This recipe is really all about the dressing, which turns just about any humble vegetable into a showstopping, entertaining-worthy dish (so far, I’ve tried on asparagus and sugar snap peas in addition to this concoction, and they’ve all been transportive.) I adapted the dressing from an asparagus & portobello salad in Gwyneth’s new cookbook, and […]
Sometimes the biggest mistakes in the kitchen can lead to the greatest creations. Last week, I chopped up some veggies I had on hand and tossed them with tons of lime for what I thought would make a perfect lunch salad. As it turned out, it was a little too much lime (which I never knew […]
For this edition of In Season, I’m hereby declaring it Tequila Season (I was going to say taco season, but for those of us in Austin, taco season is really a year-round celebration). I can’t think of any better way to beat the summer heat than with a bright, zesty serving of fish tacos. I start […]
haloumi -n :: a salty white sheep or cow’s milk cheese from Greece or Turkey, usually eaten grilled. Also defined as: pure, unadulterated deliciousness. I typically see haloumi baked or grilled on restaurant menus which, for some reason, never appealed to me that much. But one night when we were at dinner in Aspen, I ordered the […]
We’re hosting a little poolside BBQ for the Fourth this year, and I’m working up a menu made for grazing over the course of an afternoon filled with sparkling rosé and cider beer. I love that these crostini topped with fresh ricotta and blueberry chutney give a nod to patriotism in red, white & blue, […]
Shishito peppers just might be my favorite summertime appetizer. They seem fancy because they’re on so many restaurant menus these days, but really, they couldn’t be easier to make! Toss them with a little olive oil, salt & pepper, and roast them until blistering. You can stop there (maybe toss them with a little soy sauce), […]
Now that summer’s here and our weekends are spent hanging by the pool with family and friends, I’ve been really into big family-style bowls of seasonal farm-fresh ingredients that are a meal in themselves: salads and pastas that are just as good sitting out at room temp for late arrivals as they are served straight […]
My family moved to Missouri when I was 9, and some of my favorite childhood memories are heading to the nearest “U-Pick” farm, spending hours out in the blueberry fields filling our baskets, and leaving with even fuller bellies from all the snacking we did along the way. These days I do most of my […]
Jeanine here, with spring on a plate. Lately, I’ve been obsessed with big salads full of spring’s most vibrant and crisp veggies. It’s been so fun to play around with various combinations of colors and textures, and this one’s my current favorite. I started with green leeks, green beans and mint, and then added avocado and […]
It used to be that if I was reading a recipe that called for a couple of exotic ingredients I didn’t normally keep in my pantry, I tended to pass, assuming it would be overly complicated. But lately, I’ve rediscovered that there’s a total joy in experimenting with unfamiliar ingredients, cooking with new techniques and […]
Jeanine here, excited to chime in after Camille’s post earlier this week about kitchen staples. Today I’m sharing this super easy recipe that uses of one my favorite staple ingredients: dijon mustard. I just love the tangy kick it adds to salad dressings, avocado sandwiches, grilled salmon… I could go on and on. For this […]
Last night, I went to an Austin Film Festival screening of Spinning Plates with my mom. It was a documentary about three wildly different restaurants, their incredible owners and the unexpected commonalities between them. Seriously one of my favorite films of the year, and I was amazed at how I took something different away from […]
Here in Austin, we consume a serious amount of tacos. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack… any time of day can be considered taco time. Because of this, I always have leftover tortillas. When they start to get a little stale, I pop them in the freezer and eventually make this soup. There are two types of […]
Just between you and me, I didn’t make these muffins intending to post them on the blog. Muffins don’t really have the tendency to be especially photogenic — they’re just kind of… muffins, you know? Well, one bite and I knew these were anything but ordinary, and the fact that something so healthy can also […]
I have a theory that the frittata is, quite possibly, the most versatile dish on the planet. It’s equally perfect for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and there’s really no better way to use up any squash, onion, bell pepper or herb languishing in the vegetable drawer. At the Mother’s Day brunch we threw with Hayneedle last […]
Yes, it’s true that I posted a different salsa recipe last Tuesday…and it’s also true that I took this photo after a glass and a half of pinot grigio before we kicked off a rousing game of Catchphrase with some friends last night (yeah…slightly out-of-focus.) But this smoky avocado and mango salsa was just too incredibly […]
It’s true: I’m on a major health kick right now. ‘Tis the season to embrace light, fresh, veggie-driven meals that make me want to pull on my tennis shoes for an after-dinner stroll (instead of curling up under the covers for a Bachelorette marathon… which is so 2 months ago.) I picked up Gwyneth’s new […]
April is a tricky month to be writing about seasonal food. It’s spring (nearly summer) here in Austin, so we’re dining al fresco, while some of you are likely still wearing winter coats. Spring veggies are starting to fill our farmers markets, but given the variation from region to region, I’m just not sure what’s […]
Rise and shine! With the hustle and bustle of the workweek, I find that the weekend is the time when I’m really able to wake up slowly, conceptualize and create my favorite breakfast, and devour it alongside a piping hot cup of coffee. What does my ideal breakfast look like, you ask? There are two […]
Jeanine here, and growing up, I was force-fed vegetables just as much as the next kid. Broccoli was at the top of my hate list, closely followed by mushy cooked carrots (which I still won’t eat to this day), but I never had to face brussels sprouts. My mom didn’t like them as a child, so she […]