Red Salad with Tahini Sauce and Pomegranate Dressing

Red Salad with Tahini Sauce and Pomegranate Dressing

This is such a festive and yet simple salad that's especially fitting for the holiday season when you're likely to look for showy but not work-intensive dishes. The jewel-like pomegranate seeds that sometimes seem to be lit from within really liven up the dining...

read more
Elderberry Syrup

Elderberry Syrup

The cold and flu season is upon us once again, so I just made a batch of elderberry syrup to give our immune systems a boost, but also because it's plain delicious and we love it. Elderberries are a good source of Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, Iron and Potassium, and a very...

read more
Bacon and Contraception? Not the Same Thing

Bacon and Contraception? Not the Same Thing

A pro-lifer friend shared his concern with me this morning, asking if we should oppose bacon along with contraceptives, since bacon has been declared a Class 1 Carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. First of all, the processed meat and cancer...

read more
Fruitcake!!

Fruitcake!!

If you grew up hating fruitcake like I did, maybe it's time to recalibrate. We've heard the horror stories of fruitcake being used for doorstops, or regifted from year to year through the generations. This isn't your grandmother's fruitcake. And while this recipe is a...

read more
Loaves and Fishes: We Can Be the Miracle

Loaves and Fishes: We Can Be the Miracle

Sunday morning before Church I decided to stop by Twitter, where I saw this tweet from Grist: Can you have kids and still be a good person? The solutions like this one and would love to see it implemented all over. At the same time, giving the poor access to healthy...

read more
Coquilles St. Jacques on St. James’ Feast Day

Coquilles St. Jacques on St. James’ Feast Day

It's St. James' Feast Day, so this is what we had for dinner. It's the classic Coquilles St. Jacques, simmered briefly in vermouth and then enrobed in sauce and browned briefly in the broiler. A green salad, some bread, and perhaps some white wine to round off the...

read more
Black Bean Salad

Black Bean Salad

Another flexible recipe that will adjust to whatever you have on hand, but as always, the more colorful, the better-looking (for your eyes) and the better for your health. After you’ve got all that up there done, the rest is easy. Just toss, adjust seasonings, and...

read more
Boca Negra, or Black Mouth

Boca Negra, or Black Mouth

This, besides black forest cake, is my oldest child's favorite cake. I've only made it twice because she's actually allergic to eggs, so as you might understand, when I do make it, she savors every mouthful. And for good reason -- it's rich, and yet light, and...

read more
Addicted to Ayran

Addicted to Ayran

Ayran is my go-to drink this summer. It goes so well with Mediterranean food, or you can try it with Mexican or anything that has a bit of a kick or bite to it. Ayran is easy to make too, just three ingredients: yogurt ice water salt I start out with a 1:1 ratio with...

read more
Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Fresh Figs

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Fresh Figs

Was getting a bit tired of our usual veggie salads, and needed more vegetarian ideas, specifically those with more of a Mediterranean bent, so I got me Yotam Ottolenghi’s Jerusalem cookbook. I cannot wait to try ALL the recipes. Okay, maybe 99%. I’m not a leg-o-lamb...

read more
Shrimp Pad Thai

Shrimp Pad Thai

This is the dish I turn to when I need some Thai comfort food. I've adapted it from Chez Pim's recipe from years ago. It was the first pad thai recipe I tried that actually worked for me and so I've kept it as part of my regular arsenal and whip it out when cooking...

read more
Fresh Spring Rolls

Fresh Spring Rolls

It's spring!! The perfect time to make spring rolls! These can be made vegetarian simply by omitting the shrimp or substituting tofu. Or, you can add on more meat like barbecued pork, grilled chicken breast, and the like. The vegetables also are very flexible. What...

read more
Fried Mini Spring Rolls (Gluten-Free)

Fried Mini Spring Rolls (Gluten-Free)

There are many many recipes for spring rolls, fresh and fried. This is a simple one I prepare for the kids when they are craving something small and crunchy. I like eating these wrapped in lettuce leaves and dipped in nuoc cham. It can be served with other dishes as...

read more
John Lillis and Lifeboat Coffee

John Lillis and Lifeboat Coffee

Typing this on a (still!) chilly spring morning while sipping John Lillis' Lifeboat Coffee. Yum!! I first heard about Lifeboat Coffee through Facebook friends, and as we're always on the look-out for pro-life businesses to support, I added Lifeboat to my shopping...

read more