Oh, yes. I’m not saying 12 for exaggeration’s sake- this monstrosity of a dessert is twelve moist, crunchy, and amazing layers of beauty. Baklava is traditionally relatively thin- 4-6 layers as a max- and fairly bite-sized. These ones are diamond-esque shaped (hey, I tried) and can happily feed two people as an entire dessert in and of itself. They may be a caloric nightmare, but they’re a tasty dream, so why not treat yourself to one as a special occasion? :)

12-Layer Baklava

Recipe Adapted from Baklava by LolFoodie

Filling Ingredients:

• 1 package (1 lb) organic filo dough
• 2 cups walnuts, whole
• 1.5 heaping cup pistachios, shelled (be liberal on the pistachios, they’re meant to be the star here)
• 1 cup almonds, whole, dry roasted
• 2 sticks of soy butter (sadly you really can’t cut this out, but at least it’s for a whole pan of baklava)
• 2 tsp cinnamon (I put in 3)
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• pinch of nutmeg, cloves, and ginger

Syrup Ingredients:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup clover honey (or wildflower, if you’ve got it)
• 2/4 cup room-temperature filtered water
• 1 teaspoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice (if you’re Italian, that means 2-3 tbl instead)
• 1/2 tsp each of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, coriander
• a tiny pinch of lemon zest (again, if you’re Italian, go over on that amount (which you would do, anyway))

Process:

1. Syrup first – and it’s going to boggle you as it did I, but it’s okay, trust that this works. Take a medium saucepot and place all the syrup ingredients in it on low heat. Cook this down for 15-20 minutes- the longer you reduce it, the stickier and thicker your syrup will be. I left mine on for a good 20 minutes. Let this sit at room temperature to cool while you prepare the filling – it’ll coagulate and thicken and become glorious.
2. Place walnuts, pistachios, almonds, filling spices and salt in a food processor until appropriately broken down (I liked mine to be on the chunkier side, but yours can be as powder-y as you like) and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and thoroughly butter all sides (up to the very top) of a baking dish (I used a 9 x 9 pyrex to get the super thickness going- if you’d rather thinner, use a larger rectangular dish)
4. You’re going to have to work quickly here- first, place the remaining butter minus what you used to coat the dish into a microwaveable bowl and mirowave until liquid. Prepare a pastry brush.
5. Take one layer of filo and place it into the bottom of the dish. It’s going to be too big, and that’s all right – just fold the sides. Brush it with butter, and repeat with two more sheets, buttering each time.
6. Spoon on about 3-4 tbl of the nut mixture evenly onto the filo. Then take 3 more filo sheets and add them one at a time, brushing with butter and folding over to fit- or you can cut and trim and just treat them as two sheets each, it’s up to you. Keep repeating this process of filo layering, buttering, and placing the nut mixture, until you place your last 2-3 sheets of filo right on top. Butter the top generously (of course).
7. Place in the oven for 35-45 minutes (depending on the heat of your oven) or until the top is golden brown (see below picture). You can cut them prior to baking if you like, but my father (whom I made these for) suggested cutting after so that they’d be more moist inside. That’s your choice!
8. Remove from oven once golden brown and let sit 5 minutes. Then, using a sharp knife, patience, and gritted teeth, cut them (roughly) into large diamonds. Get your now-thick syrup out and douse the whole thing with all the syrup, making sure to get into all the cracks.
9. Let sit another 15-20 minutes until the syrup is well absorbed. It’ll actually be better the next day once it’s been fully saturated with honeyed goodness, but if you must serve it now, wait a half hour after syruping to ensure moistness all over.

Baklava is my father’s favourite dessert, and I owed him some since months ago :) so this was for him. I think next time I’ll try thinner ones with all pistachio or almost all, at any rate…. but these were delicious and so gargantuan that they made for a fun picture. As a note- the syrup for me was very watery for a long time- hence my cooking it down lengthily- but the second I took it off the heat, it began to thicken- so don’t be alarmed if it takes its time becoming a syrup! Just trust in it.

Hummus! So good! Tasty yet healthy- how can this be?! I have chosen not to question the mystery that is the double-positive of hummus and have instead embraced it and decided that I should make some :) I thought this recipe would make a small quantity, but no. It made enough for a weeklong hummus supply. So I suppose my only word of caution is that- be prepared for a large amount of hummus! And some strong bell pepper taste- but who minds that? :)

Roasted Red Pepper & Spice Hummus

Ingredients:

• 3 medium-sized red bell peppers, roasted (see instructions below)
• 1 can organic garbanzo beans (chickpeas) rinsed/washed thoroughly
• 1/2 heaping cup Greek tahini (sesame seed paste)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon freshly-minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp Spanish smoked paprika
• 1 tsp season salt (kosher salt, black pepper, celery salt, paprika, cumin)
• 1/2 tsp each of cumin, kosher salt, and coriander
• for garnish: paprika, EVOO, fresh sunflow seeds, cumin
• for the side: toasted pita, cut into thirds

