Quinoa Salad with Blueberries, Strawberries and Watermelon

A summer quinoa salad studded with fresh, ripe fruit.

I cook sparingly in the heat of summer. And only if I absolutely have to. It's one of the perks of being a grown up- and post empty nest. We cook if we feel like it. And if we don't? We grab some baby spinach and chard, frisee and herbs and make a salad. We like to keep things simple.

That's no surprise to you, I'm sure.

I don't exactly do elaborate. We don't go for complicated around here. And goddess knows, we don't do formal. If we can toss together a bowl of fresh salad greens and herbs, and add some quickly cooked protein to make a meal of it, we're content. We might add strips of organic free-range chicken grilled with lemon and black pepper. Or a piece of wild salmon broiled with a touch of agave and lime. Perhaps an organic boiled egg. Or two. If we're lucky, some leftover cooked quinoa.

Dinner in a flash.

Quintessential summer.

So today's post (and recipe) is a nod to the natural marriage of summer and simplicity. Get out of the house. Step away from the screen.

Disconnect.

Reconnect.

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My Top Three Asparagus Recipes - Gluten-Free and Vegan

Spring asparagus at the farmers' market

Asparagus. The Queen. 

Elegant, fresh- and addictive. For many of us, the primavera arrival of asparagus is big news. Huge. Exciting. We simply can't get enough. You see, there is something magical about asparagus. Maybe it's the sexy reputation. Isabelle Allende describes asparagus as phallic in her memoir, Aphrodite, describing gardens lush with it, and stalks thick as trees. She throws in a few maidens with obvious oral fixations and well. You can guess the rest.

To be honest, the whole thick as a tree trunk thing, though, is a bit much.

Big stalks? Not gonna impress me. I tend to gravitate to the slender young asparagus, myself. The slimmer the better, in my gluten-free part of the world. Why? I barely cook them. It's more like a coaxing. A gentle flash in the pan with some fruity olive oil and a kiss of balsamic vinegar. A pinch of sea salt. Nothing fancy. Keeping them tender-crisp is the key to maximum enjoyment-- for me. But I know some folks prefer long, slow roasting. 

And that's what makes the world go 'round, darling. 

We can all love asparagus in our own way. And you don't have to be a vegan or a vegetarian to fall madly in love with this divine little vegetable. I've witnessed many a devoted omnivore fall prey to its tender charms. In fact, asparagus brings people together who might otherwise deride and mock each other. Pork belly munchers and veg-heads alike can set aside their divisive passions  and unite in true asparagus bliss. In fact, unabashed asparagus love could be the key to world peace.

So today, to celebrate this humble vegetable in all its gluten-free vegan glory, I am sharing my three favorite asparagus recipes. Swoon worthy, all.

Asparagus with Maple Tahini Dressing and Sea Salt

This easy vegan recipe is a lovely appetizer or side dish. Serve warm stalks as finger food and use the dressing as dip. How sexy is that?

Asparagus Leek Risotto

Lucky for us, risotto is gluten-free. And you can serve it to company without apologies. It's elegant. It's creamy. Super good. Those Italian goddesses who cooked up the first batch of risotto knew a thing or two.

Sexy Spring Pasta with Roasted Asparagus

One of my favorite spring meals- beautiful quinoa linguine topped with roasted asparagus, mushrooms, and tomatoes. Sometimes I add leeks or red onion. Always garlic- and chopped basil and mint. Heavenly.

More asparagus recipes from food bloggers:

Andrea Meyers: Roasted Asparagus with Orange Ginger Glaze
Kalyn's Kitchen: Pan-Fried Asparagus Tips with Lemon Juice
Simply Recipes: Roasted Asparagus
Perfect Pantry: Risotto with Shrimp and Asparagus 
101 Cookbooks: Asparagus Salad
Go Dairy-Free: Asparagus Soup
Food Blogga: How to Select, Store and Cook with Asparagus
Daily Diatribe: Mediterranean Halibut + Asparagus
Foods for Long Life: Vegan and Gluten-Free Asparagus Shiitaki Mushroom Stir Fry

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Millet with Carrots, Mushrooms and Mint

Gluten-free millet makes a tasty grain side dish.

