Generous in buttery toasted cashews and healthful turmeric, positively bursting with zingy ginger and garlic flavors, this colorful potato chickpea curry with pineapple is an outrageously delicious curry that gathers blue ribbon praises from family and company every time you bring it to the table!

Last week here in the mountains, the foliage colors were as intensely brilliant as this vegetable curry. This week, the wind ruthlessly strips those bright yellow aspen leaves from their branches. Leaves blowing and falling around like it’s raining gold, curry gold. So beautiful…

Several summers ago, Robbie and I spent 18 days with good friends on a self-supported Grand Canyon river trip. We all took turns cooking, and our kitchen team was on duty the last dinner of the trip. We fed everyone this spicy sweet potato chickpea curry along with quick-cooking quinoa. Continue Reading…

Hello muffintalk Monday! Today we are talking moist, not too sweet double chocolate maple pear muffins that leave warm smidgens of chocolate all over your fingers– whole grain muffins, sweetened with chunks of pear and pure maple syrup, and lavished with dark chocolate morsels!

The finger-licking chocolate-y fruitiness going on in these muffins is a welcome treat any time of day. You could definitely serve them for dessert, maybe with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Tilt your head in a muffin-y nod to the classic French dessert, Poire Belle Hélène–perfectly poached pears with chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream.

You should see Robbie gobble these down, a guy who professes to not like chocolate. I had to hide them from ourselves in the freezer, which works for me, but after dinner he just reaches in, opens the container, and eats one frozen! Continue Reading…

There’s something mind-blowingly sublime about this red velvet beet soup. Scarlet and velvety, rich in umami flavor, the whole is greater than the sum of red lentils, beets, carrots, its parts. Serve this amazing vegan soup without speaking a word.

Imagine sitting down at the communal table. A steaming bowl of strikingly bright red soup is placed before you. No one tells you what it might be. Wow this is incredible, what the heck is it? Tomato? No. Sip after sip, you savor every nuance.

I first tasted this nourishing vegan potage on a retreat where meals were enjoyed in silence—no chatter, no exclaiming how delicious, or no wondering out loud. Do you think quiet and calm enhances food?

Remarkably elegant red velvet beet soup. No preconceptions. Pretend you don’t know what or how, and enjoy with curiosity.

Red Velvet Beet Soup details:

• Soup making in a pressure cooker is quick and efficient, so that’s how I roll. Before owning an Instant Pot, I fervently promoted stovetop pressure cookers–just as fast, with fewer bells and whistles. This soup is super easy to make on the stove as well, and you’ll find those directions in the recipe.
• Fermented miso’s umami ranges in flavors and colors, textures and aromas, as varied as that of the world’s fine wines or cheeses.
• The onions sautéed in rich nutty toasted sesame oil brings in yet more flavor.
• When testing this recipe, I drew pretty white squiggle of vegan sour cream on top. But you know what? The tangy cream dented the red velvet sublime WOW flavor—just a squiggle of difference changed this soup’s essence. Really. Resist the urge to add.
• Immersion blenders are the other amazing timesaver for creamy soups. You stick the wand in the pot and whir away—no messy hot fuss and muss.
• I saw herb scissors in action last month and quickly decided they’re my next kitchen tool–fresh herb confetti in seconds flat. Anybody recommend a brand?
• You might also like this Instant Pot creamy vegan Southwestern cauliflower soup.

Continue Reading…