Process:

1. To roast peppers: preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cut peppers in half (cleaning out stem and middle) and spray on both sides with extra virgin olive oil (if you don’t have any spray, just brush lightly with oil). Season with season salt (see mixture above), salt, and pepper on both sides, and place in oven for 8-10 minutes. Then flip them over and roast for an additional 10 minutes. Allow to cool, then chop roughly into large chunks (see photos below)
2. Place all ingredients (minus garnish and pita) in a food processor. Pulse together in bursts until the mixture comes together in a thick paste/cream mixture. Drizzle on some olive oil and sprinkle a few toasted sunflower seeds. Top with a dash of paprika and cumin for colour.
3. Toast some pita (I toasted mine in the leftover bell pepper-infused olive oiled-baking sheet so they’d be extra-pepper-y) and dip in for a delicious snack! Sprinkle on extra spices (I added a bit of celery salt + cumin on the pita) as desired.

It’s honestly incredibly simple- just pour it all into the processor and process and ta da! You’re done :). It’s delicious, nutritious, portable, great for bringing to parties, potlucks, what have you. This one’s heavy on the bell pepper taste, but for introductory hummus fans- or people who are crazy about peppers- this one’s a nice choice.

I have a confession to make: I have a thing for chicken curry (so long as it’s mild enough for me to eat it). There’s something delicious and delectable about curry that’s really quite irresistable. My mother knows this, and so, for my birthday (back in May), she gifted me with a wonderful book (Curry Cuisine, containing curry recipes from over the world) and several large bags of spices from Indonesia. Fantastic!

A lovely friend of the boyfriend’s neighbors (say that three times fast) came over for a dinner date recently and, being more of an expert in Indian cuisine than I, I much appreciated the help! A.M. (my guest) and I made the most delicious curry that has thus far been made in this apartment: murgh makhani. It was SO good- honestly- so delicious!! I’m already pining to make it again.

One note: the chili powder… ohmygoodness. This had A.M. and I in coughing and sneezing fits. We used a Balinese chili powder my mother gave me, and it looked deceptively kind… but this stuff was STRONG. We were sneezing like mad, several minutes after having been away from it. Beware of your chili powders, that’s all I’m saying.

Murgh Makhani (Old Delhi-style Chicken Curry)

Adapted from Mugh Makhani in Curry Cuisine

Ingredients:

Marinade:

• 2 large chicken breasts, cleaned, skinned, de-boned, cut into large cubes
• 3/4 cup low-fat vanilla european-style yogurt (O Organics!)
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp each of salt and pepper
• 1 tsp Balinese chili powder (aaaah)

Sauce:

• 1 can 12 oz Italian-style diced tomatoes in tomato juice
• 1/2 cup water, room-temperature
• 1.5 tsp powdered ginger
• 2 tsp garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp cloves (powdered)
• 1 tsp Saigon cinnamon
• 1/2 stick soy butter, softened
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp granulated sugar

Process:

1. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a small bowl, add the chicken, coat thoroughly on all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge for 25-30 minutes.
2. Preheat a cast-iron grill pan over medium-to-low heat.
3. We at first put the chicken on skewers to grill, but found that because of the angle, the chicken wasn’t cooking properly, and decided to take the chicken off the skewers and cook as cubes. Take your pick! If you use wooden skewers, be sure to keep the skewers in a shallow dish filled with awter for 5-10 minutes prior to grilling so that they will not burn. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the chicken has a coloured crust on all sides.
4. To prepare the sauce, place the tomatoes and juice in a saucier pan (make sure it’s deep enough) with the water, ginger, carlic, cloves, and cinnamon. Cook until the tomatoes become very soft and shredded. Once the sauce is thickening, take the half stick of butter and melt it into the sauce, mixing in thoroughly.
5. Take the cooked chicken cubes and add to the sauce, and continue to simmer for 3-4 minutes. Add the salt and sugar, and serve the curry with rice or naan (see naanscuits recipe for ideas).

It’s hot, it’s just just just the right degree of spice, and all of that can most certainly be attributed to my fortune in having had A.M. join me for a cooking date. She knows the spices inside and out and truly understands the relationship between their flavours. Thanks for a delicious and wonderful date, A.M., and I hope your travels in India right now are going safely and wonderfully! :)

I proved quite fully with this dish that my sister and I sadly realllly can’t handle the slightest bit of spice. We had this conversation at dinner while eating this:

Sister: (fanning self slightly)

Boyfriend: (nomnomnomnom)

Me: Boyfriend, is this not spicy to you?

Boyfriend: Ahm… no? Should it be?

Sister: To me, on a scale of 1 to 10, this is a 7. Hot hot hot hot!

