Toasted Coconut Brownie

So. I've been entirely out of commission and fighting flu-like symptoms since late Monday night. I'm completely desperate to share my early-week veggie curry recipe with you, but every time I've tried, my stomach churns. And it's awfully depressing, because it was incredible! My body launched itself into fever and chills 12 hours after we ate it (I promise, not as a result of the curry, more a result of preschool germs)...and well, you can imagine how distant I'm trying to keep myself from curry memories now. However, I'm (almost) just as excited to share my brownie recipe with you! You'll forgive me, right?

Do you want to know my ridiculous fever-breaking secret? I do the opposite of what I'm always told and have a chocolate milkshake and within hours, my fever breaks. It works every time. There is no medical or scientific basis for my claim. It's my thing. Do you have a "thing" that helps you heal?

In regards to this brownie, please prepare and eat with heed. No self-loathing thoughts about "deserving it after a bad day", etc. When we do that, we end up eating a lot more than originally intended and end up HATING the brownie (is it really the brownie we feel such upset towards?) To me, a craving is a result of a vitamin/mineral deficiency, hormonal changes or mental. Everyday "cravings" should be closely examined. I think that wanting something sweet and calling it a craving changes it from a "want" to a "need" in our minds and immediately helps us forgive ourselves for indulging. Please enjoy this brownie in small squares and slowly. Do not make my brownie your punishment. In other words, please enjoy this on a good day, not just on a bad day. Enjoy this brownie because you're fabulous.

During our meandering of Asheville recently, we made ourselves comfortable here: http://frenchbroadchocolates.com/articles/the-lounge, and ordered a variety of different things. Shortbreads, macaroon brownie, rose-infused homemade house soda. I LOVED the macaroon brownie and have done my best to recreate it. My recipe lacks the TLC of ANY dessert created in a chocolate lounge-but will at least substantiate until you (or I) can enjoy the real thing.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir 2 eggs, 1/4 a cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract, 1/2 a cup of butter, melted. In separate bowl, sift 3/4 cup of Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Chocolate and Cocoa, 2/3 cup of flower, 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder, a pinch of salt, 1/2 a cup of shredded coconut and 3/4 cup of milk chocolate chips. Combine ingredients from both bowls into one bowl. Stir. Spread into a greased 2 quart pan. Top with a generous amount of coconut and bake for 35 minutes, or until coconut is perfectly golden and crunchy. Enjoy!

So as I'm sitting here, before the masses awake, in almost darkness with a mug of green tea, my thoughts are flowing. Doesn't that always happen the day that we're recovered from feeling sick? You feel like a superhero! The 3 most recent novels that I've read have been written by authors from London, where their stories also take place. One term I have noticed in all three books is "early days", and I love it. Women refer to their early pregnancy as "it's early days", and couples refer to early relationships the same way, "oh well, you know, it's early days". I've never heard a term that mitigates such straightforward + cavalier feelings at the same time, have you? All you're required to say is "it's early days" and the crowd nods in a quiet, contemplative understanding. I adore it. Do you ever pick up terms in books or on TV and integrate them into your daily language? I don't often, but this time I'm going to try :) Have a wonderful day. And good morning!

Roasted Cauliflower Pasta

Are you a glutton for garlic, like I am? I made this pasta dish last week but thought it would be MOST suitable for a Monday morning blog post because it's EASY, delicious and PERFECT for a weekday dinner. Because of the ease involved, I have to admit I was surprised by its complete deliciousness. I'm guilty of forgetting that simple can be divine.

Roasted Garlicky Cauliflower Pasta

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut a head of cauliflower into small, bite sized pieces and toss in a bowl with olive oil and a teaspoon of kosher salt. Spread evenly on baking sheet and cook until golden brown (I like to roast vegetables until a dark brown...do you?) and remove from oven.

Cook whole wheat pasta, al dente...spaghetti, penne, anything will work!

Toss cauliflower into pasta with the juice of a whole lemon, 4 tablespoons of fresh thyme, chopped, 3 large garlic cloves, minced, a pinch of kosher salt, pepper and 3 ounces of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

I think the combination of cauliflower perfectly caramelized by the olive oil and salt, lemon juice and fresh thyme took this pasta dish to a level separate from your typical weekday pasta night, but was just as simple.

Serve with a fruit salad or vegetable salad. We served with this honeydew melon to offset the saltier-flavor of the pasta. We found a honeydew melon so ripe, it was like eating candy. Perfection!

