Onion Tart

Well, hello winter! We have finally had some real snow and I'm loving it. Earlier this week, I went to Ingrid Michaelson's annual Holiday Hop show and it was snowing while we were waiting to get in - what's more perfect than that? I'm hoping that with the cold weather, the snow will continue. 

Last weekend, I was in the mood to bake some type of savory pie as I already had a pre-made pie crust in my fridge that I didn't want to go to waste. I came across this recipe for an onion tart that seemed very easy to make and didn't require too many ingredients. 

I started cooking down my onions, which unfortunately never caramelized. I'm not sure what happened because I cooked them for a long time to the point of where they should start turning that golden brown color, but apparently my onions just weren't feeling it. Once they were done cooking, I stirred in some plain yogurt, which I found online would be a suitable alternative for creme fraiche if you're not actually cooking it over high heat.

I filled the pie crust, gently folding over the sides and put on the egg wash to get a nice golden brown crust. The final product looked great and tasted delicious. The yogurt added a creaminess to the dish, while the thyme came through to add an earthy tone. The onions just melted in my mouth while having a nice crunch from the crispy crust. A very tasty tart indeed!

What's your favorite savory pie? Share your thoughts in the comments section!

Vanilla Chia Pudding

I'm so happy that we're finally feeling the sunshine in NYC! It's been a rough winter and I can't wait for spring and summer to get here. So many things to look forward to, especially the 10K I'm training for on Memorial Day! Matt and I have started working out again and we're trying to be very health conscious, but of course that doesn't mean I can get rid of sweets in my life completely. I just need to be a bit more crafty about what to make to satisfy my sweet tooth. I saved this recipe for vanilla chia pudding on Foodgawker a long time ago, but never got around to making it. Finally I decided to give it a try because it's both healthy and a little bit sweet!

This is probably one of the easiest recipes I've ever made. Three ingredients - vanilla almond milk, chia seeds and vanilla extract. How much easier can it get? After mixing up the ingredients, I put it in the fridge and stirred the mixture every 10 minutes for the first 30 minutes to avoid clumping. Afterwards, I just left it in the fridge overnight to thicken up and voila, you're done!

I left out the maple syrup so I could see what it tasted like without any extra sweetness. I think when I make it again, I would add in a little syrup because it wasn't as sweet as I would have liked. I did chop up strawberries and each bite was delicious from the sweetness of the fruit. There are so many options of fruit toppings - I'm thinking raspberries or mango next time. What would you mix into your pudding? Let me know in the comments section!

Black Bean Pita Pizza

Happy Tuesday to all of my lovely readers! I'm always looking for motivation and ideas to try out new recipes, but sometimes nothing speaks to me. I don't know how that happens when there are so many delicious recipes out there, but I guess when there are so many options, it's hard to know where to start! Luckily, I have a hungry husband who I can ask for suggestions when I'm stumped as to what I should whip up in the kitchen.

I recently had a recipe brain fart and Matt suggested pizza so at least I had a starting place! There are so many directions you can go in when it comes to pizza so I started combing through my options on Foodgawker. I came across a very appealing recipe for Mexican style pizza that uses a black bean paste instead of your typical sauce. Black beans, cilantro, hot sauce and cumin? Sign me up!

This black bean paste is AMAZING. You can just eat it on its own with tortilla chips and call it a day. The paste is about the consistency of hummus, but the bits of cilantro and warmth from the cumin really make this "sauce" delicious. I would recommend making this recipe for the paste alone! I only made half of the amount called for in the recipe, which still left some extra at the end - I certainly wasn't complaining about having a yummy snack the next day!

Since my grocery store was completely out of pizza dough (I know, I'm too lazy to make my own), I went with the next best option and bought pita! Who doesn't love an individual pizza that you don't have to share with anyone? After cooking the pizza in the oven with the black bean paste and pepper jack cheese, I topped it with some shredded lettuce, diced tomato, and sour cream (just for Matt since sour cream is not my cup of tea).

These pizzas were really delicious, primarily from the black bean paste. In case you didn't get it by now, you've got to make this paste! The gooey cheese and crisp, crunchy lettuce really make this a satisfying and quick dinner to make during the week. Let me know what you think!

Spiced Butternut Squash Soup

I really don't think I'm ready for the effects of daylight savings ending and the onset of late fall into winter. Do these sound fun to you? 

• Heading to work in the morning in mid 30 degree weather
• Leaving work at 5pm when it's already really dark out
• No longer being able to comfortably wear flats (although I'll continue to do that as long as I can stand it)

I don't think so! Despite my whining, I'm always looking on the bright side and that means I can look forward to making really comforting soups to warm myself and the hubby up! I bought a butternut squash at the farmers market this weekend so I knew I wanted to make butternut squash soup.

There are so many butternut squash soup recipes out there that I didn't know where to begin! Luckily, I remembered a recipe I found in the Meatless cookbook that I recently checked out from the library that sounded delicious - spiced butternut squash soup. I was able to find the same recipe online since it's a Martha Stewart recipe, which made me very happy since I really didn't want to type it all out.

That's going to be my soup very soon!

This soup has a lot of very satisfying, warm spices - turmeric, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. I didn't have any ground cardamom so I added some extra cloves and put in a bit of ground coriander. The combination of these spices smelled unbelievably good when I mixed them in with onions, garlic and ginger so I knew the flavors would be delicious once everything cooked down.

The soup turned out beautifully after puréeing everything together with my immersion blender. It was a great consistency, the perfect thickness. The spices are definitely assertive and pack a punch in every bite, which I really like. There's a little tartness from the apple and the subtle sweetness from the squash and carrot.

This is just the first of many cold weather soups to come! I love the feeling of warmth coming over my body with each spoonful. What's better than that? Let me know your favorite fall soup recipes so I can build up my soup reservoir!

My Favorite Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

Well, I think it's time to share another one of my all-time favorite recipes, especially since the fall weather is kicking into high gear. I actually had to bust out a legit coat today because the high was only in the low 60s! This weather just swooped in out of nowhere, especially since we had to use our air conditioner this past weekend because it got up to 80 and was way too humid for October weather.

In honor of fall weather and craving warm, delicious comfort food, I share with you my favorite recipe for creamy tomato basil soup. This is yet another recipe, like my turkey chili, that I, at one point in time, found online or in a magazine so I have no idea where the original source came from to give them credit. Sorry whoever provided this recipe to the world - I hope you know how much I enjoy it!

Some of my favorite recipes are very simple and pretty quick to make, just like this soup. The minimal number of ingredients in this recipe, which most are pretty common to find in the kitchen already, really allows each component to shine. I couldn't imagine omitting any of the ingredients as they all play an important part as the flavors meld together.

Mixing up my bowls for this photo shoot

I don't know anyone who doesn't love the smell of onion and garlic cooking in a pan. The release of smells that fill the kitchen (apartment too when you're living in NYC) are mouthwatering and definitely lead to the anticipation of the dish to come. This dish starts off in exactly that way and the final product is definitely worth the wait!

When you take your first spoonful, there are so many flavors and textures going on in your mouth! The bite from the onion that has cooked down most of the way, but still has a little crunch to it. The anise flavor from the pieces of basil. The chunks of diced tomato that pop in your mouth. And, most importantly, the creaminess of the soup as a whole from the heavy cream. This soup just wouldn't be the same without the cream - it really makes this dish and brings everything together. What better way to enjoy a generous bowlful of this soup than with a grilled cheese? I highly recommend it - you won't be disappointed!

My Favorite Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cans of tomato sauce (14 oz. each)
• 1 can of Italian style diced tomatoes (14 oz.)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Drizzle the olive oil, covering the bottom of the pot, over medium heat. Sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil, until tender. Stir constantly to prevent scorching. Add basil to the sautéed onions and garlic. Allow to cook for at least 5 minutes.

Add the 2 cans of tomato sauce and the can of diced tomatoes to the pot. Decrease heat to medium-low and cover the pot to allow the flavors to blend for at least 15 minutes. 

Add the heavy cream to the soup mixture and stir well. Raise the heat to medium and stir constantly until soup begin to boil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Lower heat to a simmer for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Quinoa and White Bean Veggie Burger

Do you ever have a craving for two completely unrelated foods and then figure out a way to put them together into some presentable dish? Well, that definitely happened to me last week. I was in the mood for a burger....and quinoa. Weird, right? I had been on a crazy quinoa kick a few months ago, but went into hibernation since then because it got a bit out of control.

After a much needed hiatus, my two cravings came together to produce this delicious quinoa and white bean veggie burger. This burger is loaded with a colorful mix of veggies - red bell pepper, corn and shallot - and a great source of protein from the cannellini beans and quinoa. I made a few modifications when cooking the quinoa, using oregano instead of thyme since I couldn't find any at my grocery store and using onion powder in place of garlic powder since I completely forgot that I ran out.

I combined all of the ingredients to make the patties (I used an actual egg instead of the vegan substitute since I had eggs at home), which were huuuuge! If these were beef patties, it would take a lot of effort to finish an entire one. Each patty felt like it weighed a few pounds!

