Chickpea & Jerusalem Artichoke Soup
When I was a kid my mother made this chickpea soup once a week during the winter. It doesn’t snow in the Negev, the desert of Israel but it is freaking cold. I always say that the winter in New…
7 Plant-Based Mains For Cold Days
Here are our most favorite, plant-based main-dishes for puffy-coat weather or semi cold swather weather. They’ll keep you warm, cozy and nourished. Except for the slow-roasted eggplant, the rest of the dishes are kid friendly (well, my kids and their…
Smoky Eggplant & tomato Mezze
My friend brought this mezze over for Shabbat dinner (Friday night). Her Kurdish-Iraqi grandmother used to make it. It’s teenager friendly. My 13 year-old son, who’s an adventurous eater but eggplant hater, loved it. You can serve with other mezzes…
Wintery Fruit Salad With Rosemary
I remember the night and the place where my husband and I discovered the amazing combination of fruits and rosemary. It was back in 2010 when we moved to Los Angeles from Israel and visited Sage Vegan Bistro in Echo…
Sweet Potatoes, Tahini & Tomato
As much as I love desserts and sweets, for some reason I am not a big fan of sweet potatoes on their own. They’re too intense for me. I love them only when their sweetness is balanced with acidic and…
Epic Baba Ganoush
According to Wikipedia, Baba Ganoush is a Levantine dish. According to me, it’s Shabbat at my mother’s. She has been making it every Friday for Shabbat dinner since I was a kid. Some people make their baba G with tahini…
Grain-Free Buns With Vegetables
I wonder what was more fun, making them or eating them. I also wonder where I adapted the recipe from. If you make these buns, do me a favor, don’t mention anything about gluten-free unless it is necessary. My husband…
Indian Style Okra & Zucchini
Even as a recipe developer I sometimes don’t know what to make for dinner. When nothing comes to mind I start rinsing and peeling the vegetables I have in hand. And while doing so something interesting happens. I start cooking…
Gluten-Free Yeasted Bread
Everyone should learn how to make bread even if they live above a boulangerie. When I made my first loaf at age 24, I felt the same sense of freedom and achievement I felt when I passed the driving test…
Indian Style Yellow beans
We, my immediate and extended family and I, live on side dishes. Instead of making a main dish with a side dish, we make two or three vegetables dishes with a condiment on the side or a bunch of mezzes…
African Stew with Peanut Butter
I adapted the recipe from Mark Hayman’s cookbook What The Hell Shall I cook? Mark adapted it from Hugh Jackman. I googled the recipe to see where it originally came from; Central and West Africa but I was wondering who’s…
Wild Rice With Vegetables & Herbs
I don’t like leftovers. I don’t enjoy eating them or storing them in containers, knowing they’ll likely end up wasted. And create more waste washing the container. My husband loves leftovers but rarely eats them blaming me for making fresh…
Moroccan-Style braised Vegetables & Chickpeas
This dish is based on a Moroccan fish recipe which my mother and grandmother used to make only on weekdays. God forbid if you made it for Shabbat dinner. Moroccan Jews can be very particular about weekday food vs. Shabbat…
Baked Nectarines, Peaches & Plums
I intended to make a fruit crisp but I accidentally over processed the nut mixture into a sandy mixture. So I mixed it with 1 egg to fix it and the crust came out chewy, like nougat. It was tasty…
Eggplant, Shallot & Scallion Stew
I know that many of you don’t like eggplants, but you know how I always say, “you must try it again and again until your palate is hooked.” Especially when the eggplants are roasted in a Dutch oven for an…
Oat & Yogurt Sandwich Cookies
When I am in Trader Joes I rarely stroll the cookies and sweets aisle. Some days – days when the universe seem to be an asshole – it’s a torture to pass by my favorite Maple Leaf Cookies or cookie…
Roasted Vegetables with Toasted Almond & Barberries
I have no problem planning trips, photo shoots and dinner parties but I suck at meal planning. I don’t know why. I find it ten times easier to cook with 5 ingredients than to plan a meal in advance. Most…
Potato & Caramelized Onion Salad
There are so many versions of potato salads. I love them all. One of my favorite is the potato and herb salad and this one. It’s humble, easy to make and delicious. The caramelized onions gives it extra sweetness and…
Leftover Rice With Caramelized Onions, Toasted Almonds & Herbs
I usually make this when I have leftovers of basmati rice. If you don’t have rice leftovers, it takes 12 minutes to cook basmati (but make sure you wash it thoroughly). You can make it with one type or bunch…
Smoky Butternut Squash, Eggplant & Bell Pepper Salad
I made this dish for lunch with friends and served it with hummus, tahini and burnt peppers and everybody loved it, except for my son, Leo, who doesn’t know yet how much he loves eggplants. Alex, my younger son, who…