Tag Archives | olives

Leafy Greek Salad with Marinated Almonds

This salad is one of those recipes that really fills the hunger void, tastes like you spent time on it but actually requires very little time or effort. And it represents the new (or at least current) me. My almost 7-month-old is everything you could ask for in a baby, except for the fact that she is taking an extended sleeping hiatus.

She is fine with it, not grumpy or eye-rubby (unlike myself who looks like a (suntanned) 175-year-dead zombie these days). But no matter how sleepy she is going down, every time I put her into her crib to sleep, day or night, she opens her eyes, smiles so big her face looks like it’s going to turn inside out and then she does the horizontal running man. It’s so cute, it makes me laugh every time, even though I’m crying (and very possibly sleeping) inside.

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Provençal Millet-stuffed Artichokes

Provençal Millet-stuffed Artichokes

I bought my first garlic press this week. It just seemed like the right thing to do after waving my cyber arms around enthusiastically about pulverized garlic and its health benefits a couple of weeks ago.

Provençal Millet-stuffed Artichokes

One of my Chef Instructors (1000 years ago) used to say that they were for housewives (she herself was/is a woman) but I now realize that most of my favourite cooks (and people!) are in fact housewives, so I am more than ready to embrace the garlic press. And nice to not have turmeric residue all over it when I want to use it (unlike my microplanes). So, in honour of earning my housewife wings, we are busting out a garlicky recipe this week to celebrate (don’t worry, you can tone down the garlic if this terrifies you).

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Artichoke & Asparagus Pasta with Butter Beans & Olives

At my house we have been eating a version of this ‘pasta’ every few days for the last few weeks. I don’t know if it’s the seasonal call from the artichokes (or the asparagus!) but something about it tastes very good right now.

It’s about this time of year that I regain my fresh artichoke processing skills and get reasonably fast again. It’s like any seasonal sport, after a year you might feel a little bit wobbly, but it always comes back after a bit of practice. If artichokes aren’t a sport you’ve tried yet, I encourage you to give them a shot. I have written instructions in the recipe section.

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Traditional Hummus with Toppings

I rarely make plain, classic, delicious hummus. I am easily excited and wind up putting extra veggies, herbs and spices into it, making it more interesting and more powerful in the health department (case in point).

So much so that now, when I am at a party or somewhere where there is classic hummus served, I get mildly obsessive about the delicious simplicity of it. I then promise myself that I will only make it that way from now on.

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