Strawberry Granola

Strawberries add such a sweet happy note to any morning. I created a new granola flavor featuring strawberries and vanilla for a touch of joy in my breakfast. Using powdered freeze dried strawberries in the granola mixture allows for a rich strawberry flavor, accented by the sweet note of vanilla. Together they taste like strawberries…

Three Sisters Stew

So — who are the Three Sisters? Corn, Beans, Squash. These three foods grow beautifully together in the summer vegetable garden, and form the basis for this hearty vegan stew. They also have complementary nutritional profiles. The protein from the combination of beans and lye-treated whole corn are more complete than either alone, and winter…

Autumn Squash Panzanella

I love panzanella. This humble dish usually combines stale bread, ripe tomatoes, and a simple dressing to create a savory, rich, satisfying salad. When I spied a bright orange Kuri squash in my CSA box, I decided to remodel the classic panzanella salad into a satisfying main dish starring autumn bounty – winter squashes. This…

Plum Sparkler

Plums are ripe and abundant on neighborhood trees.  While 2020 has been a tumultuous year, it’s been fabulous for plums.  Something about the weather here in California has graced the plum trees with amazing fecundity.  A friend has a bumper crop of Santa Rosa plums and gifted me with a crate of ripe fruit.  This…

Strawberry Buttercream Cupcakes

These delightful gems are sweet, buttery, fluffy, and filled with strawberry flavor.  Vanilla hot milk sponge cake topped with a dollop of strawberry jam, then cloaked in a swirl of strawberry Swiss meringue buttercream.  The key to the cupcake’s lovely strawberry flavor is powdered freeze dried strawberries. The hot milk sponge cupcakes are easy to…