Characteristic: vegan
Winter Squash and Barley Soup with Sage
This is simple, so satisfying and as with many soups, improves on day two and three and freezes well. Make a big pot and enjoy. The beans are entirely optional. I often have cooked beans on hand and they add flavor and texture but the soup is fantastic without as well.
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"Kimchi" Salad
This dish uses many of the fermented Korean cabbage dish ingredients but without the fermentation. Napa cabbage is traditionally used to make kimchi but I prefer savoy or regular green cabbage for this dish. If you have Napa cabbage, you can make the same dish but only blanch the cabbage for about one minute.
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Miso and Cider Vinegar Roasted Winter Vegetables
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Miso Roasted Kale and Mushrooms
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Chicory (Sugarloaf) Salad with White Beans and Potato Croutons
This is my idea of good wintery salad. Savory with a hint of bitterness from the escarole which is rounded out by the crispy potatoes and creamy beans. Adapt as you see fit; sub crispy breadcrumbs or toasted nuts for the potatoes, skip the bacon, etc.... Read more »
Escarole, Leek and Potato Soup with Parsley "Pistou"
This is a pretty, green-flecked soup topped with more green in the form of the parsley garnish. Pistou is sort of a French version of pesto (usually without nuts) made with basil and used to top soups. This lemony parsley version brightens up this simple, creamy (no cream) soup.
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Roasted Celery Root and Mushrooms with Parsley Vinaigrette
Roasting celery root together with mushrooms (most any kind) and a little white wine is delicious as is but bright and more beautiful dressed with a parsley-rich vinaigrette.
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Gingery Coconut Milk Vegetable Soup with Basil
This a fragrant, simple and delicious soup. It's begging for adaptations: add chicken or use different vegetables such as summer or winter squash, sweet peppers, snap or snow peas, green beans. Add lots of cilantro at the end instead of the basil. Spice it up with chilies or green curry paste. Serve it over rice for a complete meal.... Read more »
Beets with a Little Vinegar
Earthy, sweet beets love acidity. There is practically no simpler preparation than this and if the beets are good, this will be delicious.... Read more »
Broiled Eggplant with Tahini, Miso and Tamari Dressing
This is a quick, savory side dish. I added a few onions to the roasting pan this time. You could add summer squash, peppers and even tomatoes if you'd like. The dressing is quite strong and you'll likely not need all of it so use it on any grilled meat or tofu or on cold noodles.... Read more »
Charred Zucchini with Zhoug and Feta
Zhoug is an herb and green chile sauce/paste from Yemen but popular in Israel as well and other parts of the Middle East.
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Baba Ganoush
This smoky dish of roasted eggplant, pureed with tahini, garlic and lemon is one of my favorite dishes. It's good with/on most anything. And if you have a decent broiler you can have this on the table in about 30 minutes. If your broiler is no good you can just roast them at high heat. You can alternatively cook the eggplants on the barbecue and get a nice smoky flavor.
You can also use summer squash in stead of or in combination with eggplant for a delicious variation, using the exact same process though you can of course skip the peeling part.
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Sweet Onion and Summer Squash Gratin
This is a very quick, fragrant and delicious side dish. You could dress it up with buttered bread crumbs, change the herbs, add thin slices of eggplant or adapt it in other ways to suit your taste/what you have on hand.
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Vegetable Pilaf with Carrots, Greens Beans and Summer Squash
--Inspired by Seductions of Rice by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid
Indian pilafs are made by sauteing onions and some spices, then adding rice and more vegetables (in this case) and sauteing again before adding liquid, then covering and cooking and then finishing by steaming, off the heat. The result is a beautiful, deeply flavored, fluffy dish that can stand on its own or be a robust side dish.
Feel free to experiment with different vegetables or just use a single vegetable.
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Celery and Parsley Salsa Verde, II Versions
These versions of my standby Italian parsley sauce have more crunch and are almost salad-like but pretty intense. They're fabulous with fish, beef or lamb, stirred into cooked beans, any kind of boiled or roasted vegetable, on crusty bread with soft cheese. . .
The second one, above right, simply includes a bit of mayonnaise which gives it a resemblance to tartar sauce and turns into a superb creamy version for fish or potatoes or as a dressing for potato salad, etc.
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Shelling Peas with Herbs and Tahini Dressing
This is bright and earthy at the same time and beautiful to boot. Switch up the herbs based on what you have/like. Dill would be good as would cilantro.
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Zucchini and Orzo Salad with Dill and Coriander
This is a simple, fresh and easily adaptable salad. I really like the combination of dill and summer squash and a little carrot with the tangy vinaigrette. The toasted and roughly ground coriander seeds are a very nice addition. You can also easily scale this up or down and vary the ratio of orzo to vegetables to suit your taste/needs.
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Napa Cabbage with Cider Vinegar and Toasted Almonds
Only three ingredients in this simple dish. The crunch and depth of the deeply toasted nuts is critical. You could certainly try other nuts or seeds--I imagine walnuts and pine nuts would be good and probably also hazelnuts.
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Crispy, Spicy Broccoli with Capers, Garlic, Parsley and Lentils
There's so much flavor in this broccoli. You can skip the lentils and just serve it as is or toss it with pasta or rice or whatever you might have. You can also skip the anchovies for a vegan dish.
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Braised Fennel with Capers, Garlic and Tomatoes
This is richly flavored and quick to make. Enjoy it with a few salads for a light dinner or alongside any meat or fish or egg dish.... Read more »