How was your weekend? Ours was full of leisurely family coffee dates, lots of yard work, exercise, wine and relaxation. My weekend also included some work replicating a Macaroon Brownie that I had at Asheville's Chocolate Lounge (successfully!), which I'll share later this week. We also had to miss a party held for my Sister-in-Law and future Brother-in-Law (boohoo, we hate missing parties!) as we prepared for our Labor Day Travels. Did you do anything fun this weekend? I would love to know. Have a wonderful week!

Tomato Cobbler + Lentil Salad

Last night I made comfort food! A lot of things I make have a relative amount of comfort involved (I feed a man a vegetarian diet, I must make it hearty!). The only credit that I can take for the Tomato Cobbler recipe displayed below is that I found it in Sept 2012 Food Network Magazine, needed it, and made it! I also made a lentil salad (entirely my own creation), which I'll also share below. Have you noticed that I serve a salad with every meal? That's my own personal goal.

Tomato Cobbler done right.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/tomato-cobbler-recipe/index.html

The best part of borrowing recipes is that as I'm recreating something previously created, I become lost with my thoughts, fulfilling the motions of measuring according to the paper until the steps are completed. But really, my mind is completely somewhere else. When I'm making something new and using trial and error, I need to maintain a general level of focus on the food.

Yesterday afternoon, both of my babies were sound asleep (thank you, dual naps!) and I began to think about the nature of people. I love people as much as I love food and spend hours of my day and night thinking about the way that people work. This infatuation with human nature undoubtedly drew me to my profession as a therapist. And when you stop working as a therapist, you never really stop working as a therapist.

I was making a mental list including the people in my life who are the same on the inside as they appear to be on the outside. There is so much to be said for authenticity, and every best friend that plays a role in my life has a great level of it. It only takes me a few moments to understand when someone is projecting something differently on the outside than they are feeling (chaos, generally) on the inside, and it always makes me sad but weary. And it almost always makes relationships complicated. What are your standards for friendship? Who are you willing (and unwilling) to invite into your life? What kind of friend are you? The helper, the follower, the leader, the listener, the avoider?

Relationships are the most important thing in my life and I am so happy (and so lucky) to have so many real ones. I have a family and a family of friends. My belief is that its always important to check in with ourselves and make sure that we are being the same kind of person that we expect other people to be. Our obligation to ourselves is to be (or become) the kind of individual that we respect and to have (or seek) attributes that we admire in others if we want to live a wholesome life and attract authenticity into our hearts. Be the friend you want to have. And enjoy the lentil salad posted below (make it for your dear friends and hug them today for being dear to you-life is short and true love is rare).

Lentil Salad with Cumin Dressing

Cook 1/2 a cup of lentils and cool. Mix the juice of one lemon, 2 garlic cloves, minced, a splash of olive oil, chopped fresh parsley and a pinch of kosher salt into lentil. Let sit to enhance flavors.

Combine mixed greens, diced red peppers and feta cheese.

Put an ice-cream scoop of compacted lentils on top of salad (to make it look beautiful)

Drizzle with dressing made from the following: 1/2 cup of olive oil, 2 teaspoons of dijon mustard, 2 1/2 tablespoons of cider vinegar, salt, pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and 1/2 a teaspoon of minced garlic.

Cajun Couscous "Crab" Cakes

I created this dinner using the art of substituting crab meat with artichoke hearts and couscous to make "crab" cakes (sans crab). If you like cajun food and a little spice, you will love these. This recipe makes 6 vegetarian cakes.

Combine 1/2 a cup (measure uncooked) israeli (pearl) couscous with 4 cups of water, a pinch of salt and 2 thyme sprigs in small pot. Bring to boil and then simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and drain.

Combine 2 teaspoons of stoneground dijon mustard, 1/2 cup of greek yogurt, 1/4 cup of sweet relish, 1/4 teaspoon of paprika and 1/8 teaspoon of ground red pepper in bowl.

Save half of yogurt mixture to top "crab" cakes. Refrigerate.

Mix second half of yogurt mixture with 8 oz of artichoke hearts (diced roughly but in small pieces), couscous, half of 1 red bell pepper, 1/4 cup of chopped green onions, 1/4 cup of chopped celery, and a pinch of black pepper and sea salt.

Brush baking sheet with olive oil. Spoon mixture into 6 equal sized parts and pat into cake form. Place each cake on baking sheet. Refrigerate for one hour to enhance flavors.

Bake at 500 degrees until brown and crispy, roughly 10-12 minutes on each side. Mix leftover yogurt combination well and dollop on top of "crab" cakes.