I put all four in one pan together, but quickly realized they weren't going to get as crispy as I would like so I divided the patties between two pans. I got a much better crunch this way, which is a must!

My husband and I were both surprised at how delicious these burgers turned out to be! They were so moist and incredibly flavorful. The cannellini beans give the burgers a meaty texture while the quinoa gives the burger a crunch, especially where it's crisped up on the outside. The mix of veggies and combination of spices make the patties really flavorful and colorful. Served on a toasted bun with lettuce, heirloom tomatoes and some Sriracha mayo, you really can't go wrong!

Zucchini Corn Fritters

This week has shown the first signs that fall is on its way, which makes me happy beyond belief. The chill in the air as I head to work puts a huge smile on my face and makes me wish I had a hot cup of tea or hot chocolate in my hand. I have always loved fall for so many reasons - leaves changing color to the most brilliant yellows, oranges and reds you've seen, hot chocolate, apple picking (a new favorite fall activity since going for the first time last year), consuming anything pumpkin flavored (in my book, fall is officially here when Starbucks announces the pumpkin spice latte is back!), and of course, my birthday! 

Despite my excitement for the upcoming season, I was gifted with a beautiful bag of corn (11 ears - ahh, what to do with all of this corn?) and a few zucchini, a great showing for the last month of summer. I came across a recipe for zucchini corn fritters, which was a perfect use for both of these fresh ingredients.

It took no time to whip up the "batter" for the fritters - thank goodness for the grating attachment on my food processor! Other than the two star ingredients of the dish, only a few additional items were needed to season and bind the fritters.

I was worried they wouldn't hold once I formed them and tried to flip them in the pan, but luckily after they crisped up on one side, I was able to nudge them onto my spatula and get 
the other side cooking. 

These fritters were a good reminder of how tasty fresh summer ingredients can be. The freshness from the zucchini, the sweet pop from the corn kernels, and the slight saltiness from the Parmesan cheese really worked together to make a refreshing and light summer dish. I served the fritters with a really simple tomato salad - tomato wedges with some salt, pepper and olive oil. Yum!

Goat Cheese, Arugula and Lemon Pasta

I'm back! Matt and I had a whirlwind weekend with Adrienne, one of my good friends from high school and college, visiting us in NYC for the first time. We packed so much in - had one of the best meals of my life at David Burke Townhouse, a great day in Central Park, ran a glow in the dark 5K at Citi Field, brunch, bagels, shopping, and many late nights in the city. It was so much fun and I still haven't caught up on sleep.

I recently made a very light and flavorful summer dish that didn't require too much heat in the kitchen - no oven required! For this goat cheese, arugula and lemon pasta dish, I only had to cook pasta and peas and put all of the remaining components together. Beware - the recipe is in Dutch so you'll need to use the translate setting. I also had to make some manual conversions from grams to ounces, but this dish can easily use a little more or less of the ingredients based on your liking (I definitely added extra goat cheese because it's soooo good).

I've never been a big cheese person (I know, I know, blasphemy!), but over the past few years, I've come around to enjoying some varieties on their own. Usually I just like cheese that's baked into dishes or masked with other flavors - lasagna, pizza, quesadillas - but I never appreciated it as a star ingredient. I never even ordered cheeseburgers, just the basic beef patty, lettuce, tomatoes and pickles for me. My husband has played a huge part in my conversion to cheese and I have discovered my love for goat cheese, maybe even a bit too much for his liking. This dish makes great use of goat cheese, adding a creamy texture and salty bite.

This dish really balances out between the heartiness of the pasta, the pepper-y kick from the arugula, the fresh pop of the peas, the creamy, salty bite from the goat cheese, and the refreshing hint of citrus from the lemon zest and juice. I highly recommend this dish for an easy-to-make light, summer meal!

Cauliflower and Tofu Curry

I'm always trying to find recipes that I can make on Sundays so that we're set for lunch and dinner for most of the week. It definitely takes the stress out of cooking every night, especially when I have plans after work. I recently found a great recipe for cauliflower and tofu curry that makes a really big batch that lasts throughout the week.

This curry is really hearty with so many veggies - cauliflower, peas, carrots, onion, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, chickpeas - and packs a big punch of protein from the tofu. The coconut milk makes the curry really creamy and the curry powder gives a nice kick of spice without being overpowering.

I've made this curry twice in the past few weeks because it's so filling and flavorful. I definitely will keep this recipe in my regular rotation of Sunday dishes.

