I recently went to lunch with a few girlfriends and my friend Darby (Hi Darbs!) got an amazing Carrot and Ginger soup. Now if you know me you know I already have a hard time choosing what to order at restaurants because I get nervous that I’ll order the wrong thing, especially when everything looks so enticing. So when our server brought out her soup I immediately wished that I too had ordered a little cup of that orange beauty. So when I was thinking about something to make for Sunday night dinner- I knew exactly what I was going to have.

There was also a slight chill in the air so it was a great evening for some warm and comforting soup.

My favorite soup tool- the immersion blender! You can also dump the veggies into a blender and mix it up if you don’t have an immersion blender, but this little guy sure is handy.

Ta-da! Done in no time. This soup was everything I hoped it would be and more.

Ingredients:

5 cups chopped carrots

1 medium yellow onion, diced

3 tablespoons peeled and chopped ginger

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (about 2 oranges worth)

4 cups vegetable broth

1 tsp sea salt

Recipe:

In a large pot combine onions, ginger and coconut oil.  Sauté over medium/low heat until onions are soft and transparent.

Then, add carrots, orange juice, vegetable broth and sea salt to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and cook over medium/low heat until carrots are fork tender, about 20-25 minutes.

With your trusty immersion blender or regular blender puree the carrot soup.

Serve alongside some buttered toast and a glass of vino and you are good to go.

Happy eating!

What are your thoughts on salad? Boring? Yea, sometimes. I like to think of salads as a blank canvas to mix and match my favorite ingredients. I also love to use legumes as salad bases; lentils- yes, black beans- yes, and chickpeas- oh heck yes!

When I was thinking about what to pair the little beans with I knew exactly what I wanted. For Valentine’s day I sent my friend Jules a pasta recipe to use on her first go around with homemade pasta (Hi Jules) and I used that recipe as my inspiration here.

Chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans, are full of protein and very versatile.

The lemon adds such a great citrus note to the creamy chickpeas. Definitely the superstar here.

Let’s get cooking!

Ingredients: 

1/2 pound dried chickpeas- soaked overnight, or one can, 2 cloves garlic- minced, 1 tsp red pepper flakes, 2 Tbsp toasted sunflower seeds, juice of 1 lemon, lemon zest, 2-4 cups fresh spinach, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, 2 Tbsp olive oil.

Recipe:

In a sauté pan add the olive oil to heat, once warm add the garlic and red pepper flakes and allow to bloom for about 30 seconds, add the chickpeas and sunflower seeds to the pan, add lemon juice and cook for about 4-5 minutes, add the spinach and lemon zest to the pan and allow the spinach to wilt then add the parmesan and plate with a touch of zest and parm on top.

Happy eating!

Sometimes during the week I like to have a simple salad for dinner- I’ve got to balance out all the butter and cream from school right?

 

When I was a kid brussel sprouts were the devil! Lucky for me my parents didn’t really like them either so they never really found their way onto our plates.

 

Instead of using dressing I enjoy a rich balsamic reduction, the sweet syrupy taste is a great match for the bitter brussels.

 

Mixed with some toasted pecans and blueberries this salad rounds out perfectly. You can eat this on it’s own or some protein on the side. It’s a perfect weeknight meal!

Recipe:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, trim as many brussels sprouts ends as you desire. Roast the sprouts for about 30 minutes or until they get a golden brown edge, toss with toasted pecans, blueberries and top with the balsamic reduction.

Happy eating!

Getting back into normal life after such an incredible vacation has definitely been hard, I think I left my brain in Italy. The best way I know how to get back into the swing of things is to get into my kitchen- back to homemade cooking.

When I was living in Houston, one of my favorite lunch spots was a tiny garden cafe called Tiny Boxwoods. My friend Julia and I tend to frequent this spot for lunch and a beverage or two whenever I am back in town, but we haven’t been able to get there on my past couple of trips home. My favorite thing by far on their menu is the “Just Beet It Burger.” Since I haven’t been able to indulge lately I decided to make my own version, and this definitely took me right to back to their patio. The best way to fix a craving is to fix it yourself in my book.

 

Roasted beets are so beautiful and have a delicious earthy flavor, but be careful they will stain everything in their vicinity red.

 

I’m not familiar with the exact recipe at Tiny Boxwoods, but beets, black beans, some raw cashews and sautéed onion married quite well.

 

So pretty!

 

Burger they are, grilled they will not. The black beans do a good job binding everything together, but they are a little more flimsy than a regular beef patty so we definitely want to cook them on the stove.

 

Topped with some chipotle aioli and candied jalapeños, it gets the perfect amount of kick. This is by far my favorite veggie burger, the flavors are so bold and yummy. Go ahead, give it a try and let me know what you think. As for my friends in the Houston area… treat yourself to a visit to Tiny Boxwoods, you’ll love it.

