Pesto – from the Italian word pestare…to pound or crush (which is how it is typically made) – is a powerfully good thing. While the original is a mélange of garlic, basil, pine nuts, cheese, olive oil, pesto can be made with just about any fresh, leafy herbs and raw nuts. Italian parsley, shelled pistachios,and roasted…
Tag: nuts
13 Flavors (including Mayan Chocolate) of Larabar-like Fruit and Nut Bars
Mayan chocolate is probably best known as a delicious, hot, and frothy drink made with ground cacao beans and corn meal and spiced with chiles and cinnamon. This rich but bitter drink – called xocolatl – has been around for thousands of years, and only became a sweet treat in the 1700s in Europe. These…
Yummy Honey, Seed & Nut Power Snack Recipes
Last week I talked about tasting honey. In my opinion, honey can be overpowering – rich, sweet, even palpitation-inducing – on its own and tastes best in combination with more savory ingredients…like tea, or nuts, or meat. The very different flavors balance and enhance each other. And, honey is a great binding agent for pulling together…
Gluten-free Pumpkin Nut Pancakes
A few years ago, when I first stopped eating gluten and dairy and was trying to figure out what to eat, I found a soy-nut pancake recipe that sounded interesting. I’d never cooked pancakes with nut flour or tofu before and I wasn’t quite sold on the tofu, so I came up with my own…
Curried cashew cauliflower and sweet potato soup and a cold, hard cider
Fall is in the air and I’ve been craving soup…warm, nourishing, and spicy soup! Last year, a friend of mine made a curried cauliflower soup that was delicious. I don’t have her recipe, and so I was inspired to create my own and to do it in the easiest way I could. This means, I…
25 Quick and Easy Gluten-free and Dairy-free Snacks
I love snacks. I’m what you might call a forager or grazer, eating here and there throughout the day. And, when I am not at home, I have a back-up plan. Back in the day, I had a drawer full of snacks that could rival your best grocery store selection…from soup to nuts, literally. And,…
Light and Easy Nectarine, Fresh Green, and Pistachio Salad
I am excited about all of the summer fruit and vegetables that have been making an appearance lately. I’m not so excited by the heat. So, I’ve been making a lot of refreshing salads. They are perfect for a light supper out on the porch. My recent favorite is filled with fruit, nuts, and fresh…
Highlighting Native Foods: Savory Acorn Quinoa Muffins
There is always something new for me to discover at the market that caters to our city’s north Asian transplants and culinary fans. This time, it was acorn starch. Gluten-free and intriguing, I couldn’t resist grabbing a bag to experiment with. Koreans use acorn starch to make a jelly called dotormiuk. I had other plans…
Clearing the Cupboards = Exotic Trail Mix
I was making a shopping list this morning and realized I had dribs and drabs of certain ingredients, and way too much of others (i.e., they’ve been sitting around for a while and need to be used). This is a common theme in my cooking life. I had about a ¼ cup each of hulled…
Buckwheat Noodles with Spring Veggies and Walnut Dressing
If you have not been to 101 Cookbooks, you must go. Now! Heidi, the author of this blog as well as the cookbook Super Natural Cooking, offers some seriously good eats. The recipe I have most enjoyed since she shared it last spring is Walnut Miso Noodles. It is something to be eaten in spring,…
Mulberry and Walnut Snack Bars
After making trail mix the other day, I decided to figure out what to do with the mulberries I had left. I ran across a blog called Afghan Cooking Unveiled that had a recipe for Afghan Mulberry and Walnut Power Bars. Very similar to a Lara or Think bar, these raw dried fruit and nut…
“Quick” Chile Walnut Hash (a la chiles en nogada)
The title may not inspire confidence, but the dish is delish, so bear with me. This recipe is inspired by traditional Mexican stuffed chiles with walnut sauce. I say inspired, because I offer up a version that is easier to prepare, but maintains the essence of the dish. In a nutshell, the difference between typical…