tuna patties recipe
Everyone this week was asking about my Mother's Day and I realized I completely forgot to recount the day for my dear readers!  After all, it has been tradition the last couple of years that my husband and bother-in-law...

minted sweet pea dip
In as much as I promote buying and preparing fresh produce, I really have no problem with using frozen sometimes.  Frozen vegetables are supposedly picked at their peak and frozen immediately, allowing less deterioration of nutrients.  I can’t, however,...

kiwi salsa recipe
Have you ever looked at recipe and thought there was an ingredient that could be omitted no big deal?  But then afterwards you realize that maybe it was there for a reason.  I swear I don't think I zested...

hot spinach artichoke dip recipe
I hope you all had a lovely Christmas!   Even though you haven't heard from me in a few days, I have been cooking up a storm nonetheless!  We arrived in NY to visit my family and between Christmas...

provençal goat cheese gratin recipe
If you don’t follow me on Facebook or Twitter, you might have been wondering this week if I fell off the face of the internet.  Believe it or not, I went back to Europe!  Except this time,...

gazpacho with avocado recipe
The kids are going back to school tomorrow, which means that my favorite season is UNofficially over.  No more lazy days and waking up late or reading for pleasure instead of for a test.  Back to making lunches at...

grilled panzanella recipe
We are alive and well on our European holiday, although I may need a vacation after we return home!  We met our friends in Berlin a few days ago and have been having the best time.   What a cool,...

nectarine and goat cheese salad with beet dressing recipe
If you don’t follow my Facebook posts or my tweets, you may have started to wonder if I got lost in a medieval castle somewhere between Germany and Russia.  Thankfully I didn’t, but our schedule has been so busy...

eggplant caprese recipe
Ok, my kitchen is more or less back together except for a few cabinets, and I couldn't be happier.  Never mind that every other room in the house has its contents spilled out into random hallways or in the living...

how to make pita chips
One of our favorite snacks is chips, whether it be tortilla or pita.  We enjoy them alone or more often as a dipper for spreads like hummus, white bean dip, tapenade, or my favorite -- "Greek...

chickpea burger recipe
If I had to pick one cuisine to stick with for the rest of my life, it would be a tough a call.  But I could easily live off of Mediterranean food every day.  I love the emphasis on...

kale pesto recipe
When I was a child, my family ate pesto all the time in the summer and early fall.  In fact, to me the smell of basil, garlic and cheese in the food processor is synonymous with warm, lazy...

egg-free avocado caesar salad recipe
I hope you all had a lovely Easter or Passover holiday.  Ours was so nice thanks to my mother-in-law took care of the meal and all I had to do was show up with desserts.  But now I'm ready...

spinach risotto healthy recipe
I had a bad day recently and what I really wanted to do was inhale a pan of brownies, but I had just published a post about how I beat a sugar addiction and I didn't want to...

creamy miso-ginger dressing
When I was at Whole Foods the other day, at I was amazed by the dozens of people cradling ingredients for the big Cleanse.  I can't imagine choosing to drink lemon juice and maple syrup mixed with cayenne pepper...

zucchini-potato latkes
So what does a nice Italian girl from New York make for her nice Jewish husband for Hanukkah?  Zucchini-potato latkes, of course!  Believe me, you don't have to celebrate Hanukkah to enjoy these little patties.  Grated potatoes mixed with...

creamy white bean dip with roasted garlic
Do your kids ask you for things at the last possible second even though they have known about whatever it is they need for weeks?  My husband does this, too.  "If you knew last Friday that you would need...

mini-empanadas with mixed greens
Well, like it or not, it's officially holiday season!  Even though there's so much to love about the holidays, I just wish it didn't all happen at once.  Do you ever have that feeling?  But one thing I truly...

zucchini-gruyere tart
Do you remember the first cookbook you ever bought?  Not counting the Calling All Girls Party Book in second grade, I bought my first cookbook with my own money in 1987, the year I graduated from high school.  My Aunt...

pasta alla checca
When people tell me they don't know how to cook, I know what they really mean.  They mean to say they don't know how to cook well off the fly or they don't have a deep repertoire of dishes...

hummus 4 ways
I was talking with my summer intern Hannah about how much I love hummus and how easy it is to make.  I think I have been making my own hummus since before she was born, but the last couple years...

grilled corn and black bean salsa
I live in Southern California, where the seasons are like salsas, mild or hot.  No one is complaining here.  I love living in a place where the weather doesn't pose a challenge -- isn't life challenging enough?  But I...

asparagus salad with feta, walnuts and mint vinaigrette
A great salad is part perfectly fresh and delicious ingredients and part winner dressing.  And the simpler the better.  But salad monogamy is not something I believe in.  There shouldn't be exclusivity with salad combinations and dressings.  A good vinaigrette...

swiss chard frittata recipe
The conversation went like this:  Daughter #1, "I don't like eggs." Me, "Did you change your name to Sam-I-Am?  You do like eggs." Daughter #1, "You're not funny.  No, I don't."  Me, "You like frittatas, so you like eggs." Daughter #1, "That's different." Really?...

guacamole and baked tortilla chips
Do not be under the misconception that because I teach people how to cook healthful food that I myself eat only whole foods all day every day.  Didn't you read about my 90/10 plan?  90% of the time I...

butternut squash, beet and apple skewers
I used to struggle coming up with an hors d’oeuvre that was tasty, fresh and didn’t contain tons of dairy.  Have you ever noticed the popular hors d’oeuvres that show up at every cocktail or dinner party – there’s...

muhammara (turkish red bell pepper-walnut dip)
I know those holiday parties are coming up and I thought another hors d'oeuvre post would be helpful.  My good friend Cheryl gave me this recipe.  She is an outstanding cook and everything she makes is a home run.  I...