Maple Sweet Potato Cakes with Curried Greek Yogurt

At this point, you shouldn't be surprised that I have another sweet potato recipe to share. Luckily, this one is much different than the chili recipe I wrote about a week ago so at least I'm giving you some variety!

During my Foodgawker-ing, I came across a recipe for maple sweet potato cakes with curried Greek yogurt. This seemed like a great combo to me since I love sweet potatoes and I love making curries so why not put those two flavors together?

As the recipe suggested, I used my food processor to shred the sweet potatoes, which is always a great time saver. I don't know why my brain fails me sometimes, but I'll completely forget to use my food processor to chop/grate/shred veggies until after I've done it all by hand and then my husband will ask me why I didn't use that super handy appliance to do all the work for me. At least I didn't make that mistake this time!

While the cakes were cooking in the pan, I quickly whipped together the curried Greek yogurt. I happened to have plain yogurt at home, not Greek, so I went with what I had. The sauce was still creamy so I was satisfied with the final result - a cool, tangy and slightly spicy sauce.

The final product was delicious. The cake itself was sweet, with the addition of maple syrup to amp up the sweetness a bit more than what is naturally in the sweet potato. Since the cakes were served hot out of the pan, the cool curried yogurt sauce was a perfect pairing. The curry powder gave the yogurt a nice kick that wasn't too assertive, allowing the tanginess from the yogurt come through as well. All I can really say about this dish is yum!

Sweet Potato and Quinoa Chili

I love sweet potatoes oh so much. I really could eat them all the time, especially since there are so many great ways to prepare them. Baked, roasted, mashed, fried...now I really want to eat some! 

A few weeks back when I was on the search for a hearty sweet potato recipe, I came across one for sweet potato and quinoa chili. I know, I know, it's June and really hot and humid here in NYC, not the fall and in the midst of football season, but it sounded so delicious and quick to make so I went for it!

Boy, am I glad I did! My husband gave rave reviews on this dish, loving the heartiness from the sweet potatoes and kidney beans and the kick of flavor and heat from the mix of spices. And who thought that you could incorporate quinoa into a chili? Not me! It really soaked up the flavors and made the dish more substantial and...well, hearty. I think I've said that word way too many times in this post...but we are talking about chili after all.

I'll definitely keep this recipe in my repertoire to make again once the weather gets cooler (or if I have another summer craving for sweet potatoes and chili). In the meantime, I need to find another winning sweet potato recipe since I bought more on impulse at the grocery store today. Oh, the cook's constant search and journey in the kitchen. I love it!

Udon Miso Soup

Last week, I had this constant craving for udon noodles, which was kind of strange since I was dying from heat in my apartment. I kept thinking about the very simple, but delicious udon bowl I get at Panya, a great Japanese bakery in the East Village. Instead of trekking down to the village, I decided I would try and make some noodles myself!

I found an easy recipe for udon miso soup and got all of my ingredients together. When I was looking for the noodles in the grocery store, I couldn't find the fresh ones that are nice and chewy, only dried noodles. Of course, the following week when I was checking out, I saw them in the refrigerated section with the pre-made gnocchi and ravioli. At least I know for next time!

I added extra miso paste to the broth because I wanted it to be really flavorful. I started with the suggested amount in the recipe, but I felt like it was a little weak and I wanted a really intensely flavorful broth.

The combination of the noodles, chewy mushrooms, earthy spinach and broth lead to a very satisfying soup. I can't wait to make it again with the right noodles - it'll be even better! I want to make a dish with soba noodles soon as well. Really, I just want to make and eat all different Asian dishes - nothing wrong with that!

Scallion Pancakes

My new favorite thing to do on Saturday mornings is heading to the farmer's market in Union Square. I love getting up early on the weekends and getting a lot done before it's even noon. Walking through the square, perusing all of the fresh fruits, veggies, baked goods, plants - I love it! My constant purchase is always the 5 pound bag of mixed apples. Fresh apples straight from the orchard taste a million times better than what you get at the grocery store. At this point, I feel like I'm just depriving myself when I buy apples at the grocery store. I've become a bit of a farmer's market snob, it seems.

As a result of my inability to control what I buy at the market, I had a bunch of scallions to use before they went bad. I'm really trying to stop wasting food, which proves to be especially hard when recipes call for a tablespoon here, half a cup there. How do I use a whole bunch of scallions/parsley/cilantro before they die in the back corner of my fridge? Well, this time I wasn't going to let it happen! Once I started brainstorming what to do with these scallions, pancakes popped into my head!

