Cherry-Almond Muffins, adapted from the Fanny Farmer cookbook Somehow cherries have become my favorite fruit. Or at least, my favorite spring fruit. My favorite fruit of 2012? No matter. I've been obsessed with cherries this spring, buying as many as I could from the farmers' market and making cherry jam (another round last week; we […]
Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls
This recipe for simpler gluten-free cinnamon rolls is adapted from a traditional yeasted dough cinnamon roll recipe and uses gluten-free flour for all-purpose flour without any complicated extras. Soft, buttery, and kissed with spice. For an easier version of my oat flour cinnamon rolls, make this gluten-free cinnamon rolls recipe that is based on a […]
Chocolate Sorbet
This rich and creamy vegan chocolate sorbet gets its smoothness from a blend of cocoa powder and melted chocolate. Easy to make with or without an ice cream machine! Easiest Chocolate Sorbet Recipe Woke up today to more sun and brilliant blue skies, feeling the air coming in warm through the window screen. Thinking: The […]
Rhubarb Gin Cocktail (aka Rhubarb G&T)
For a gorgeous twist on a classic, try my rhubarb gin cocktail, also known as a rhubarb gin and tonic! Homemade rhubarb syrup is swirled with good gin and bubbly tonic water for a refreshing, pretty in pink cocktail. If you love a classic gin and tonic, you might want to give this beautifully hued […]
Cherry Jam Recipe
This easy cherry jam recipe can be made as sweet as you like, but try to rely on the natural sweetness of the cherries so that the gorgeous fruit flavor shines through. I made this jam to tuck into a wedding cake but it is perfect with - everything! Today: bowls and bowls of buttercream. […]
Banana Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Lusciously moist banana cake with chocolate frosting is the simplest recipe that always manages to impress! A tender crumb, silky smooth chocolate frosting, and a kiss of spice make this a cake to remember. This beautifully simple cake is made from a mix of whole wheat and all-purpose flour, plus brown sugar for an extra […]
Pearl Couscous Salad with Feta and Tomatoes
Fresh mint brightens up this pearl couscous salad with feta and tomatoes that features soft couscous dressed in a roasted cherry tomato vinaigrette. Add briny feta cheese and toasted pine nuts for a little crunch. Pearl Couscous Salad with Feta and Tomatoes Recipe There was a lot of cake last weekend - did I mention […]
Gluten Free Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting
This gluten-free chocolate cake with caramel frosting is rich, tender, and very chocolatey. Topped with a fluffy crown of buttercream, made with my delicious homemade salted caramel sauce, this dessert is perfect for celebrations or whenever you want a special treat. Take your regular gluten free chocolate cake up a notch and make this winner […]
Lentil "Meatballs"
All about how to cook meat as a vegetarian - it is possible! - with some tips and practical advice. Plus a delectable recipe for vegetarian lentil meatballs. I've noted before that I am a vegetarian (it's been ... nearly half my life at this point; no, I don't think it's necessarily 'just a phase,' […]
Quinoa Salad with Feta and Mint
Fluffy quinoa salad with feta and mint is so refreshing, packed with fresh lemon juice, salty feta cheese, chopped mint, and sunflower seeds for a bit of crunch. Enough for a vegetarian main, or pair it with fish. Naturally gluten free! Best Quinoa Salad with Feta and Mint Recipe How do I love quinoa? Let […]
Rhubarb Compote
Four-ingredient rhubarb compote makes the most of rhubarb's fleeting season. Sweetened with just honey and sugar, this beautiful compote is wonderful stirred into yogurt, spooned over ice cream, spread on muffins, and more. Beautiful rhubarb is the star of a silky smooth, not-too-sweet compote that is as versatile as it is easy to make. A little […]
Nettle Pesto
Bright green fresh nettle leaves make a light, floral nettle pesto with plenty of garlic and parmesan cheese. Swirl it into pasta, or add it to toast, quiche, and more. Simple Nettle Pesto Recipe "Bring home some nettles," I told my husband a few weeks ago as we parted ways on a sunny San Francisco […]
Baked Halibut with Lemon
Tender and flaky baked halibut with lemon celebrates spring with fresh flavors. Serve this fish during halibut season for the best-tasting dinner. I'm having a fling with spring, it's true. A little rain here and there - Wednesday night I met my friend Anne for wine in the lower Haight and what I thought was […]
Low Sugar Strawberry Jam
A recipe for a beautifully hued, low sugar strawberry jam that's also made without pectin. You can make this a refrigerator jam or follow canning processes to preserve it. I LOVE making homemade jams and preserves from seasonal produce (rhubarb jam, rhubarb compote, and persimmon jam, anyone?). I also love experimenting with my tried-and-true recipes to come […]
Lower Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies
These perfect lower sugar chocolate chip cookies are sweetened just with brown sugar and packed with semisweet chocolate. They need less sugar than regular cookies, but you won't be able to tell! These are classic chocolate chip cookies with less sugar than regular chocolate chip cookies, but I dare you to be able to tell. […]
Honey and Lemon Cake
A mostly-vegan honey and lemon cake that's bright with fresh lemon juice and the floral sweetness of honey. [Easter table, April 2012.] UPDATED TO ADD ON 4/19: Oops, I forgot that honey isn't technically considered 'vegan'. Still, 'non-egg, non-dairy honey lemon cake' doesn't quite have the same ring ... so I think I'll just edit […]
Brown Fried Rice with Vegetables
A loose recipe for fried brown rice with vegetables that can be adapted to whatever you have in the fridge. Naturally gluten-free, vegetarian, and delicious! [Breakfast, January 2012.] Simple Fried Brown Rice Recipe The tide has turned a little: it rained in the night and I woke up intermittently to hear the screen rattling in […]
Looking for Inspiration (+ a Chard Gratin)
[San Francisco this morning, February 2012.] Today: the sky a sweet, deep blue, warm for February. I am eating an orange. Trying to write an article. I just got 'adjusted' and now my right ankle is buzzing away not unpleasantly (I hope this means healing is occurring) and in a few hours will take the […]
All Good (+ Almond Butter Cookies)
[Winter beach, January 2012.] In Maine, where my toes are chillier than usual and the clouds seem tangible (and puffy) enough to hold in your hands. The clouds here are different than anywhere else I've seen them: arranged across the horizon in great billows rather than wisps. The sky this week, clear for the most […]
The Last Friday of the Year
[This morning, December 2011.] December 30th. We are tiptoeing up to the edge of the year and peering over its edge into the unknown. I'm slowly sipping my last Hardcore Espresso coffee for awhile -- to savor it, you know -- after my last swim of 2011, with my feet tucked into the blankets to […]
The Details
[Cran jam, December 2011.] Last night I was so tired from assembling and making -- the industry of which took up most of the afternoon -- that I stirred a pat of butter, a smidge of cream (!), and some bits of cheddar cheese into a pot of polenta and then ate a big bowlful […]
It's That Time
This is the time of year when all I'm doing is making up lists -- constantly, consciously writing lists. Example 1: For a holiday party this weekend, things still left to pick upAcme breadssmall (compostable) platessmall napkinsclementinesnon-alcoholic delicious beveragesbeericesmall cupslightsxmas ornament hangersarugula (This may seem like a lot of things, but trust me it is […]
Into the Woods
[Thanksgiving dinner, November 2011.] This year, Thanksgiving weekend involved a lot of time outdoors and that's perhaps the thing I'm most grateful for in these waning days of 2011. But of course all the other stuff was grand, too. Dinner was lovely -- all turned out well, even the last-minute chicken I roasted with olive […]
Thanks-giving
[Along the Pacific coast, November 2011.]Why I Wake EarlyHello, sun in my face.Hello, you who made the morningand spread it over the fieldsand into the faces of the tulipsand the nodding morning glories,and into the windows of, even, themiserable and the crotchety- best preacher that ever was,dear star, that just happensto be where you are […]
Pumpkin Pie from Scratch
It's so easy to make pumpkin pie from scratch! If you've wanted to make pumpkin pie from a pumpkin, here's your chance. Follow my foolproof method to make the best homemade pumpkin pie with pumpkin ever. Skip the canned pumpkin this year and make pumpkin pie from a pumpkin! You won't believe how easy it […]
A Pot of Tea
[Tea, October 2011.] How I love coffee; I sincerely could count the ways: 1. I love it for its little zing of caffeine that, once it enters my bloodstream, delivers a hit of euphoria that can't be beat; 2. I love it because I usually procure it elsewhere, meaning that I don't make it myself […]
Caramel Corn
Crunchy and sweet homemade caramel corn is studded with peanuts and makes for the best snack! Freshly popped corn, brown sugar, maple syrup, and butter come together for something truly delicious. I woke up from strange (seriously, strange) dreams to the sound of pouring rain, but miraculously the sun came out and is now shining […]
More
[Northstar at rest, October 2011.] After all that, after brushing off the crumbs and packing away the dress and wistfully wishing the flowers adieu and trying not to get toooo weepy saying good-bye to beloved family and friends who live far (too far, darn it!), we went north to the mountains for a few days. […]
A Wedding, and Cake
[Wedding cake, October 2011.] It's hard to believe a week ago right now I was driving through the rolling hills of Northern California along Tomales Bay in the bright sun back to Sebastopol with Kate and Emily, talking of this and that (mostly, food, including quinoa) and sipping on an iced coffee from Toby's, eagerly […]
Sunday Morning Pancake-Making
On Sunday the day rose up grey and gloomy and I heard the distinct patter of rain outside as I burrowed my head deeper under the blankets and reminded myself there was no need to get up early; weekend mornings, at least when I'm not going to yoga, are for sleeping in. So I did […]
Soon (But for Now, Carrot Soup)
[San Francisco, September 2011.] Currently, slowly consuming a piece of cake I baked for a coworker's mumble mumble th birthday -- chocolate cake filled with chocolate ganache and frosted with coffee buttercream. It's delicious, and immediately after I finish it I will eat a plum to make up for all the butter. No photo because […]
Summer ...
[Lukens Lake, August 2011.] ... sigh. I know you're out there, still, and I know I experienced you but -- and pardon my language -- what the heck? September first is when? I've swum in Tomales Bay how many times? I've had an iced coffee, like, once? Oh summer. Oh the elusive dream. Well, the […]
Summer is for Baking Pie
[4th of July baking, July 2011.] Suddenly, am obsessed with making pie. I'm not sure why this is exactly -- maybe because it's been so warm-hot here, and July just feels like it should be pie and cold glasses of unsweetened mint tea and maybe a scoop of vanilla ice cream, too -- because I […]
Oat Flour Vegan Gluten Free Banana Bread
A rich and sweet vegan gluten free banana bread is flecked with chocolate and a hint of ginger. Made in one bowl! This vegan and gluten free banana bread is an old favorite, made with plenty of ripe bananas and oat flour (sort of a vegan version of my banana nut bread with oat oat […]
Gluten Free Baked Mac and Cheese (Creamy Yet Light)
This creamy gluten free baked mac and cheese is the ultimate comfort food - cheesy, rich, and super satisfying. Lightened up with a little less butter and cheese, this version still feels rich. Go ahead and indulge! I love gluten free baked pasta dishes, and a gluten free baked mac and cheese is firmly in […]
Rain, Cold, Cookies, Spring
[Over the mountain, near Geyserville, May 2011.] It's raining today in San Francisco (wait --- it's raining?? On the last day of May? This is not the California I know and love.) and I'm sniffly and hunched over a soy latte wondering when this cold that's been plaguing me for a good week already will […]
About that Wedding Cake ...
[Cake for Leah and Simon, gorgeous photo by Sweet Monday Photography.] A year ago I was obsessing about butter cream -- how much, would it hold up to the heat and humidity of a Maine summer, what kind of vanilla, should I make strawberry jam for the filling for the 1-2-3-4 cake instead of blueberry […]
Another for the Cake-Baking Files
[Cake for Leah and Simon, April 2011.] So because I have so much free time right now, I just baked a wedding cake. I think I honestly might have a slight Baking Addiction -- or at least absolutely cannot ever say 'no' to baking when asked, especially when it's something as important as a wedding […]
Weekend Cooking - GF Banana Cocoa Bread
[Forget-me-nots, April 2011.] So it's spring now, even if it doesn't always feel like it every day due to rain in the forecast and the way that wind still blows something fierce. But -- it is. The air feels a little lighter, the birdsongs are different (and there's more background chatter), dark doesn't fall until […]
Asparagus Potato Soup
Creamy, cozy asparagus potato soup will warm you from the inside out! Absolutely crammed with vibrant vegetables like carrots, spinach, and potatoes, this pretty soup is luxe and satisfying. Like my simple vegan asparagus soup recipe, asparagus potato soup is incredibly lovely to look at and to sip! It's also incredibly full of all the […]
Caramel Pots de Creme
Creamy and lush caramel pots de creme are the stuff dreams are made of! They are plushy and smooth, winding flavors of deep caramelized sugar across your tongue - rich, but not overly so. [Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite, February 2011.] And did you get whatyou wanted from this life, even so?I did.And what did you want?To […]
Gluten-Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Soft and buttery gluten-free oatmeal raisin cookies are an easy gluten-free riff on a classic cookie recipe. Spiked with a little cinnamon, packed with juicy raisins, and oh-so chewy and tender, these cookies are impossible to resist. Once you bite into these gluten-free oatmeal raisin cookies I bet you will never eat an oatmeal raisin […]