We just opened the windows in the house. All day long, the air conditioning has been working to keep out the dry November heat. It feels like we haven’t had a solid rain in years, and our jade plants that are usually plump and deep forest green are now wrinkled and starting to fall over. But as the windows let in the cool afternoon air, a comfortable breeze gently graces the house; outside, birds are chirping, discussing their evening plans in this last hour of golden light, while a siren in the distant city sets off packs of coyotes howling in the surrounding hillsides. As their chilling sounds climax, they all stop at once; it is quiet again, and this time the quiet lasts longer, and the house grows darker.
Tag: vegan
coconut cream and raspberry tart
Gluten-free diets are becoming more popular every day. We have friends and family members who cannot eat wheat, so it is our job to make sure our site has a variety of options for everyone, no matter what their restrictions are. Your gluten-free dinner guests will love you forever when they see you place hearty bowls of butternut squash risotto on the table, topped with crispy sage. Feeling spicy? Watch their eyes light up as a beautiful roasted tandoori cauliflower emerges steaming and fragrant from the oven. Whatever you decide, make sure to leave room for dessert, because you will absolutely not want to miss this dreamy coconut cream and raspberry tart from Alanna Taylor-Tobin’s gorgeous new cookbook, Alternative Baker. Filled with over 100 dessert ideas featuring gluten-free flours and truly stunning photography, it deserves a spot on every kitchen bookshelf and makes a perfect present for the holidays.
hoppin’ john with okra and tomato stew
Our trip to New York was unforgettable. We took a red-eye flight and left for the airport right after Ryan’s choir concert on Sunday night. The musical event took place in a historic church in Los Angeles, home to the second largest pipe organ in the world, and known for its dramatic architecture and colorful stained-glass windows. The harmonies were lush, the songs were moving, and a portion of the after-show snacks were provided by none other than yours truly! The night before, in between packing our bags, we somehow found time to make over two hundred triple chocolate fudge brownies (our most-requested recipe!) and one hundred fifty 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies (replacing the caramelized banana with sprinkle of flaky sea salt), and the multiple trays of baked goods barely fit in the car with all our luggage.
4-ingredient tomato sauce
Adam: I used to hate cooking. I didn’t like making a mess, I didn’t like having to clean up dishes, and I was never good at following instructions (not to mention my patience would expire after being in the kitchen for more than ten minutes). Before I met Ryan, if I was making pasta, I would buy a jar of pre-made sauce, a box of spaghetti, and nothing more—anything else would mean more time, more work, and of course more dishes. So I learned some handy tricks along the way. To save washing an extra pan, I wouldn’t even heat the sauce. Instead, I would just pour it over the hot noodles and let them warm it up. And to avoid washing a bowl, I would eat the pasta straight from the pan! Following this savvy method, the only things that needed to be cleaned were one pot and one fork! But things have changed: now I find washing dishes to be relaxing, and cleaning satisfies my obsessive-compulsive ways. Well, this easy 4-ingredient tomato sauce we are sharing today would have been completely acceptable if I had discovered it during my bachelor days, and it would have tasted much better than those fifteen-cent-packages-of-instant-ramen-filled dinners spent alone before meeting Ryan. This delicious sauce requires no effort, little cleaning, and is an ideal dinner for busy work days, yet elegant enough for a relaxing date night in.
masoor daal
We love throwing dinner parties. Sometimes we’ll prepare an entire evening based around a particular place in the world. Ryan grew up eating Cuban food, and we have often chosen that theme since we have so many wonderful family recipes. A typical dinner party menu would include black beans and rice, our 20-clove garlicky yuca, a side of crispy tostones, a pitcher of sangria, and the silkiest flan for dessert—a simple classic recipe that Ryan’s abuelita and mother would make when he was growing up. One night a few years ago, we were fortunate to be invited to a dinner party where our friend Sarosh cooked a feast of delicious Pakistani dishes from her childhood. Everything she prepared was so incredibly flavorful that we asked for a few of the recipes and have been enjoying them ever since. These cooler fall breezes inspired us to make this traditional spicy daal the other night and we realized that it had to be shared with the world. So with the permission of our dear friend, we invite you to try this authentic masoor daal, a simple South Asian delicacy here to welcome September with its spicy, warm, and comforting flavors and beautifully appropriate fall color.