To be honest, the only thing I knew about millet was what I read in fairy tales. You know the drill. Some evil, jealous stepmother or warty witch in the spooky woods would capture our plucky heroine- some flaxen haired, peaches and cream Princess down on her luck, misunderstood and pining for true love. The innocent and modest maiden would then be forced to find golden needles in haystacks or pluck pinches of wool off surly sheep or sort buckets and buckets of miniscule millet seeds. 

Tasks any one of us can relate to, right?

I mean, who doesn't relate to the tedium of domestic chores? Just when you finish matching the last pair of spring mountain fresh tube socks, the hamper begins to fill again in all its stinky glory. Mysteriously. It is never empty. Never. And the floor you finally got around to wiping clean and polishing until it gleams- if not twinkles- in the afternoon sunlight gets mauled by muddy rubber soles before you can count two shakes of a lamb's tail. And we won't even hint at the horrors that perpetuate in the so-called powder room.

Mrs. Meyers isn't rich by accident.

Fairy tales about feminine obedience and compliance in practicing our household chores (a skill set highly valued prior to Helen Gurley Brown) instructed us (pre-kindergarten) that the dutiful are not only more comely than their whining, uppity, stubborn counterparts, in the end (when push comes to shove) the gallant and toothsome Prince will actually prefer duty, modesty and obedience. We are persuaded that if we are patient and kind and willingly clean out the ashes in the fireplace, he will pick us. The good girl. 

The exiled Princess missing a slipper. 

His tender kiss will awaken us. His gaze becomes our  prize.  Our ultimate reward. So we can follow him back to the castle. 

And wash his dirty underwear.

The sparkly fairy tales we are fed today play out differently. There's no millet or spindles or poisoned apples involved. Carrie Bradshaw (not to mention, every female reality show contestant for the last ten years) hungers not only for the timeless promise of love (and absurdly expensive shoes) but for the jackpot prize of fame. It isn't enough to snag a Prince.

The whole world has to watch.

The Twittering, Facebooking, YouTubing contemporary Princess doesn't feel alive if she's not being observed, basking in media attention. She craves external validation and mirroring like an addict. Which- in a strange, if not classic Jungian way- circles 'round and reflects the old school fairy tales of my childhood. The neglected and unseen Princess locked away in a tower and the maiden drugged by a poisoned apple and sealed in a cold glass casket share the same root desire with her neo-narcissist sisters vocal-frying in reality show hot tubs, hissing in a tantrum as if on cue, or dripping big fat tears of shame on their EatSmart Scales.

They need to be seen. And heard.

Not simply for their pouty lip implants, or how unnaturally white their teeth are, or what their opinion is on the latest celebrity gossip. They long to be valued. And yes, I suppose you could argue that it boils down to wanting love and seeking a loving gaze, but I think it's something deeper, more intimate. I think it's about self-hood. And wrestling with authenticity. 

Trying to figure out nothing less than Who am I?

The hunger for that answer fuels their drive to be famous. As if we, the collective observer, the all seeing eye, possess the answer. 

But we don't. 

Individuation is a solitary task. You can try on attributes for size and see if they chafe. Or buoy. You can bounce bits and pieces off those around you and see if they stick or fall off. You can read and listen and observe and sleep on it. You can go for a run or change the sheets or write in a journal. You can make a pot of soup or order sushi take-out. 

You can find love and you can lose love and still not have a clue to who you really are. 

The answer isn't out there. It's inside. And the bit by bit excavation, as excruciating and millet-sorting as it may be- is worth it, in the end. One might even say, the process is its own reward. Because how you value and honor your real self is how the world will see you. 

And that missing slipper? 

It's right where you left it.

