Category: Meatless

Project Food Blog: From My Heart

And so the sun has set on my participation in Project Food Blog, Foodbuzz’s first ever competition where 10 official challenges test the culinary and blogging skills of almost 2000 contestants, whittling them down until only one star remains…It was an honor and pleasure to compete in the company of so many talented bloggers.

Thank you all for your enthusiasm and encouragement. Thank you to the wonderful folks at foodbuzz and the esteemed judges Dana Cowin, Nancy Silverton, and Pim Techamuanvivit. Thank you to my friends and family for sharing the cooking, entertaining, and the excitement with me. It has also been great fun to meet so many terrific new food bloggers! Best wishes to the 24 bloggers remaining in the contest. The last three challenges are: Piece of Cake, You’re the (Restaurant) Critic, and The Final Post. All the remaining contestants are super qualified, we can’t wait to see who emerges as the winner. Bonne chance my friends!

PROJECT FOOD BLOG

Taste With The Eyes
Links to Seven Challenges:

Challenge #1 Ready Set Blog: What is TaStE WiTh ThE EyEs?

Challenge #2 The Classics: Classic Peruvian – Aji de Gallina

Challenge #3 Luxury Dinner Party: Modern Southwest

Challenge #4 Picture Perfect: quesadillas florales

Challenge #5 Recipe Remix Pizza: Asian Pizzette

Challenge #6 Road Trip: ELEGANT PICNIC BY THE SEA

Challenge #7 Video 411: Entertain with Gelée!

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

Your Friend,

Lori Lynn

Satisfying Stuffed Shells, Heart-Healthy & Vegan

Stuffed Shells just the way everyone likes them…filled with Italian Sausage, Spinach, Ricotta, topped with a homemade Tomato Sauce, Parmesan, and melting Mozzarella…but here, they are heart healthy and vegan! Please don’t stop reading if vegan is not your cup-of-tea, simply make this exact recipe and use the authentic ingredients instead of the substitutes that I am suggesting. Either way, this is one satisfying dish.

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The Chanterelles

Heart Healthy Chanterelle Scramble with White Truffle Oil

Cantharellus formosus, the Pacific golden chanterelle, from Oregon
gorgeous golden-orange color
a distinctly fruity aroma
a mild peppery flavor
funnel shaped with ridges instead of gills

  • Sauté finely chopped onion in olive oil.
  • Add cleaned sliced chanterelles, sea salt & fresh ground pepper, and sauté until lightly cooked all the way through.
  • Add minced garlic, cook for about a minute more.
  • Add a splash of dry white wine.
  • After the wine has completely evaporated, add egg beaters or beaten fresh egg whites.
  • When the eggs are barely cooked through, transfer scramble to a plate.
  • Lightly drizzle with White Truffle Oil and a bit more sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

The Chanterelles

When we were fourteen years old, my girlfriends and I formed a little song & dance group. We called ourselves The Chanterelles. After school and all summer long we would just practice in Wendy’s basement, for no particular performance.

We were so into Motown.

Knew every word to every Supremes song, my baby love! Went crazy seeing The Temptations in concert at the (long gone) Mill Run Theater-in-the-Round in Niles, Illinois. I was in love with Melvin Franklin, the bass singer with the Temptations. His signature line “and the band played on…” delivered in his deep deep sexy voice sent my fourteen-year-old self into fits.

(that’s Melvin on the far left)

Our Favorite Double Album:  Diana Ross & The Supremes Greatest Hits

Our Favorite Song to Sing Along:  Ball of Confusion by The Temptations

Our Favorite Dance Routine to:  I Want You Back by The Jackson 5

(artist shots borrowed from wikipedia here and here)

It wasn’t until almost a decade later that I found out that we had named our group after a fungus. 🍄‍🟫

Squash Blossom Tortillas

How to Make Squash Blossom Tortillas

The response to my quesadillas florales post last Sunday (here) has been overwhelming! Thank you so much for your kind words and enthusiasm! I thought I would show another variation of tortillas florales, by using a flor de calabasa (squash blossom). In addition to being quite pretty, the blossom does add a nice hint of squash flavor to the tortillas.

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quesadillas florales

quesadillas florales

edible flowers and herbs harvested from my garden this morning

rose, geranium, lavender, day lily, marigold, mint


Once again I turn to John Sedlar for inspiration. After a most enchanting lunch at his restaurant Rivera in downtown Los Angeles, we fell head-over-heels for his Modern Southwest Cuisine. The chef serves tortillas florales with “indian butter,” a spread made from avocado. Here, I take his idea to embed flowers into the masa and make decorated quesadillas filled with brie.

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