you'll get the hang of it.

Nestle the chard packages, seam side down, right onto the salsa in the loaf pan. Drizzle the rest of the salsa over the tops. Cover with foil and bake for about 20-22 minutes.

Enjoy with a side of lentils and chipotle sweet potatoes.

Roasted asparagus and white bean soup

This soup screams Spring. Asparagus. Leeks. New potatoes. When I first saw this recipe in the Food Matters cookbook, I knew I wanted to make it. Simple and subtle, perfect on a chilly Spring night. The white beans and potatoes make it creamy, the white wine departs a dry note, and the asparagus lightens it up, adding the perfect green hue.

I made this recipe twice. The first time I used two large potatoes and it threw off the balance, so I made the soup again with smaller red potatoes. The second time around I blended the roasted asparagus straight into the soup—like Bittman suggests as an alternative (see below)—and I preferred its velvety texture. This soup is subtle, and tastes better the second day with a flavorful garnish like shaved Parmesan, pesto, or smoked paprika.

Since I'm hosting this week's Food Matters Project recipe, the recipe below is Bittman's word-by-word from the cookbook. I've mentioned my changes above. Check out to see what the other members made here. Serve the soup with a side of tahini greens, a raw kale salad or this baguette.

Roasted asparagus and white bean soup

Recipe from The Food Matters Cookbook by Mark Bittman

4 tbsp olive oil, plus more for garnish

2 leeks, well-rinsed and thinly sliced

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp chopped rosemary, or 1 tsp dried

salt and pepper

1/2 c dry white wine

2 baking potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 c cooked or canned white beans, drained, liquid reserved

6 cups vegetable or chicken stock, bean cooking liquid, or water, plus more as needed

about 1.5 lb of asparagus, peeled if thick

One 2-oz piece Parmesan cheese

Makes 4 servings

1. Heat oven to 450. Put 2 tbsp of oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When it's hot, add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened a bit and beginning to color, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and rosemary and cook for another minute. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, add the white wine, and stir to loosen the bits of vegetable that have stuck to the bottom of the pan. 

2. Add the potatoes, about half the beans, and the stock. Bring to a boil, the lower the heat so that the mixture bubbles steadily. Cover partially and cook, stirring infrequently, until the potatoes are disintegrating, 20 to 30 minutes; add more liquid as necessary so the mixture remains soupy. 

3. Meanwhile (or ahead of time), put the asparagus in a shallow roasting pan, drizzle with the remaining 2 tbsp oil, and sprinkle with salt. Roast, turning the spears once or twice, just until the thick part of the stalks can be pierced with a knife, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven to cool a bit. Meanwhile, use a vegetable peeler to shave slices from the piece of cheese. 

4. When the soup is ready, mash the potatoes and beans a bit. Chop the asparagus and add it to the pot along with the remaining beans to warm through. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve each bowl with some shaved cheese on top.

Pureed Asparagus and White Bean Soup: After you add the chopped roasted asparagus in Step 4, carefully puree the soup in batches in a food processor or blender or with an immersion blender; or simply mash with a potato masher. If you prefer, puree only the beans and broth and add the chopped asparagus before serving.

Instalunch: Tahini greens with millet

My camera is dead so I thought I’d post a quick & easy recipe using instagram instead. I picked a lot of vegetables this morning at my CSA and I knew just what I wanted to have for lunch. This recipe is adapted from Whole Foods Market.

Spring carrot salad with harissa, herbs, and feta

Hope you all had a happy Easter weekend. We spent Saturday in Asheville, walking around, stopping in a bookstore, a gallery, and a brewery with the in-laws. It's amazing what a few days away can do. It's refreshing to turn the smart phone off (unless we needed directions), and do nothing but talk, walk, eat, and sleep.

We had dinner at Mela, an excellent Indian restaurant on Saturday night. It was then that I realized there are two camps: bread people and condiment people. I fall into the condiment camp, my husband into the bread camp. As everyone was enjoying the pappadum sans chutney, I was using it to scoop up (a lot) of mint cilantro chutney. This has also occurred at home, when I found myself standing at the kitchen counter with a spoon in the jar of romesco, raita, and recently in this harissa.

I've seen a few recipes with harissa over the past year and I finally made my first batch. I made Luisa's recipe, (see above for my exact changes) substituting chipotles for New Mexico chiles and adding the entire roasted red pepper. My sun-dried tomatoes were tiny, so I added about six in total, and used walnut oil (husband allergic to raw olive oil). My harissa wasn't too spicy, I think the walnut oil helped. Adding fat—like oils, nuts, avocados, cheese—to spicy foods, reduces the heat factor.

I bookmarked this carrot salad many months ago, because it reminded me of a salad I had on our honeymoon at a cafe in Copenhagen. A chilled carrot salad with smokiness from the peppers, sweetness from the mint, crunch from the almonds, and saltiness from the feta.