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Quinoa Salad with Baby Spinach and Grape Tomatoes

Quinoa salad with baby spinach and tomatoes.

Quinoa + Spinach = Salad Days

Here is a wonderful year-round salad that is inviting, fresh and vibrant. The sort of salad a certain individual needs on a damp, late winter day when the sky is paper white and the clouds are thick with snow. On a day such as this it is tempting to head straight for comfort food. That leftover Kicked Up Baked Mac 'n Cheese in the fridge. That wedge of Roasted Vegetable Kugel. But what the body craves may- or may not be- what the body needs.

I'm just saying.

I'm no expert on cravings. But I do know that if I make a habit of indulging every gnawing whim and urge that wiggles its way into my sun deprived brain I'd munch Blueberry Crumb Cake for breakfast and eat Horseradish Spiked Red Potato Salad every noon hour from now till the Vernal Equinox (a serotonin-boosting strategy not recommended, by the way, for those of us past a certain age where you can pack on voluptuous pounds faster that you can say blueberry pancakes on a stick).

It also doesn't help that yours truly sports three honkin' titanium screws in the left hip joint, curtailing one's enthusiasm for certain popular aerobic routines. Maybe if I Zumbaed I'd still fit into my summer winter jeans. As of last week there's not a pair of jeans in the house I can riggle into. [And by the way, why do doctors insist on referring to hip screws as pins, embroidering knitting group safe visions of a petite and delicate procedure that in no way involved a couple of workbench sized clamps and a battery operated power drill?]

All I can say is thank goddess for black leggings. Paired with a tunic top they hide a multitude of muffins.

And cake.

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Kale Salad with Quinoa, Tangerines and Roasted Almonds

Kale salad with tangerines, quinoa, and almonds.

My Kale Crush

Something has frozen over. Or maybe pigs are flying. I actually, um, like kale. After all my mocking, my nose crinkling, my eye rolling. After tweeting disparagingly about the taste of this dark leafy green (I believe the word I used was swampy). Behold. I am converted. I have seen the light.

The turning point? Lacinato kale (also called Tuscan black kale, or dinosaur kale). The long, slender leaves are delightfully un-swamp like. And unlike many good-for-you greens, there is little bitterness to harsh your mellow. Lacinato (like its curly kale cousin) does benefit from massage- especially in silky extra virgin olive oil.

But then Darling- what doesn't?

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Warm Winter Salad with Roasted Banana Squash and New Potatoes

Roasted fingerlings, new potatoes and winter squash on baby salad greens.

After a long and restless night I am pondering potato salad and glitter. Sleep deprivation may be less than pleasant but it often breaks loose the inertia of stalled imagination (who among us has the power of will to maintain the status quo of the literal linear world after a scant teaspoon of sleep?). In my experience it is not prudent to ignore gifts of associative flight and whimsy. If one begins threading fingerling potatoes with the sequins of burlesque I say, go for it. 

You never know when such a spinning, sparkling muse will visit again.

It all started with a documentary (on Showtime last night) about the seventies balladeer Paul Williams- a touching story of fame, hunger, redemption and purpose (titled Paul Williams Still Alive because the documentarian had assumed he was dead) that- almost by accident- reveals Paul's award-garnering talent for writing sweet and soulful songs was never balm enough for his childhood wounds. Like so many artists snagged in the media-fueled web of fame + addiction, Paul's appetite for approval trumped all (imagine the tune-smith who wrote Rainbow Connection in an absurdly surreal TV shoot out with sexy Police Woman, Angie Dickinson). Until he got sober. 

And redefined success on his own terms.

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Gluten-Free Cornbread Stuffing with Maple Roasted Acorn Squash

Maple Roasted Acorn Squash Two Ways- Stuffed + Unstuffed (Cornbread Stuffing)

While we're all adjusting to turning the clocks back (excuse me while I yawn), I thought I'd reprise two Thanksgiving friendly recipes today. Both recipes are redolent with old fashioned autumnal goodness. Warm and subtle spices. Maple. Apple. It doesn't get any comfy-cozier.

