(Vegan) Crock-Pot Curried Red Lentils

There are (almost) countless recipes for lentils on this blog: made in the Crock-Pot, on the stovetop, with green lentils, red lentils, spicy, less spicy, creamy, etc. You name it.
Still, in my book, there are never enough recipes for lentils.

Baked Feta Pasta Sauce

I haven’t fallen into the TikTok rabbit hole, just yet.
I feel I’m almost too old for Instagram, TikTok seems really far fetched.
I mean, if 14-year old Niece is really into it — as the majority of teenagers are — I’m not sure it’s something apt to her uncle.
In addition, let’s be honest, I don’t have any particular good dance moves nor I’m skilled in telling jokes or doing sketch comedy: How am I supposed to contribute to the TikTok community? You get my point.
Let’s say that my feelings towards TikTok are similar to those brilliantly expressed by Amy Poehler in her very funny interview with Willie Geist on the Sunday Sitdown podcast “If TikTok was a window, I would be a weird person standing outside of it.” Ha!

(Vegan) Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

Life is definitely too short to eat second-class mashed potatoes.
I like mine with a shameless amount of butter and milk (or cream) and it’s been hard to make them any other way. That was until I tried these uh-mazing Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes.

(Vegan) Double Chocolate Pudding

Children and adults alike love chocolate pudding and have done so for years. Usually eaten as a snack, pudding can be also a refined dessert.
Though it’s easier to buy ready-made pudding (or instant pudding) sold in grocery stores, convenience stores, pharmacies, and even gas stations I urge you to try making it at home at least once.
It’s a hundred times better, way cheaper, and you can tweak to make it suit your tastes — more sweet, less sweet, more thick, less thick, and so on.

Semolina Gnocchi (Gnocchi alla Romana)

Laura, my cousin-in-law, is sort of obsessed with my Semolina Gnocchi (aka gnocchi alla romana.) I made them for her, her husband (i.e., my cousin Mark), and their children once they came over for dinner like two years ago and apparently they’ve been on her mind ever since.
I gave her the recipe (THIS recipe, word for word) but she swears that the gnocchi she makes are good but do not come even close to mine.
I’m quite confident that it has only to do with the fact that memories are always better than reality — this recipe is so simple and easy that it’s almost impossible to mess up. It’s actually so straightforward that after making it a few times, you won't need the recipe at all.
Just seven ingredients — each one a common staple, except perhaps for the semolina flour — are all you need to whip up this classic Italian main dish.

Creamy Garlic Broccoli Rice

“Finish your broccoli!” "Eat your broccoli or you can't have dessert!" "If you feed your broccoli to the dog one more time, you're grounded!"
I'm sure we've all been threatened in a similar way with broccoli by our moms.
They wanted us to grow up healthy, so they made us consume spoonfuls of the cruciferous vegetable despite our disapproval.
Chances are that, growing up, we didn’t like it that much, even if it was referred to as “tiny trees” or other cutesy names. Maybe that happened because it was mostly served kind of mushy or slathered in cheese. Maybe it was just one of those vegetables that you had to eat — like some sort of punishment.

Holiday Marble Bundt Cake

Happy New Year y’all!
What a rough year 2020 has been, I’m pretty sure we all agree that it’s the kind of year that belongs in the rearview mirror and we’re all glad to put it behind us.
But before we dive into the new year plans, goals, and resolutions I think it's important to look back and to highlight to yourself the good things that have also happened throughout the year.
I for one originally set my reading challenge to 30 books but with the lockdowns I’ve been reading far more than anticipated and I ended up finishing 54 books (with a good mix of fiction and non-fiction books.) It's a small feat that probably means nothing to anybody, but I am very happy with it.
I took up rope jumping as an alternative to running outdoors and I soon learned it’s a great cardio workout, and I was able to nail the double under after a little over a month of practice.
I've also cleared out my closet and house of a ton of stuff that was crowding out my life, which was good.
Last, but not certainly least, I’ve cooked/baked a ton of good stuff.

Mushroom Ragout

Staying home for the holidays amid pandemic restrictions made me realize that for the first time in years (read this as ever) I will be home to water a fresh-cut tree and not let it die.
Since almost all the holiday festivities have been canceled (or restricted) having the smell of a real tree in the house might be a way to keep some of the holiday spirit going and help me get through with what I’ve heard has been called the “Covid blues.”
After all the holidays haven’t been cancelled this year, we have to celebrate in a meaningful, albeit different, way.

(Vegan) Pumpkin Chickpea Curry

Here’s a great little recipe in case you have some (or a lot) leftover pumpkin puree from your Thanksgiving baking — a nice way to use it up before it’s forgotten in the back of your fridge.
And if you don’t have leftovers, don’t worry, you can always open up a can of pumpkin puree like I did.