Boyfriend: To me this is… mmh.. maybe a .7, on that same scale.

So as you can see, to the average person (or perhaps to the usual spicily-tolerant Asian boy), this is not that spicy- in which case the title is inaccurate- but as it was spicy to me, I’m keeping the name. So stricken. :) It’s certainly a tasty dish, and quite healthy, at that.

Spicy Tomato & Cheese Whole Grain Penne Bake

Ingredients:

• 5 tiny sweet white onions
• 4 fresh cherry tomatoes
• 3/4 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tblspn soy butter
• 1/2 box whole grain penne
• 3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/8 tsp each of cayenne pepper, paprika, coriander, cumin, garlic powder
• 1 28-oz can of organic diced tomatoes in juice
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/3 cup shredded mozarella
• 2 chicken breasts, cleaned
• 1/3 cup dry cream sherry
• 1 tsp each of dried oregano, basil
• 1/2 cup grated Reggianito (Argentine Parmesan)
• sea salt & freshly-cracked black pepper

Process:

1. Dice onion fairly finely and place in sautee pan with 1 tblspn soy butter, garlic, and sprinkling of salt and pepper
2. Once it begins to bubble and brown, add in the spices (red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, paprika, coriander, cumin, garlic powder) and continue mixing until red/golden in colour
3. Add in the entire can of diced tomatoes and their juice, and the lemon juice and put on medium low heat; stir occasionaly, allow to bubble and thicken
4. Heat water to boil and cook penne according to your preference or box instructions (I like it a bit al dente, with salt and olive oil to prevent sticking). Rinse lightly, then pour into a greased deep baking dish.
5. Place the cherry tomato slices over the pasta (see picture) along with half of the cheese, and drizzle lightly with olive oil (optional)
6. Pour thickened tomato sauce over the tomato slices and pasta, and smooth out to where it’s evenly laid. Sprinkle on a bit more cheese.
7. Preheat oven to 355 degrees F.
8. Sautee 1 more tblspn of soy butter with a spinkle of salt and pepper until bubbling; then add in the chicken breasts. Sear on both sides until no more ‘pink flesh’ is visible- then add in the sherry and reduce to a caramel-y sauce. Glaze the chicken with this and remove onto a cutting board.
9. Cut the chicken into large cubes, then put back into the sautee pan (hope you didn’t clean it, you want that fond de sauce in there!) and continue to sautee for 2-3 minutes until browned on all sides.
10. Sprinkle the herbs onto the top of the tomato sauce mixture, evenly spread about the dish.
11. Remove the chicken from pan and place evenly on top of tomato sauce/herbs/cheese.
12. Grate the Reggianito on top, sprinkle with a bit more salt and pepper, and place in oven for 20 minutes approximately, until the cheese is melted and golden.
13. Allow to cool slightly, then serve warm (may fall apart- be wary and be ready to catch falling pieces)

If you can handle spice, then up the spiciness by adding more cayenne and red pepper flakes. But if you’re a spice wimp, like me, then you needn’t add more, this is already plenty :).

Something that’s crunchy and golden on top but gooey, warm, and creamy on the bottom sounds rather Heavenly to me. And this dish is just that! It’s like a musical piece: it begins softly with this “ahhh” of crunchiness on the top, as you begin munching on the cheese… then you begin to taste the potato and the crunchiness gives way to an irresistable softness… and then the bottom, with the rich creaminess of the cream and you know it’s going to be a winner.

Yes, I know, it’s oft seen as a Southern classic and therefore, why would I make this, I who shiver in fright at the idea of Southern foods? But you know what, this looks like a gratin, and gratin looks safe (and French) and thus I thought, all right, this is do-able :). I was tempted to re-name this Thin Potato Gratin to make myself feel better (and I gave my father a piece and he called it a very good gratin, so clearly if a true Frenchman says so, it must be the case) but as Elise’s fantastic recipe is named ‘scalloped’, I opted for that… with a deep breath!

Crunchy & Creamy Scalloped Potatoes

Adapted from / variant of Elise @ Simply Recipe’s Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 1 very large baking potato, sliced into 1/8-inch thick slices
• 3 medium/small Yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/8-inch thick slices
• 1 tbsp soy butter
• 5 cloves of herb-roasted garlic, peeled, whole
• 1 tsp each of nutmeg and coriander
• 1/8 tsp cardamom
• 1 cup grated San Pietro cheese (very similar to Parmesan)
• 2/3 cup italian fancy cheese blend (mix of 5 cheeses – to be found at your local grocery store)
• 2 1/2 cups of half-and-half
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper

Process:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Butter (with soy butter) a large, fairly shallow dish (could be round or square)
3. Place half of the potato slices (I kept the skin on- after rinsing thoroughly- but you can peel if you so desire!) over the bottom of the dish, trying to have as little overlap as possible
4. Place the garlic cloves directly onto the slices, evenly dispersed. Sprinkle with the spices, and half the cheese.
5. Layer the other half of the potato slices in the same fashion as the first layer, and sprinkle on half of the remaining cheese, as well as the salt and pepper.
6. Pour the half-and-half and milk evenly over the dish, dot slightly with very small pieces of soy butter and cover with a large piece of aluminum foil.
7. Place in the oven for approximately an hour. Then remove from the oven, take off the foil, sprinkle on the remaining cheese, and bake for an additional 30ish minutes, until the potatoes are golden browned on the top.
8. Let cool a bit, then serve warm…. yum.