First up is an easy, favorite side dish of mine- maple roasted acorn squash (and it's vegan, therefore perfect for those of you sharing your humble meal with vegetarian and dairy-free guests). The second dish is one of my oldest tried and true recipes.

It is from my very first Thanksgiving as a married woman, in fact.

We won't discuss how long ago that was, Darling, but I will admit it was way back with Husband Number #1 (it being first and all). I was anxious to do it up with style on my first Thanksgiving (as any blushing bride would be) and had the sudden inspiration to use cornbread and apples as a stuffing instead of the traditional- and familial on both sides- bagged white bread and sage dressing. And then I added curry.

Maybe that's when they began to notice I wasn't exactly a dyed-in-the-wool Pilgrim-esque kind of girl.

I'm not at all certain Husband #1 cared for it.

Husband #2 is a huge cornbread fan. And a curry fan.

Coincidence?


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Pumpkin Polenta Recipe with Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa

My inspiration this week- pumpkin polenta with salsa fresca.

Time Travel

It's been a hot dry week here in Studio City. Windy. Dusty. With mercury rising into the 90's thanks to the annual Santa Ana winds. Fire weather. The polar opposite of the fallish, foggy mornings I just experienced back east on my trip to New England. We stayed in Great Barrington for four burnished days of autumn's last gold, catching the Berkshires at the tail end of my favorite season. More on the trip itself (and why we went there), soon.

In the meantime, I'll share a comfort food recipe from the archive- a creamy pumpkin polenta I cooked up while living in West Hollywood. So climb into my time machine.

Notes From WeHo: Comfort food weather has WeHo citizens ditching their flip-flops and plucking pumpkin colored sweaters off hangers, while tucking umbrellas into faux leather satchels. If you can find the dang umbrella, that is. It's got to be around here somewhere, right? You used it last year.

Maybe.

Or was that the year before? The harvest moon is playing tricks with your memory again. The crows outside in the oak trees caw like the crows in tomorrow's dream. Days turn into weeks and lunch turns into next month's breakfast. Hours spill through worm holes of time like so many episodes of Lost.

And the Buddha imagines the universe. And gets it close to right. We're talking atoms, people. Particles of teeny tiny specks of even tinier teenier fragments of a single point of something so small the naked eye perceives it as invisible.

I ponder this as I walk in a stream of brittle bronze leaves.

The succession of days that adds up to a life is only a blink. The moment when you started reading this sentence is already the past. You think about this stuff as you get older. When you squint into your future you see a shorter slope than the path that winds behind you. It can cause a slippery sense of vertigo. A tipping sideways melancholy that infuses every lost opportunity with meaning, bittersweet.

I walk to the market past ninety-pound skateboarders and a gaggle of thin actors smoking outside the Lee Strasberg Institute. I weave through Russian speaking men with impossibly sad eyes and impeccably groomed wheat-blonde women carrying shopping bags of kale. I smile at my neighbor sitting on his front wall listening to Miles Davis on a transistor radio. Great music, I tell him, feeling myself altering my cadence to the beat. It's JAZZ, Baby! he shouts, laughing as I pass by. I feel his joy in my chest. And I know he is exactly right. This whole life thing? This whole circuitous method of survival called living?

It's jazz, Baby.

And you just gotta go with it.


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Zucchini Gratin

Zucchini gratin gets a make-over. Gluten-free and dairy-free.

On the way to saving your life there are moments that stir up a thousand kinds of trouble. Denial. Anger. Grief. Desire. The last one is the trouble I hear about the most here on Gluten-Free Goddess. The slow burn of longing. Comments and letters asking, sometimes pleading, pining, always hungry for some beloved recipe one can no longer consume. Due to evil gluten. Food is an emotional issue. Charged with hot spots and invisible buttons that can be pushed and engaged by a myriad of things. A scent. A circumstance. A holiday. Food can equal love. Evoke comfort. Mom. Or lack of Mom. Food can feel like self care and nourishment. But it can also be a fence. A barrier erected to survive. A way to numb. Escape. Live three feet from yourself.

