Spiced Roasted Cauliflower with Walnut, Cilantro, Mint

Spiced Roasted Cauliflower with Walnut, Cilantro, Mint

Spiced Roasted Cauliflower
Walnut, Cilantro, Mint, Kaffir Lime, Pink Peppercorn

I’m channeling my inner Ottolenghi, move over steamed white cauliflower. The king of vibrant vegetable dishes, Chef Ottolenghi often chooses a single ingredient then enhances it with various herbs, spices, and other exotic flavors. Here – mustard, fennel, and cumin seeds are toasted in olive oil. Then turmeric, hatch chile powder and dry mustard are whisked in. Cauliflower is tossed with the spice mixture and roasted until it begins to caramelize. Roasted walnuts add nutty rich notes. A huge handful of cilantro and mint add a fresh bright herbal character. Kaffir lime shards and crushed pink peppercorns bring the magic. The humble cauliflower side dish, is now kicked to the curb and dressed to kill…

Spiced Roasted Cauliflower Recipe

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Cocktail Nibbles Inspired by The Late Great James Beard

Cocktail Nibbles Inspired by James Beard
For the Civilized Tradition of Cocktail Entertaining
Nibbles Inspired by The Late Great James Beard

well washed down with the drink of your choosing
flavored with good will and love and understanding

Simple and Sublime. Tomato and Onion. Plus my favorite cocktail, and yours. He wrote the first major cookbook devoted exclusively to cocktail food and drink in 1940! His entertaining advice is pithy, precious, and ultimately timeless. These bites are not meant to satiate, but to leave one hungry, hungry for what comes next…

“The food, no matter how simple, should show some degree of imagination,” wrote James Beard, Dean of American Cookery.

featuring

Mini Sweet Onion Sandwiches with Mayo and Fresh Herbs
and
Mini Heirloom Tomatoes Dipped in Absinthe and Kosher Salt 

When James Beard died at 81 on January 21, 1985, he left a legacy of culinary excellence and integrity to generations of home cooks and professional chefs. His name remains synonymous with American food. – from James Beard Foundation

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Sushi School

saba matsumae
Saba Matsumae

Andy Matsuda became a master sushi chef just when sushi’s popularity began to take off around the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Up until that time, the palates of most Americans had not reached the point where they could fathom eating raw fish, no matter how fresh it was.

With the advent of fusion sushi cuisine, i.e. the California Roll, Western tastes became acclimated to sushi. Thirty years later, the traditional Japanese cuisine grew into an industry that grossed $2 billion in annual sales with sushi restaurants spreading to nearly every major city in the United States.

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Thyme & Mint Roasted Eggplant with Arugula, Spinach, Tomato and Yogurt Sauce

Thyme Roasted Eggplant Salad

Thyme & Mint Roasted Eggplant

Japanese Eggplant, Arugula, Spinach, Tomato
Garlicky Yogurt Sauce, Arugula Flowers Garnish

While the presentation may look a bit familiar, the dish itself is unique.  It is inspired by one of my all time favorite chefs ~ Yotam Ottolenghi. His fans will recognize the Japanese eggplant presentation from the cover of his innovative vegetarian cookbook Plenty, where he adorns them with pomegranate arils and za’atar. Try Ottolenghi’s dish in autumn when pomegranates are in season, but try my version this summer with bursting ripe tomatoes and vibrant fresh greens.

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Farmer Turns a City Dump into Urban Farm

FARM LOT 59

Local Farmer Turns a City Dump into a Charming Urban Farm

Long littered with car bumpers, scrap metal and trash, a land plot in Long Beach, California has been transformed into an enchanting petite urban farm. There, everything is organically grown and tended to the old fashioned way— by hand, without the use of chemicals or pesticides.

FARM LOT 59

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