Ingredients: makes 2 burger patties

4 small beets, small diced and roasted,

1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained

1/4 yellow onion, diced and sautéd

1/3 cup raw cashews,

1 Tbsp Mayonaise

1 tsp chipotle seasoning

Hamburger bun, candied jalapeños and butter lettuce to garnish.

 

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Peel and dice the red beet (you can save the beet greens and sauté them with olive oil, S&P, and garlic for a yummy vegetable side dish later on)

Roast your beet for 20-25 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile, sauté your onions in a little bit of olive oil. Also, in a food processor, add your cashews and pulse down to a grain size and then add to a large mixing bowl. Then do the same with the black beans and onion. After the beets are done roasting pulse them down until a lightly chunky texture (think burger) then add them to the mixing bowl.

Mix together all of the ingredients in the bowl and then build out the burger patties.

In a sauté pan, add 1 tbsp olive oil and heat. Add your burgers and cook about 5 minutes on each side.

Mix together the mayo and chipotle to make a quick aioli, then build up your burger with some lettuce, jalapeños and enjoy!

 

Happy eating!

When I go out to brunch for some reason I am normally drawn to the savory items on the menu, french toast just doesn’t do it for me. Today I made brunch at my house and decided to do a twist on the grilled cheese sandwich. I love when fruit is pared with savory meats and cheeses so this is the perfect combination in my book. Fresh boule bread, smoked turkey, blackberry and basil jam, and fontina cheese; this grilled cheese is heavenly!

Let’s start by making our blackberry jam. All you need is some blackberries and some chiffonade basil. Then with a fork mash the berries and mix it together with the basil.

Then take a freshly baked boule loaf and slice two thick slices to assemble the sammy. You really can use any bread of your choice, but I decided to go this route because to be honest the little loaf was just so cute at the store.

Then we start assembling. I used fontina cheese because it melts beautifully and it is so creamy and delicious.

Then some smoked turkey slices

Then the superstar blackberry and basil jam

Then in a medium-low heated skillet with a touch of butter add the grilled cheese. I butter both outsides of the bread as well just to add a little extra flavor.

The challenge here is to be patient and let this grilled cheese cook until the cheese is melted. This would be the perfect time to pour some mimosas!

About 5 minutes or so on each side and you are ready to rock in roll! Slice this bad boy in half and go to town.

Holy moley this grilled cheese is so delicious and perfect for an at home Sunday brunch! Do yourself a favor and make this immediately.

Happy eating!

One of my favorite fall fruits is pomegranate. They are sweet and juicy and super versatile. The only downside to buying pomegranate arils at the grocery store is that they are SO expensive. For a long time I was intimidated to get the juicy arils out of the shell by myself, but once I saw them at the store this year I was determined to do it myself! There is definitely nothing to be a afraid of, they are simple to de-seed and you get so many more than you would from a store batch. Check it out:

What you’ll need: 1 pomegranate, a sharp chef’s knife, a bowl of cool water, a strainer.

Start by cutting the butt end off, shown above.

Then with your knife score the skin three times.

Into a bowl of cool water, just start lightly pulling the seeds off the membrane and letting them drop into the water.

Keep doing this until all of the seeds are into the bowl.

Strain the arils into a bowl and you are ready to rock and roll

There are so many things you can do with the arils; you could eat them as is, drink the juice, make a pomegranate martini with the juice, garnish a desert or salad. Let you imagination run wild.

To get the juice out of the pomegranate just put the seeds into a plastic bag, with a rolling pin or the butt of your hand pop the seeds to release the juice and then cut a tiny bit from the tip of the bag and drain the juice into a glass. There is nothing better than fresh squeezed juice!

Happy drinking!

It’s been cold in Austin for the past few days and it’s made me have quite the hankerin’ for some warm soups. Now this isn’t really a soup, but it does the trick. I have been making this for a few years now and I just love it. It’s hearty, comforting and super healthy.

What you’ll need: 1 can of garbanzo beans- rinsed and drained, 1 Tbsp olive oil, 4 cups spinach or arugula, 1-2 cups of tomato sauce, 2 cloves of garlic minced, 1/4 tsp cumin, pinch of red pepper flakes, 1Tbsp red wine vinegar, 1/4 tsp smoked paprika, juice of 1/2 lemon, a few sun-dried tomatoes for extra flare.

This is super easy! Just add all of the ingredients into a big sauté pan and heat through, about 10-15 minutes. Once it’s warm add the spinach or arugula (I used a mixture of the 2) until it wilts and serve warm. You can also top this with any cheese that you may have, I recommend parmesan or ricotta.

I love how simple, yet delicious this meal is. It’s prefect for a cool fall weeknight, and the leftovers are even better!

Grab a bowl and dig in!

Happy eating!