It’s seriously delicious, and if it has the French stamp of approval, clearly that means you shouldn’t waste time- go get some for yourself and see if you agree! You could change the recipe- I edited Elise’s a bit as I am horrorstruck by bacon (just ask the boyfriend), and I had been on a chives kick the week before, so I wanted to stay away from them. Plus, it’s a proven fact that cream + nutmeg = meant to be. Think of this marriage of flavours as your favourite destined couple. Just trust me on this one :).

This was, without a doubt, the most delicious salad I have ever made. The fact that it was so remains a happy stroke of luck, for I was really just haphazardly putting things together and hoping they would work in conjunction. Thankfully, they did :) and the result was a miracle. The boyfriend took three servings. THREE. Three servings of salad! Miraculous! And our other dinner guest- a friend of mine who is allergic to gluten and has issues with mainy dairy products- took two. I was proud of this accomplishment.

My friend B was joining us so that I could make her a thank-you dinner; she has gifted me so many wonderful kitchen gadgets and I thought that the clear way to say thanks would be to use them for her benefit. B, however, is an impeccable guest to the last, and thus brought yet another gift with her upon arrival… meaning that I’ll just have to have her over again soon :)

Due tu B’s intolerance to gluten, I was looking for a way to add crunch to the salad. I immediately thought, “nut!” and looked about the cupboards. We had some cashews that were sitting about in a jar, and I had some honey-roasted cashews (these are even crunchier!) and thought they would work well. I then began assembling other ingredients and eventually had a nice mix of things put together.

The key to this salad is the warm pear glaze that serves as a dressing. I had prepared some extra virgin olive oil and pear-infused vinegar to use, but they really weren’t needed at all. And happily, the dressing of pear glaze consists of pear… and nothing else, really! Cheers to simplicity and healthiness.

Warm Pear-Glazed Chicken and Cashew Spring Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 large chicken breases, cleaned
• 1/3 lb spring mix, washed and dried
• 1 cup fresh spinach leaves, washed and dried
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup  jumbo black raisins
• 1/2 cup sultanas (to put directly in salad)
• 1/3 cup sultanas (to poach)
• 1 cup honey-toasted cashews
• 1/2 cup whole cashews (normal)
• 1 can Kerns brand pear nectar
• 1 half yellow bell pepper, diced finely
• 1/2 lb baby carrots, sliced thinly
• 1 tbl soy butter
• 1 tsp sea salt, freshly-ground black pepper, coriander, nutmeg

Process:

1. Place spring mix in a large salad bowl. Add in spinach, cranberries, raisins, sultanas (not 1/3 cup for poaching), bell pepper, carrots and toss thoroughly.
2. Chop cashews (both types) together into fairly large chunks; add in to salad and toss again.
3. Place soy butte rin a medium sautee pan. Coat chicken on one side with half of spice mix (salt, pepper, coriander, nutmeg), and place in pan. Once bottom side is seared, flip and season other side. Then flip again.
4. Once both sides are fully seared, add in the 1/3 cup of sultanas and the can of Kerns nectar.
5. Keep heat to medium and flip chicken every 4-5 minutes, moving the sultanas around and placing at times over the chicken. Once the chicken is firm to the touch and the pear nectar has caramelized to a thick, full-bodied consistency, place chicken on a cutting board and roughly chop into very large pieces. Spoon all caramelized pear nectar into the salad bowl.
6. Place chicken onto bowl and toss one last time, making sure to distribute chicken and pear nectar thoroughly.