It was really fun making the dough, which is actually the first time I've made any dough - sad to admit, I know. I used my food processor to do it since it has a dough hook and it made it so easy! Bread, you better watch out - you're next! Once I made the dough and started dividing it out, I realized very quickly that I don't have a rolling pin. Hmm, what to do, what to do? A wine bottle, of course! That's one of the things I love about cooking - there are always opportunities to be creative when things don't work out as you expect.

I got into a rhythm after awhile - roll out the dough, slather on some sesame/vegetable oil mix, salt, and green onions, roll it up into a long rope, coil it into a circle, and flatten it back out into a thin pancake ready to be cooked!

The pancakes turned out great - a bit crispy, chewy, with a prominent green onion flavor throughout. We had some sweet chili sauce on the side to balance out the sweet and salty flavors. Making these pancakes reminded me how fun cooking can be when you're doing something for the first time or just really getting your hands dirty and playing with your food.

Roasted Garbanzo and Vegetable Salad

Sorry readers (I think there are a few of you out there...) for the delay in blogging! I unfortunately have been out of commission since Sunday, injuring my lower back for the second time this year. Sunday through Tuesday were comprised of sleeping, self-medicating, and watching all of season 7 of How I Met Your Mother. After not cooking all week, I was itching to get back into the kitchen. 

Since I'm not going to be able to work out for the next few weeks as I recuperate, I'm trying to be even more mindful of what I'm eating (even though Matt and I did share a slice of Artichoke pizza and I had a soft serve ice cream cone last night) so I'll start today!

I had a bunch of veggies and herbs in my fridge that I needed to use before they go to waste, so this recipe for roasted garbanzo and vegetable salad only required three ingredients from the grocery store! The garbanzo beans (also known as chickpeas), red onion, red pepper and garlic were so aromatic as they were roasting in the oven. 

After they finished roasting, I added the dressing (which required me borrowing olive oil from my neighbor because today of all days, I run out without a back-up bottle in the pantry) and let the flavors meld together for 15 to 20 minutes. I couldn't pull myself away from the nerve-wracking Rangers - Hurricanes hockey game, especially since it ended with an awesome win and playoff spot for the Rangers!

Finally, I could tear myself away from the game and tossed the feta cheese and olives into the mix. I really don't think you can go wrong with any recipe that includes olives and feta. I think I'd feel comfortable adding them to my list of top ten favorite ingredients. Since I love olives of all shapes and size, I went for a mix of pitted olives instead of using canned black olives. My favorite grocery store, Fairway, has a fantastic olive bar with so many options, so I always go with fresh olives over canned.

I added the final touch - strips of basil - to the mixture and voila, dinner is served! All of the ingredients really balance each other - great texture from the chickpeas, saltiness from the olives and feta, a sweet note from the roasted red onions, and a nice fresh kick from the basil.

I can't wait for leftovers tomorrow, although I'm going to eat light because Matt and I have a date night at Dish West NYC, where we get to sample unlimited tastings from 40 restaurants, breweries, wineries, etc. More details to come once I recover from stuffing myself silly!

Thai Tofu Quinoa Bowls

Matt and I pretty much love all types of Asian food - Japanese, Vietnamese, Chinese - but I think Thai may be my favorite. Pad see ew - you really can't beat it. But this dish we made on Monday, Thai Tofu Quinoa Bowls, is one of the most delicious dishes we have had recently - and it's vegetarian! We have been consciously trying to eat less meat, just being mindful of what we're consuming, and it's really not that hard when there are so many great vegetarian and fish options out there. 

This dish combines quinoa (my new favorite grain!), tofu, and an incredibly flavorful Thai sauce. I really love the texture of the tofu, which has been diced into small pieces and roasted in the oven. It's a bit chewy, a bit crispy. And then there's quinoa. I just love the way they kind of pop in your mouth as you eat them. Add in some crunchy carrots and roasted almonds - how can you go wrong? Oh, and you can't forget what may be the best part of the dish that really brings it all together - the sauce! It's a little sweet from the sweet chili sauce, a bit nutty from the peanut butter, creamy from the coconut milk, and a nice tart kick from the lime juice. I will definitely be using the sauce in other dishes because it's so versatile.

I've never roasted almonds before, but it really makes a huge difference! Roasting brings out a beautiful golden brown color and a really strong nutty flavor. I definitely want to roast almonds for other dishes - ooh, it would be great on salads!

We squeezed extra lime after dishing it out and it really gave it an extra pop of flavor. I would definitely recommend the extra squirt of lime - it really freshens up the dish. Now, my next to-do - what dish can I use the rest of the coconut milk in? Curry? Ice cream?? Oh, the possibilities!