Creamy, salty, umami bomb which makes a really exciting dinner in about 15 minutes. I made my own udon for this dish but you can easily use store bought udon or any pasta noodle (fettuccine would work just as well honestly). You can use a variety of mushrooms or just regular white ones if that’s all you have on hand. My only suggestion would be to start light with the miso so that the dish doesn’t get overly salty.
Category: make ahead
Recipe: Butter Chickpeas
Despite the title this is actually really easy to make a vegan recipe by replacing the butter with coconut oil instead. You can finish it with some almond milk if you like also. I like to mush half of the chickpeas with a potato masher to get a bunch of different textures and also I think it thickens the recipe without cornstarch. I might try adding more vegetables to this recipe in the future but I really liked its simplicity.
Butter Chickpeas
Adapted from The Iron YouRecipe: Banana Bread
It couldn’t be simpler to make banana bread and it’s what nature intended for all those bananas you seem to end up having leftover every now and then. Perfect with butter, jam, or a smear of cream cheese or even just by itself this recipe takes about 10 minutes to come together in a single bowl and the results are great. Add in coconut flakes, nuts, or even some chocolate chips to take it to the next level.
Banana Bread
Recipe: Vegetable Soup
I suspect that the reason I loved this soup so much is because I used homemade stock but sometimes a simple vegetable soup on a cool day is just exactly you need. This one is built with simple vegetables and flavors without any noodles or rice so you just get 100% vegetables all the time (and I suppose some beans too, if you’re feeling it).
Continue readingRecipe: Manicotti
I recently learned that the food I thought was manicotti (back in New York) was actually just cannelloni. The difference is subtle but cannelloni is cylinders of pasta stuffed with soft cheese and other things and manicotti is actually soft crepes stuffed with soft cheese and other things. I was a little intimidated to make crepes but actually the process is quite easy and while I haven’t mastered the single hand flip, it isn’t too bad. The crepes and filling can both be made a day ahead if you need to space out the work but this is a great weekend / special occasion dinner that can easily be made in bulk despite being quite complex and is a crowd pleaser.
Continue readingRecipe: Potato Rolls
I never have “leftover mashed potatoes” but I really wanted to make potatoes rolls and found this great recipe. I am still unclear if the potato in them really does anything but they were so good I literally made them three times in a month so maybe it does? These wonderful fluffy rolls are perfect with soup, salad, or as a breakfast accompaniment and come together with very little effort. Also since they’re individual rolls instead of a loaf of bread they last a good 3-4 days without going stale (if they last that long before you eat them of course)!
Continue readingRecipe: Onigirazu
I know every website will tell you that onigirazu is like making sushi but easier but it still takes SOME effort to get the hang of making these stacked rice sandwiches. That being said they’re perfect for lunch and you can fill them with whatever you want in my variation they’re packed with lots of vegetables and a spicy-chili mayo but these are good with canned tuna, breakfast fixings, leftover cooked ground meat or anything you can think of.
Continue readingRecipe: Crumpets
A British staple filled with nooks and crannies these aren’t available at all in Estonia so when I was craving them I thought I’d be kind of out of luck or that the recipe would be super difficult but I was pleasantly surprised that it’s no more difficult than making pancakes. I used biscuit cutters for the mold rings which was a little annoying but doable. These are really lovely with a bit of jam and cream cheese.
Continue readingRecipe: Crab Rangoon
These are a great thing to make ahead of time with pre-made wonton wrapped. I used surimi to make them even cheaper and easier but you can use canned crab or already shedded crab and it’ll be just as good if not better. These freeze (pre-fry) very well and then take just a few minutes to make so they’re great for a party, side dish, or snacking.
Continue readingRecipe: Ash Reshteh
I’d never heard of this soup before making it but it’s apparently very popular in Iran. I can’t say my version of it is particularly authentic or even if it got the spirit since I’ve never had it before but I can say that it was out of this world delicious. I had to use egg pasta and yogurt in place of the standard reshteh and kashk which probably completely the changes the dish but even if you can’t find those the substitutes still make a great tasting dish.
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