It’s delicious- trust me. Try it! It’s better warm, though the boyfriend finished the leftovers the next day cold and said it was still very good. Thanks to the sweet pear and honeyed pecans, it has a very sweet taste. “It’s like candy”- B and the boyfriend both agreed. And if you could have candy for salad… wouldn’t you? :)

Ah, this one definitely is to be filed in the ‘accident’ category. H and I were set to make to panini, and the second was to be an Italian one, featuring pesto… and rather than use the perfectly fine store-bought one in the fridge, I just had to go off and try making my own. With no direction, no recipe, no studying, just randomly throwing things into the blender and hoping for the best. The saddest part is that it probably would have worked, too, if it weren’t for that meddling shallot! I had picked up some very pretty looking shallots at the store earlier that day and thought it a brilliant idea to chop one up and put the whole thing right on into the pesto. Raw. Clearly I sometimes just am not thinking things through :) That said, in case any of you are mad enough to want to try it, herein lies the recipe to my failure:

House-Made Shallot Pesto

Ingredients (makes about 6 oz):

• 1/4 cup organic canola oil
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• the juice of 1 lemon
• 1/16 tsp lemon xest (just grate it for 5 seconds or so)
• 1/4 cup whole sunflower seeds
• heaping 1/4 cup almost-burnt toasted walnuts
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 cups chopped parsley (curly-leaf)
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1/4 tsp of nutmeg, paprika, coriander, cumin, sea salt, black pepper
• …1 medium shallot, minced (DON’T DO IT!)

Process:

1. Place all liquid ingredients (canola oil, olive oil) in bottom of blender or food processor
2. Then place parmesan and nuts
3. Then add in all other ingredients
4. Omit the shallot, it’s not worth your crying over
5. Blend/process on medium setting until the pesto becomes rather thick (though not quite tapenade-thickness)

Et voila, you’re done! When shallot-less, I bet this would have been a rather tasty pesto, although I would suggest upping the parlsey to perhaps 3 cups and adding some more sunflower seeds, they give a really nice texture. That said, the mere thought of this- honestly- makes me cry as my eyes were watering for a good hour after chopping that silly shallot, so do your eyes a favour and omit it so that you can have a happy pesto!

EDIT: After having used this pesto for a few weeks for a varity of panini, I have to say I’ve really come to like it. The sunflower seeds have absorbed most of the oil, so it has more of a tapenade consistency, but the shallot taste is by no means overpowering and adds a very nice flavour to the sandwiches. It’s also ideal as a panino-bread coating because it will seep through just enough to create nice grill marks but won’t splatter about.

They’re not too sweet, so beware, sweets lovers, this one’s a light-yet-cake-y muffin that’s incredibly healthy and yummy! They would have been sweeter- and tastier- with the raisins I had planned to put in… but forgot. Oops! That said, even without them, they’re a delicious snack to have in your bag, for breakfast, or at I’ve often used them, concert food!

Most muffin recipes use a ton of sour cream and butter, and I’ve found that to be downright silly. Why make an unhealthy muffin when it could be far healthier? I mixed and matched flours here to experiment with texture, but feel free to simplify by using all whole-wheat regular flour (not a mix of pastry and regular). You can also completely remove the sour cream in favour of applesauce only- I’ve done this many times before and the result is great. I was just curious to see if I could get a heartier muffin, since mine tend to be very light and fluffy. If you’re opting for a vegan and virtually fat-free muffin, replace the eggs with pumpkin puree (thanks, Sasha, for the tip!)- I’d suggest 1/4 cup per egg- and replace all the sour cream for applesauce. This recipe started as one from Emeril but I found it to not be quite healthy enough and am always changing things anyway (I have a few variations already up on fruippe: 1 & 2)

Whole Wheat Low-Fat Cinnamon Apple Muffins

Ingredients- makes approx. 12 large muffins and 8-10 mini muffins:

• 2 large apples (golden delicious or granny smith are best), peeled, cored, cut into about 3/4-inch chunks (sizes and shapes can vary)
• 1 cup organic whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 cup 100% whole wheat flour
• 1.5 slightly-heaping teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup low-fat sour cream (or applesauce)
• 3 large eggs (or 3/4 cup pumpkin puree)
• 3/4 cup all-natural applesauce
• 1.5 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2.5 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 – 2/3 cup black sweet raisins or sultanas (optional)
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Process:

1. Preheat the oven to 370 degrees farenheit and butter a large muffin tin. Set cupcake liners into a mini muffin tin (or butter- your preference). Use soy butter for a healthier alternative!
2. Mix together dry ingredients (flour, salt, spices, baking powder and soda) in a small mixing bowl and set aside. You can sift this if you’d like to introduce more air into the mixture but the applesauce substitution will usually do that work for you!
3. Whisk together the eggs, sour cream (if you opted to use any), apple sauce, and vanilla in a second bowl until just combined. Then whisk in the sugar very lightly- again, less is more here (take a Charmin approach)
4. Add the dry mixture in 3 batches each time mixing in until just combined.
5. Then fold in the apples, raisins, and nuts, until fairly evenly distributed, but again being careful not to overmix.
6. Pour the batter into the tins and muffin cups and put into the oven.
7. The large muffins take about 20 minutes to bake; the small muffins take closer to 15 minutes.
8. Remove the muffins from the oven, let sit inside the tins for 5 minutes or until slightly cooled, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.

 These guys are perfect for gifts, snacks, and more. They’re very simple to make, and you can make countless variations. The boyfriend loves when I substitute the apple for banana and add in almond and walnut chunks, and substitute almond extract for vanilla extract. You can switch around to a variety of fruit and nut combinations. A fun version for fall could be cranberry and pecan! Try out whatever you like best :)

If you’re looking for a powerhouse of health and flavour, this is it: pounds upon pounds of vegetables, rich aromatics, spices from far away and tantalizing textures. This dish is perfect for vegetarians and vegans looking for a hearty main course; for anyone looking to have something quick and on-the-go that is delicious either cold as a salad or warm- by itself, or as a complement to a meat.

The boyfriend had a potluck to attend and make something for, so naturally he asked if I could help. :) I looked at the menu of what others were planning to bring and saw starch and meat and a serious lack of vegetarian entrees (ironically, as it turned out, there was virtually no meat and much less starch than planned) and thus opted to search for what I could make that would be heavily vegetabled. A discussion with a coworker led me towards use of couscous or ourzo and thus I happened upon this seven-vegetable couscous recipe from Food Network. It seemed perfect, and thus I printed it, went searching for ingredients- this was to be my first time using turnips and yellow squash- and began the process!

The mechanics of the dish are by no means complicated- the reason it took me an incredible amount of time was that a) I opted to triple the recipe, b) I’m slow at cutting, and c) my casserole pan was by no means large enough. I ended up cooking the vegetables in two batches and then making the cous once the veggies were all done. However, this worked out for the best- as the veggie water wasn’t thickening properly into a sauce I made the first batch, drained it, reused the water for the second batch, drained it, and re-re-used the water for cooking the cous, resulting in some highly flavourful starchiness.

As I made copious changes to the recipe, here’s my version of this Moroccan dinner:

Spiced Vegetable Moroccan Cous Cous

Ingredients- makes 7 lbs vegetables:

• 2 – 3 cups of water (depending on how much you’re able to drain and re-use)
• 4 cloves of garlic, smashed and diced finely
• 5 medium-sized turnips, peeled and cut into inch-sized cubes
• 1 large yellow sweet onion, cut into inch-long thick strips
• 6 very large carrots, peeled and cut into 1.5-inch cubes
• 2.5 cups jumbo sweet black raisins
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
• 2 large yellow squashes, peeled, cut into 1.5-inch cubes
• 3 large zucchini squashes, rinsed vigorously- not peeled- and cut into 1.5-inch cubes
• 1 large can chickpeans, drained, rinsed thoroughly
• 6 large roma tomatoes, cut into large chunks
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes in their juices
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon each of freshly-cracked black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves
• 2 teaspoons each of sugar, ground turmeric
• 3 teaspoons each of ground cumin and spanish paprika

Ingredients- makes 3 lbs couscous:

• 4.5 cups room-temperature water – amount of remaining vegetable water (aka take all the water you’ve drained from the vegetables and add as much water as necessary to make the total amount of water 4.5 cups)
• 3 cups whole wheat cous cous
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup smashed hazelnuts
• 1/2 cup smashed cashews, salted
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

As that differed quite a bit from the original recipe, I thought it useful to write it all out there again. Mind you this makes for an incredibly large quantity, so feel free to use their original proportions for a more normal size! The process I followed was rather similar to the one listed, with a few minor changes.

Process:

• As the bell pepper is the longest ingredient to soften, I boiled these separately in a small pot with lid for 5 minutes before adding them to the veggie mixture at the same time as the carrots
• Due to my pot being too small, I ended up adding 3/4 of the zucchini and yellow squash, half the roma tomatoes, half the canned tomatoes + 1/3 of the raisins as a second batch using the drained water from the first batch
• When cooking the couscous, I put in the drained water from the vegetables and added as much extra water as needed (a half cup, in my case), and put it to boiling. Once the water was at a boil, I reduced the heat to low, put in the couscous, mixed the smashed nuts into it, and closed the lid with it sitting on low heat for 6 minutes. I then removed it from the heat, let it sit- still lid on- for another 5 minutes, then served.

The rest of the process I followed more or less as directed on the recipe. It’s one that’s open to much interpretation and very forgiving on timing- when making a stew of vegetables, cooking times are inexact! I felt very much like a Medieval lady out in the woods, with one of those gigantic stew cauldrons that you haphazardly throw all manner of vegetables into. It was great :)

It’s a simple recipe, but time consuming if you’re slow like me, so put aside a bit of time and then enjoy the fruits of your labour! Just one word of caution: if you go heavy on the turmeric, make sure you soak your dishes thoroughly when cleaning, and be careful not to spill any onto you. Turmeric is rather difficult to wash out, so be forewarned!

You can substitute almost any vegetables in here, the only trick is figuring out at what point to add them to the stew based on how long they’ll require to soften through to the middle. That said, it’s simple, it’s delicious, and it’s so nutritious that just a bit will have you feeling like you’ve done a good deed for your health :).