I served my Cajun Couscous "Crab" Cakes with 3 sweet potatoes mashed and mixed with a pat of butter, 1/4 cup of greek yogurt and a pinch of salt. I also cooked 3 cups of spinach on medium-low heat with a tablespoon of olive oil, a teaspoon of butter and 3 garlic gloves, minced, until wilted.

This combination of colorful, beautiful food was the perfect trio for my family. I get a deep feeling of satisfaction when I serve my family healthy foods and they enjoy the way they've been prepared. Do you feel this way? I hope that something about this creation catches your eye, and that we can share it its preparation as you choose to make it, too. Let me know what you think.

Cherry Vanilla Pancakes

Cherry Vanilla Pancakes

This is what's brewing in our kitchen this morning...what's brewing in yours? We're up early with the sunrise today and decided to make cherry vanilla pancakes. For a special treat, Cloveleigh got an espresso mug of "cherry milk" to complete our early morning girl time. This recipe is so aromatic! In the photograph, notice the sweet two year old hand stirring the flour.

To make 8 pancakes:

Combine 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in one bowl.

In a second bowl, combine 3/4 cup of milk (we used vanilla almond milk...yum!), 1 egg (if you prefer), 1 tablespoon of butter (melted), 2 teaspoons of honey and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Combine both bowls into one. Let sit for 15 minutes.

Pit 1 1/2 cups of cherries and chop roughly. Stir into batter.

Heat skillet with butter, pour medium sized pancakes, flip, and serve when the perfect shade of black cherry brown. We serve with real maple syrup and butter. These would also be great with a sprinkle of confectioners sugar.

Creamy Avocado Pasta

The Perfect Pair: Avocado Pasta and a Simple Summer Salad

I started to see recipes for avocado pastas pop up everywhere I looked...and I immediately knew that I needed to invite this combination into my life. Pasta? AND avocado? The perfect storm, I determined. Who doesn't (at least secretly) enjoy a thick, creamy pasta sauce? I immediately set out to create a healthy, dairy-free, version of my own.

Avocado Pasta

Combine 3 avocados, 2 garlic cloves, the juice of one lemon, 2 teaspoons of olive oil, 1/4 cup of pesto and fresh basil leaves in your food processor. Process until smooth. Let sit as long as possible at room temperature to enhance flavors. Mine sat for 2 hours before use.

Cut 3-4 roma tomatoes into eighths. Toss on a cookie sheet with a glaze of a combination of olive oil and minced garlic. Bake at 300 degrees for 45 minutes.

Cook whole wheat fettucini or whole wheat spaghetti al dente (7-11 minutes)

Stir tomatoes, avocado sauce and pasta together until all sauce and tomatoes are distributed evenly.

Serve immediately!

I paired my avocado pasta with a simple summer salad that consisted of:

romaine and spinach combination (to enhance nutritional properties)

caramelized onions (sweet onions cooked on low-medium heat with a touch of butter and brown sugar for 25 minutes, refrigerated to be added at a cold temp to salad later)

fresh tomatoes

fresh strawberries

roasted corn

fresh carrots

fresh radish

chickpeas

cucumbers

We used a champagne vinaigrette but any light, summery type of dressing will be divine.

Please let me know what you think if you decide to make either (or both) the avocado pasta and summery salad. I loved the alfredo-like consistency of the pasta sauce but with all of the added health benefits by using tomatoes, lemon, garlic and avocado instead of cream and cheese. Let me know what you think!

Veggie Sandwich

A beautiful sandwich-to warm your belly and your heart

This is a recipe that I've created for a simple, rustic sandwich. It can be made easily and served hot or cold.

My favorite way to serve this is warm, on crunchy, rustic fresh bread with rosemary from my garden. This sandwich is easily made in mass quantities (the huge heirloom tomato I used in these photographs made 7 sandwiches!)...I just love tomato season!

One large, beautiful heirloom tomato-slice and sprinkle sea salt and coarse ground pepper, generously.

One large, ripe eggplant. Slice, spread on pan and drizzle olive oil on top-roast @ 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until brown around edges.

Combine 4 oz of goat cheese, a can or jar of artichoke hearts (with liquid), half a cup of grated parmesan cheese and a splash of balsamic vinegar in blender. Blend until it becomes a thick spread.

Toast thick slices of warm bread.

Arrange components in sandwich form accordingly and ENJOY! Add fresh rosemary or basil if you have on hand.

I think that this would be wonderful if served with a cold cucumber/avocado soup, or a simple summer salad. I hope you have a chance to make this soon and enjoy it as much as I did! Share your thoughts with me, if you like. I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday.