1. One of the best things that comes with warm weather is the ability to cook with the freshest ingredients. There’s nothing better than a really juicy peach straight from the tree, or fragrant basil finally poking its leaves through the ground. (The latter finally happened for us!) This recipe is all about paying homage to whole ingredients - there are a total of just FIVE in this, but the result is incredibly flavorful and light. We ate this during a break in tilling our garden space; it was perfection in a bowl. The juice from the roasted corn and tomatoes is sweet and fresh, and the basil gives it just enough fragrance to keep this complex. This is also a great dish to make it look like you’ve done a ton of work, but haven’t really. (Those are my favorite.) Serves 3-4InstructionsShuck two or three ears of fresh corn. Wrap them in tinfoil and toss in the oven set at 350°F. To scorch the corn, after cooking place them directly on top of your stove’s flame - I did it on the stovetop for about 5 minutes, turning them with tongs when they started to blacken. You can do the same, even easier, on a grill. Wrap 4 large tomatoes in tinfoil. (Make sure they’re ripe, don’t get rock hard tomatoes!) Toss them in the oven with the corn. Bake for about 45 minutes. If you have it, you can also do this on a grill. If we had one, we’d use it! Prep the other ingredients. Open up a can of beans, then strain and rinse - we like chickpeas and black beans. Finely chop a small handful of fresh basil. Put everything in a large serving bowl. When the tomatoes are really soft and hot, take them out and slice them open over the beans & basil. Get all of the juice out of them, then if you wish you can chop up the flesh and toss them in the bowl. (We set them aside to use tonight in a tomato soup.) When the corn is cooked and scorched, place each ear (one at a time, obviously) in the serving bowl and, using a sharp knife and holding it at the top, slice off each side so the corn kernels come off. This takes a little practice but the flavor is so worth it! Drizzle a little balsamic vinegar over top and stir together to coat. Serve warm and enjoy!
    High Res

    One of the best things that comes with warm weather is the ability to cook with the freshest ingredients. There’s nothing better than a really juicy peach straight from the tree, or fragrant basil finally poking its leaves through the ground. (The latter finally happened for us!)

    This recipe is all about paying homage to whole ingredients - there are a total of just FIVE in this, but the result is incredibly flavorful and light.

    Read More

    April 28, 2013
  2. This is a classic, and I think it’s a perfect “garden party” sort of food. Plus, it makes your kitchen smell like basil, which is always a bonus. This recipe serves 4-6. If you’re using dried chickpeas, soak them overnight then cook and set them aside. Otherwise, canned works too! Cook your bowtie pasta, 1.5 cups dried. Make some almond “parmesan”: crush 1 cup raw almonds (slivered or whole) until powdered. Shake them up in a bag with some kosher salt and garlic powder to taste. (Just a dash of each spice will usually do it for me.) In your blender/food processor, toss in 1 packed cup fresh basil, 1/3 cup almond “parmesan”,  2 small-medium cloves of garlic, and 1/4 cup olive oil. Blend until consistent and creamy, adding in olive oil as needed. (Note: if you want to use pine nuts, toss in 1/4 cup pine nuts and just 2 tbsp of the almond parmesan. I’m not a fan of pine nuts, and they’re expensive, that’s why I didn’t include them in the original recipe. Honestly, it tastes good either way you do it.) Toss 3 cups chickpeas with the pasta and the pesto. Serve warm or cold.
    High Res

    This is a classic, and I think it’s a perfect “garden party” sort of food. Plus, it makes your kitchen smell like basil, which is always a bonus. This recipe serves 4-6.

    1. If you’re using dried chickpeas, soak them overnight then cook and set them aside. Otherwise, canned works too!
    2. Cook your bowtie pasta, 1.5 cups dried.
    3. Make some almond “parmesan”: crush 1 cup raw almonds (slivered or whole) until powdered. Shake them up in a bag with some kosher salt and garlic powder to taste. (Just a dash of each spice will usually do it for me.)
    4. In your blender/food processor, toss in 1 packed cup fresh basil, 1/3 cup almond “parmesan”,  2 small-medium cloves of garlic, and 1/4 cup olive oil. Blend until consistent and creamy, adding in olive oil as needed. (Note: if you want to use pine nuts, toss in 1/4 cup pine nuts and just 2 tbsp of the almond parmesan. I’m not a fan of pine nuts, and they’re expensive, that’s why I didn’t include them in the original recipe. Honestly, it tastes good either way you do it.)
    5. Toss 3 cups chickpeas with the pasta and the pesto. Serve warm or cold.

    (Source: sewindie.com)