The last time I had been making chicken tikka masala, a magical thing happened: prior to adding the chicken to the tikka sauce, my sister announced that she enjoyed the chicken- spices, yogurt, and all. This was, naturally, a rare and exciting phenomenon, and so when we had company over recently, I sought to recreate the magic from that former recipe attempt.

I used the same recipe for chicken tikka as a base- but, naturally, made changes. For the  spice rub on the chicken, I used the following:

• heaping tsp salt
• heapting tsp pepper
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground corriander
• heaping tsp nutmeg
• 1/3 tsp cinnamon
• large pinch of garam masala

I cleaned, rinsed, dried the chicken, then rubbed it thoroughly on both sides with the spice mix and refrigerated it for about 30 minutes.

While it was refrigerating, I prepared the sauce, which consisted of:

• 1.5 cups low-fat european-style vanilla yogurt
• 3 large garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• dash of turmeric

I mixed the sauce together in a pyrex, then also refrigerated (again, this is mostly following the recipe linked above, thus far only minor changes).

I then dunked the chicken thoroughly in the yogurt mixture on both sides and placed on the aluminum-covered-baking-sheet-with-rack, and added some extra yogurt sauce to the top of the chicken pieces. I then broiled it at 525 degrees for 14 minutes, removed the chicken from the oven, flipped it, spooned on another layer of yogurt sauce, and broiled for another 12 minutes.

Once out of the oven, I suggest a) cleaning your rack immediately so it won’t be a miserable event doing so later, and b) serving with some cool vanilla or plain yogurt on the side, I think it would have been a terrific addition.

I opted to make this iteration with something not remotely Indian: broiled parmesan broccoli. To do this:

• Cut crowns of broccoli into small chunks and haphazardly arrange in small baking pyrex
• Drizzle heavily with olive oil, salt, pepper, and grated parmesan
• Broil (in bottom-most rack of oven) in pyrex at 525 for approximately 10 minutes
• Sprinkle on a tiny bit more parm after removing from the oven to add some final nuttiness
• Serve warm! :)

This dinner was incredibly flavourful (the spices were perhaps a tad bit too strong, but the health benefits are worth it) yet nicely healthy (the yogurt is low-fat, the chicken well-cleaned… the oil’s the worst of it, really) and really yummy. It’s quite simple, I’m just slow and indecisive, but try it out!

This was, by far, my favourite of my mother’s lunch recipes. She would make this in large batches every few months, and I was delighted every time. It’s delicious, it’s very nutritious, and it’s incredibly cheap to make. If you’re looking for a recipe that can be easily made on a large scale, has health benefits but won’t cost you more than $8 for 5 meals, look no further. That’s right, this can make you a sandwich for lunch for under $2, all while giving you essential nutrients. Here’s how you do it:

• Take two cans of tuna (this makes about 6 sandwiches- you can add or subtract cans of tuna as you like)- you can pick the brand and colour and whatnot. The essential part is that it be in a can, otherwise the consistency of this salad will go awry. Open the can about 3/4 of the way and press down on the lid to remove all the water you can (on that note, be sure to get tuna in water, as opposed to some sort of oil). Then open the can the whole way and continue pressing to remove all remaining moisture (you can either save this tuna water for your cat, for another dish (cooking pasta)… or give the drain a birthday present). Pour the dried tuna into a large mixing bowl and break it up a bit so that it’s not one large chunk.
• Add your spices: I’ve tried this recipe a good 5 times and tried adding a variety of spices, and have learned this is one where the ‘less is more’ principle comes into effect. My mother would add salt, pepper, and a large amount of nutmeg. After experimentation, I’ve found that this really is the triumvirate to go with… particularly the nutmeg. If you can grate it fresh, that’s wonderful- but if not, powdered will do just fine. Add as you like it- I add a teaspoon or so per can of tuna.
• Now add in the mayonnaise. Helm’s has a low-fat mayo that’s olive oil based, so go with that one if you can find it… if not, look for the healthiest one you can see, because this ingredient is the one real detriment to this recipe’s nutritional value. Sadly, though, for consistency, you can’t go without it. Add one soup spoon per can of tuna. Add each spoon one at a time and mix it in before adding the next. If you go a bit overboard on this one, you can compensate with extra potato pieces. You may prefer it to be drier or wetter- I’ve found that adding a bit less mayo is better than a bit more, for a drier salad will keep the pita crunchier (which I prefer).
• Take 3 medium-to-large-sized potatoes per can of tuna. Rinse these thoroughly, poke holes in them with a fork, and microwave them. You’ll need to microwave them for about 4 minutes at a time, flipping them after every 4 minutes, until they cave in lightly when you touch. This is one I can’t give an exact number for, but simply press down onto the potato lightly and if it immediately goes inward- a bit mushy, but nto so mushy that it loses its shape- then it’s ready.
• Rinse the potatoes in cold water so that your fingers won’t burn :) then either peel them (as my mother would do) or, if you enjoy potato skins, keep them on (just trim off any deformities or black areas). Then cut into cubes (doesn’t have to be exact) of approx. 1/2 inch x 1/2 inch.
• Mix the potato pieces into the tuna mixture, using a folding method- don’t smash the potatoes, you want to keep their form as much as possible. So try folding the tuna around and over the potato pieces until the potatoes are fully coated with the tuna-mayo mixture.