We ate the carrot salad with this spring panzanella last night for dinner. It was perfect. Oh and you'll have some harissa leftover, so mix it into scrambled eggs, slather on roasted potatoes, or on your next grilled cheese.

Spring carrot salad with harissa, herbs, and feta 
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
6 medium carrots, grated
1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp harissa
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 c curly parsley, mint, and chives
2 tbsp almonds, toasted and chopped roughly
Garnish with feta, optional

Put the grated carrot into a large bowl. Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the garlic. When the garlic is fragrant, add the harissa, stirring frequently. Turn off the heat. Add the lemon juice and pour over the carrots along with the herbs. Mix well. Refrigerate for at least an hour so the flavors meld. Garnish with almonds and feta before serving.

Kale + brussels sprout salad with mustard vinaigrette

Spring is here in North Carolina. The yellow dust has settled on our cars, herbs are being planted, inch worms are taking over the city. The day's are getting longer and temperatures are warmer. I feel like I've shed winter's cocoon—refreshed and positive—ready to tackle what comes my way. It's invigorating. Not only has the time changed, but our diets are shifting from those cooked, warm meals of winter to cool, lighter meals of spring. Have you noticed?

We signed up for our first CSA last week! This calls for another exclamation point! I visited the farm and came home with storage garlic and sweet potatoes, and a huge bunch of kale. I made homemade ravioli stuffed with kale pesto that night (recipe coming soon!). A friend I met at CCCC last semester is working on the farm and gave me a tour of what's been planted so far. I'm so excited and ready for the arrival of asparagus, fresh eggs, radishes, lettuces, strawberries, and herbs! Anybody else ready for spring vegetables or fruits?

I didn't make the Food Matters Project recipe since I was out of town, so check out this week's recipe over at the Fifth Floor Kitchen. Instead I decided to share a salad I can't get enough of lately. Don't worry if you don't have brussels sprouts, just add more kale. Hazelnuts, almonds, or sunflower seeds can replace the toasted pine nuts. You really can't go wrong with this salad. I've made variations of it with avocado and pecorino, and it's just as good.

Kale & brussels sprout salad with mustard vinaigrette
Adapted from Bon Appetit
1 bunch of kale, chiffonade
6-8 brussels sprouts, grated
1 celery stalk, small dice (.25 in)
1 carrot, small dice (.25 in)
half of a small red onion or shallot, sliced thin
1 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp walnut oil
1/4 tsp cayenne
dash of salt and pepper
1/4 c toasted pine nuts

Put the kale, brussels sprouts, celery, and carrot into a large bowl. Mix the onion, mustard, vinegar, oil, cayenne, salt, and pepper into a smaller bowl. Mix well and let sit for 10-15 minutes, so the flavors meld. Pour over the kale mixture, and massage well with your hands for about five minutes. The kale will start to break down a bit. Toss in the pine nuts, and serve immediately or refrigerate for later.

Spring, a balancing act.

This time of year my diet switches from warm to cool. We tend to eat heartier, cooked meals to keep us warm in the cold of winter. When temperature becomes warmer, our bodies want lighter, refreshing meals that are often raw or chilled to keep us cool. I mean really, who wants to turn on the oven in 90 degree weather? While the temperatures in spring and fall are not as extreme as winter and summer (especially in the South), our diet becomes more of a balancing act, a mixture of cooked and raw dishes.

Spring casts a green hue over the earth and is visible at the farmers market. Asparagus appears as do pea shoots, lettuces, spinach, leeks, green onions and a variety of herbs. Salads begin to fill my fridge instead of hearty soups or tamale pie. Chilled bean salads become a regular on the dinner table. The flavor changes based on the herbs and vegetables available at the market that week.

A few weeks ago, I made this soup and had leftover dill oil in the fridge. I decided to add a spoonful into a salad of chickpeas, celery and avocado. The dill oil mixed with lemon and parsley adds a pungent kick to this chilled salad. The crunch of the celery is nice contrast with the creaminess of the avocado chunks. Enjoy this refreshing salad over a bed of lettuce or spinach. It's easy to pack and eat on-the-go for lunch at work or for a lazy weekend picnic.

Chickpeas, celery & avocado with dill oil
1 can chickpeas, rinsed (or 2 cups cooked chickpeas)
4 green onions, sliced
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1/2 c parsley, rinsed and chopped
juice of 1 lemon
zest of half a lemon
1 big tbsp dill oil
dash of sea salt
grind of cracked pepper

Pour the chickpeas, onions, celery, avocado and parsley into a large bowl. Mix together the rest of the ingredients in a smaller dish before mixing into the chickpea salad. Refrigerate for an hour or two, so the flavors will meld before serving. Enjoy!