    March 22, 2012
  3. i started out this morning unable to wait for lunch. i was going to eat one of the fantastic chickpea burgers i had made earlier in the week. (that’s the beauty of making your own meatless burgers - you can make them exactly how you’d want them, and you can make a ton at a time.) but when i went to make the sandwich, i realized, to my own kind of horror, that we were out of bread. i really  wanted this burger - so i decided to make my own bread. that’s how good this burger is; i never make my own bread unless under extreme food shortages like today’s, especially not bread that needs time to rise. to make the burger: cook/uncan 5 cups chickpeas. working with them while still warm is a good idea here, it makes them easier to break down. place them in a bowl with 3/4 cup rolled oats, 1/2 cup ground rolled oats (i do that in my coffee/nut grinder), 2 tbsp ground flax seed, 1/4 cup water, 3/4 cup oil (i used olive), heaping amounts of spices like oregano/thyme/sage/tarragon/parsley/etc., freshly ground pepper and a couple heaping pinches sea salt. (obviously you’ll want to taste the mixture once you’ve beaten it together, and add spices as needed. if you’re storing them for the week, keep in mind that the flavors intensify as they “age.”) using a handheld or standing mixer, beat together the ingredients until well combined. (i like my burgers to be consistently textured but have a little bit of whole veggies/beans, so that’s what i shoot for.) add water and/or oil as necessary (i had to, but not too much.) the mixture should start easily sticking together by itself; if not, add a little more ground rolled oats and/or oil, depending on if it’s too dry or moist. these burgers held together better than any i’ve made so far, so if you have any issues let me know and i can probably troubleshoot it. from there, form the mixture into patties about the size of your palm. i’ve found that bigger veggie burgers fall apart very easily, especially when flipping. this recipe makes 10-12 patties, so you could simply layer them with parchment paper in a sealable fridge container for later cooking. when cooking, there’s no real need to fry them in any extra oil, because of the oil content in the original mixture. just place the burger on a high-heated flat pan and let each side crisp up on its own. flash forward to today! i got my bread recipe out and started prepping my ingredients. i then realized i was completely out of flour, except for one bag of brown rice flour i happened to have leftover from a chickpea mag photoshoot. (nor did i have any fresh herbs.) i still really wanted this burger - so i kept going with the recipe, knowing it wouldn’t work out like a traditional loaf. i let it rise, which it didn’t very much at all. instead of creating a loaf, i cut the dough in half and made them into discs about two inches thick. i then let them bake, hoping the whole time this wouldn’t be one of those times i’d have to keep checking the oven and still no results. luckily, that totally wonderful smell of fresh bread wafting throughout the house worked well to keep me going. the bread had baked, it even had a crust on the outside. testing it out proved that the taste and texture weren’t quite right, as it had more of a cornbread feel to it, but it was bread. bread i could use to house the chickpea burger, which i was still craving. i crisped up the burger and each side of the bread, then slathered onto the bread a thick layer of vegenaise and crackled on some fresh pepper. it was SO good. even eating this hours after my first morning chickpea-burger-craving, i can tell you that all that effort was totally worth it.
    High Res

    i started out this morning unable to wait for lunch. i was going to eat one of the fantastic chickpea burgers i had made earlier in the week. (that’s the beauty of making your own meatless burgers - you can make them exactly how you’d want them, and you can make a ton at a time.) but when i went to make the sandwich, i realized, to my own kind of horror, that we were out of bread. i really  wanted this burger - so i decided to make my own bread. that’s how good this burger is; i never make my own bread unless under extreme food shortages like today’s, especially not bread that needs time to rise.

    to make the burger:

    • cook/uncan 5 cups chickpeas. working with them while still warm is a good idea here, it makes them easier to break down.
    • place them in a bowl with 3/4 cup rolled oats, 1/2 cup ground rolled oats (i do that in my coffee/nut grinder), 2 tbsp ground flax seed, 1/4 cup water, 3/4 cup oil (i used olive), heaping amounts of spices like oregano/thyme/sage/tarragon/parsley/etc., freshly ground pepper and a couple heaping pinches sea salt. (obviously you’ll want to taste the mixture once you’ve beaten it together, and add spices as needed. if you’re storing them for the week, keep in mind that the flavors intensify as they “age.”)
    • using a handheld or standing mixer, beat together the ingredients until well combined. (i like my burgers to be consistently textured but have a little bit of whole veggies/beans, so that’s what i shoot for.) add water and/or oil as necessary (i had to, but not too much.) the mixture should start easily sticking together by itself; if not, add a little more ground rolled oats and/or oil, depending on if it’s too dry or moist. these burgers held together better than any i’ve made so far, so if you have any issues let me know and i can probably troubleshoot it.
    • from there, form the mixture into patties about the size of your palm. i’ve found that bigger veggie burgers fall apart very easily, especially when flipping. this recipe makes 10-12 patties, so you could simply layer them with parchment paper in a sealable fridge container for later cooking.
    • when cooking, there’s no real need to fry them in any extra oil, because of the oil content in the original mixture. just place the burger on a high-heated flat pan and let each side crisp up on its own.


    flash forward to today! i got my bread recipe out and started prepping my ingredients. i then realized i was completely out of flour, except for one bag of brown rice flour i happened to have leftover from a chickpea mag photoshoot. (nor did i have any fresh herbs.) i still really wanted this burger - so i kept going with the recipe, knowing it wouldn’t work out like a traditional loaf. i let it rise, which it didn’t very much at all. instead of creating a loaf, i cut the dough in half and made them into discs about two inches thick. i then let them bake, hoping the whole time this wouldn’t be one of those times i’d have to keep checking the oven and still no results. luckily, that totally wonderful smell of fresh bread wafting throughout the house worked well to keep me going.

    the bread had baked, it even had a crust on the outside. testing it out proved that the taste and texture weren’t quite right, as it had more of a cornbread feel to it, but it was bread. bread i could use to house the chickpea burger, which i was still craving.



    i crisped up the burger and each side of the bread, then slathered onto the bread a thick layer of vegenaise and crackled on some fresh pepper. it was SO good. even eating this hours after my first morning chickpea-burger-craving, i can tell you that all that effort was totally worth it.
    January 6, 2012