At this point you can eat it warm- it’s quite yummy- but for optimal results, refrigerate overnight and you’re set for the morning. It’s particularly yummy on toasted whole wheat pita as an easy and portable lunch!

It’s yummy, nutritious, and incredibly cheap. This recipe is, no doubt, a winner. (Thanks, Mom!) If you’re looking to add some crunch, you can go traditional and add some chopped chives, or go middle-eastern and add in some chopped pistachios. Drizzle a little honey on your pita to add a little sweetness, if so desired!

Important note: Eating an excess of tuna can lead to mercury poisoning. Try not to eat this more than 3x in one week to ensure good health! This will easily keep in the fridge for 1.5 to 2 weeks- even more so if you squeeze in a bit of lemon juice before adding in the mayo- so be sure to not overdo!

Time for yet another try at the apple tarte! This time, I decided to go experimental (next time, I’m definitely trying out the recipe in my new English cookbook). This tarte takes an Italian influence with a rather heavy citrus taste (lemon juice, zest, and orange juice), but keeps traditional elements (apples, cinnamon, nutmeg) to make a crumbly confectionary pleasure once settled within a gooey almond oil-flavoured whole wheat crust. Here’s the step-by-step surgical procedures:

• The filling is quite simple: zest a lemon rather vigorously, then add in its juice (roll it first to release the juices); add a tablespoon of orange juice. Sprinkle in a 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/3 tablespoon cinnamon (I went, as per usual, a bit overboard on the cinnamon- so 1/3 – 1/2 tablespoon is much safer than the whole one I put in!), 1 teaspoon nutmeg, and 3/4 tablespoon honey. Sprinkle in between 1/3 – 1/2 cup large black raisins (or sultanas, if you prefer… we were out at the time). Very thinly slice apples (I used 1 large braeburn and 3 smaller granny smith) and add to the mix. Cook on medium until the mixture becomes soft and a bit creamy- there should be a slight bite of crisp left to the apples.
• Make a crust- I followed David’s french tarte dough recipe again for the basics but this time made some changes: I used 1 cup organic whole wheat pastry flour and the “rounding” of the cup as white whole wheat flour. I also used all soy-butter natural spread, and put in 5 tablespoons of it instead of 6. I also added a teaspoon of vanilla extract and 2 teaspoons of almond extract.
• I cooked the crust for 6 minutes unfilled, then removed it from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes.
• Fill the crust with the apple filling, making sure to add it evenly and spread it so that the top is completely flat (or as flat as can be made)- then while that is sitting (and settling), thinly slice one more apple (or two, if needed) and arrange in the shape of a flower on top of the filled tarte.
• Brush the apple slices with a bit of melted soy-butter spread with a pastry brush, sprinkle on a tiny bit of sugar, and put back into the oven for 10 minutes (still on 410 degrees).
• Remove tarte from oven and brush on apricot jam/jelly evenly with a pastry brush. Put tarte back into oven at approximately 200 degrees for another 30-40 minutes (until crust edges are golden-brown and fully cooked (lift edges of tarte pan slightly to check- the filling will make this process take quite a long time)). It’s important to reduce the temperature so as to not char the apples on top.

This was an unnecessarily complicated way to do this, but I was experimenting with filling times based on different degrees of crust bakedness. To make this easier, you can fill the tarte when the crust is almost completely cooked (after being in the oven for 12-14 minutes) and either a) not add apple slices on top, or b) pre-cook them and then add them on top.

It was melting and coming apart last night when it was hot (the boyfriend took seconds despite the crumbliness) and had a number of distinct flavours. Some bites had a strong lemon flavour from the zest (I zested it roughly, so there are some large zest pieces in the filling) while others had a strong, biting almond taste from the crust. After a day of refrigeration, the flavours have melded together much more. It’s enjoyable either way, but makes an interesting study in the effects of time and cooling upon the flavours’ relationships… something worth looking into!

In any case, it’s a rather yummy tarte, and fun to make. Try it out with your own variants and see what works best for you! As Melissa on Food Network would say, the possibilities are endless! :)

Lastly, if you do follow this recipe as I did- using the soy-butter spread- this becomes a vegan-friendly dessert! No animal products or by-products. Cheers!