Lemon Spice Pound Cake

With the cold closing in and the holidays just around the corner, I feel it’s about time to fire up the oven and bake like there’s no tomorrow. Am I right?
Today I’m sharing with you guys one of my favorite recipes for pound cake: Lemon Spice Pound Cake.

Eggplant Bacon (aka Smoked Eggplant Slices)

Eggplant lovers rejoice and say hello to your new best friend: eggplant bacon.
Slices of our favorite purple-skinned vegetable are seasoned to smoky perfection with liquid smoke, paprika, soy sauce, maple syrup, and a few other ingredients to make the ideal companion to any sandwich, burger, wrap, tartine, crostini, flatbread, bruschetta, et cetera et cetera et cetera...

Best-Ever Barley Salad

There’s a certain kind of dish that lets you down not because it’s bad, but because it could have been great. One of those dishes, for me, is barley salad.
Over the last 10 years I’ve probably tasted close to 50 different barley salads; at potlucks, “bring-a-dish” picnics, barbecues, salad bars, and even at one very fancy restaurant (which I’m not gonna name.) I can’t name one that was memorable let alone exceptional.
I sadly almost came to the conclusion that barley salad could never reach the heights of a farro salad or of a rice salad. Good yes, great never.

No-Cook Tomato CousCous Salad

I can say without a hint of doubt that this is going to be THE recipe for what will probably be remembered as one of the most awkward summers of our life (sigh!)
I used the adjective “awkward” instead of more bitter ones just because — being ever the optimist — I know (more like I hope) that sooner or later we’ll find a way out of this ditch.
Anyways, I found this recipe while perusing a French cooking website. I was skeptical at first but intrigued nonetheless. The non-cooking part was what sold me on it. With the heat and humidity rising the very last thing I feel like doing is turning on the stove.

Whole Wheat Almond Cranberry Biscotti

One of the many drawbacks that came with quarantine was not being able to get my fave biscotti from a bakery across town.
Nothing too upsetting, considering that I could easily make them at home. Which is what I did. I mean, if there’s one thing that’s fairly easy to make at home is biscotti.

Italian Jam Tart (Crostata)

With the majority of us hunkered down at home, I know you’d probably expect me to tell you to do things like social distancing from your fridge, drink green juices, workout in your living room every day, etc.
And you should, keeping yourself healthy and active is very important, especially right now.
However, I also believe that it’s paramount to stay sane, light-hearted, and gruntled.
For me, that means eating something comforting, sweet, and delicious every day; such as a slice of this Italian Jam Tart (aka crostata).

Soft Apple Crinkle Cookies

During this quarantine we seem to be discovering our ovens for the first time. We’re all craving something sweet and soothing, so why not try out that Cinnamon Pecan Banana Bread or those Salted Double Chocolate Brownie Cookies recipes that have been hanging on the fridge for the last thousand years?
I mean, the thirty pounds flour, twenty bags of sugar, and ten boxes of eggs (also known as the Covid-apocalypse hoard) aren’t going to bake themselves. Am I right?

Easy Zucchini Fritters

The word fritter usually conjures up something deep-fried, fat-laden, and overall heavy.
But these Easy Zucchini Fritters are testament that light fritters can be possible.
Grated zucchini joins forces with onion, flour, eggs, and grated Parmesan cheese to make low calorie, delicious little green pancakes that can be a light vegetarian meal or meze or a side dish to any Mediterranean-style chicken, quinoa, or salmon.

Avocado Egg Salad

We are going through difficult times and it might not always be easy to stay positive. Nonetheless we have to try our best.
As we hunker down at home, there’s no time like the present to get busy in the kitchen and try out some new delicious dishes.
I wholeheartedly believe that cooking is therapeutic, for yourself and for those around you.
Serve a delicious meal, everyone is happy. A simple source of comfort and pleasure.
It’s the kind of caring for the well-being of your family that ought to be top-of-the-mind right now.

Mediterranean Potato Salad

I don’t consider myself a mayo-phone (it is eggs and oil after all) but I’ve never been a fan of the standard potato salad drenched in mayonnaise, also known as salads that make you forget you are even eating a potato.
That’s why I love a potato salad recipe that doesn’t call for mayo.

(Simple) Turmeric Yellow Rice

Like most humans, I’m a creature of habit. Admittedly, I’m most comfortable when I have an established routine.
For example, at the gym, 9.5 times out of 10, I pick the same locker. If it is occupied already, it annoys me. Why is that? I don’t know. It just does.
Same thing happens with the treadmill. Yes, my gym has more than one treadmill but I use the same treadmill every time. Not to mention the stationary bike, that particular spot in the stretching area, etc.
In my mind, once I’ve found a good thing or found something that works, there’s no reason to change it. Some people might find it boring, I find it comforting.