Vegetables and Fruit

Healthy veggies that actually taste good.

A Fair Choice of Mushrooms

Sanura

Rustic Kale and Chanterelle Pie with Creamy Parmesan Cheese sauce

There was a choice to use any FungusAmongUs products (The name is laughable, but for mushroom lovers, like me, it sounds like pure joy). It was a tough decision, because I was too intimidated to pick the whole truffle. I wanted it, but it’s not nice to come off as a greedy food blogger. To ask for it means the recipe better compete with a top chef on the food networks. I tried writing recipes incorporating truffles, but they only needed simple (still delicious) mushrooms. For a long time, I was indecisive, because they’re many FungusAmongUs products to choose. The final choice was fair: flavorful dried chanterelle mushrooms and the exquisite truffle mustard.  Read more →

Show Thy Body Some Love

Sanura

Orange and Yellow Beet Salad with Kalamata Olives and Oregano

Ummmm… expecting chocolate? Yes, Valentine’s Day is this week. And, I delivered a salad with oranges and yellow beets. Ha… the ingredients aren’t aphrodisiacal, too. Well, I have other thoughts on my mind. Such as establishing a workout regime in my schedule. I shamefully stopping working out sometime in 2012, and I had the audacity to indulge in any and all pastries without guilt (ohhh… chocolate cake, where are you now?). Last year was an extremely good year, and we celebrated hard. The down side to the happy time, is a first-time in my life struggle with extra weight gain. And, it’s not a happy sight to see… or feel. Damn be anyone who tells me to love my body the way it is. I refuse to accept it, if I’m not working out.

Here’s my excuse: I had two separate foot injuries, dealt with a difficult cough the first few months of 2012, started a new job and running bored me. This week, I finally joined a gym. Instead of being mad at myself for stopping my workout routine, I ended my first day of class by saying, “I’m proud of you.”  Read more →

Star Anise and Orange Duck Salad: A Harmonious Lunch Bowl

Sanura

Star Anise Quinoa with Oranges and Smoked Duck Salad

As a graphic designer, I want my ‘brown bag’ lunch to taste and look visually delicious. Otherwise, I’m likely to toss it in the garbage and pay for a fresher option from a restaurant. Such actions eventually add up to plenty of regret and an empty wallet. Learning to pack lunches take time and practice. When lunch containers reveal a salad of crispy lettuce and colorful, layered ingredients or a fragrant soup waiting to be heated in the microwave, my wallet stays full.

The initial inspiration for packing lunches come from bento boxes with separate containers or compartments. The separate containers help maintain the freshness of the meal (good for hot and cold recipes). Another bento-style lunch is creating a meal in one bowl, in which the ingredients harmoniously enhance each other. Read more →

Twas the Night Before Kwanzaa

Sanura

Black-eye Pea and Wild Brown Rice Risotto, Seared Baby Lamb Chops and Saute Swiss Chard

Twas the eve of Kwanzaa, and all through our house, we will rest in peace after unwrapping Christmas gifts with glee. This year, my household of two starts a new tradition of celebrating Kwanzaa. Our Christmas tree is brought mere days from the 25th. I want it to stay fresh into the New Year when we celebrate the last principle, Imani. It’ll be our Kwanzaa Christmas tree.  Read more →

Butternut Squash Pie with Nairn’s Oatcake Cracker Crust

Sanura

Butternut Squash Pie with Nairn's Oatcake Cracker Crust
There are plenty of reasons to be thankful. For starters, I live in a non-flood zone in Brooklyn, and our lights only flickered three times during Hurricane Sandy. I woke up the next day with fresh running water and electricity. Other blocks, people lost their cars to fallen trees. In neighborhoods at least 20 minutes away, floods and 100 mph winds destroyed houses and businesses. Although, the hurricane was two weeks ago, the stories continue to increase about the elderly living in high-rise apartment buildings on floors 13, 15 or 18 without running water, heat or electricity. I overhead a conversation about a family’s agony of a finding new home—when everyone in the same, next or other community are looking for a new home to live, too. And, those same families who lost their homes are looking for new schools for their kids. Let’s not forget the holidays are upon us. So, here I am in one of the world’s richest cities, and families are still walking around with just the shirt on their back. Brooklyn is indeed a city of the have and the have nots…. Read more →