Because some days it's hard to be a human being.

Sometimes I get tired of blogging about food. Sharing recipes. Because in all transparency, I don't feel like a foodie. I don't build my day around a meal or shopping for ingredients. Food is fuel. And often (in my house) food is an after thought. As in, Sweet Tap Dancing Bodhisattva, I'm starving. It's six PM. And I have nothing in the fridge except a jar of organic peanut butter.

And lettuce.

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Strawberry Spinach Salad with Berry Dressing

Strawberry Spinach Salad with Berry Dressing

Don't cook. Go FRESH.

The older I get the more I crave simple. The sweet, relaxed comfort of home cooking. An impromptu picnic on the patio with family-style classics like horseradish spiked potato salad and strawberry rhubarb crumble. Instead of growing worldly and sophisticated and dabbling with truffle oil, each new gray silver hair spins my taste hula hooping into simplicity faster than Lady Gaga can waggle. Well, maybe not that fast. She is pretty nimble. But you get my drift. I'm whipping up ten-minute rice stir-fries, not Coq au Vin. I’m blending up pomegranate smoothies, not roasting Duck a l'Orange.

And lucky me, the summer season is all about simplicity. Who needs complicated and fussy when the farmers’ markets are abundant with glorious, fresh ingredients? Vegetables in every color. Ripe and voluptuous fruits. And every one of them gluten-free. And dairy-free. That’s the beauty of it. No imitation here. No game of let’s pretend. This is nature’s bounty, pure and raw and beautiful. No deprivation. Zero. None.

When folks with celiac disease first learn they need to live gluten-free (for life!) a throat tightening panic strikes. In a sudden, blinding flash they begin to mentally catalog every favorite food they must now avoid like the plague. The list begins with sandwich bread for many, and often ends with pizza, bagels, spaghetti or cupcakes (by this point, imagined in all their lustrous glory through an unexpected blur of angry tears). Our wheat-based food culture is insidious, ubiquitous, and gluten saturated. Our nemesis- the grain protein gluten- is infused in or added to too many foods to count (soy sauce, really?).

This is why I gently suggest going naturally gluten-free. At least for starters.

Diving into the complexity of gluten-free baking (with multiple flours and starches), or spending hard earned cash on packaged gluten-free foods full of odd ingredients such as tapioca starch, quinoa flakes and xanthan gum, can pinch not only the budget, but the soul. Taste buds need time to adjust. Your palate was raised on wheat and dairy foods. And trust me- both are acquired tastes. I know this is true, because after years of living gluten-free and dairy-free, I can honestly report that I hold my breath walking past the bread shelves and the gourmet cheese displays at our favorite local market. Baked goods made with wheat flour exude an odd, sickly- sweet aroma that does not smell appetizing. And cheese? When you haven’t eaten dairy in years, it smells exactly like spit up- no offense to babies. And milk? Cow's milk smells like a creepy combo of cheese curds and animal hair.

I am sorry to tell you.

So if you are newly diagnosed, or an old pro celiac who's been tempted by the news of a Domino's gluten-free pizza (just say no!), step back and take a breath. Visit your local farmer’s market this weekend instead. Drink in the gorgeous, gluten-free abundance of the fledgling summer season. Go vegetal. Toss together cool and tangy salads. Grill zucchini, asparagus, and peppers in a rainbow of colors. Blend creamy smoothies with fresh strawberries and coconut milk. Take advantage of juicy, local fruit and make a quick and elegant salad that will lift your spirits and nourish your body. Grab someone you love and dine al fresco

You won’t miss the gluten. I promise.

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Quinoa with Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Leeks and Slivered Almonds

Gluten-free quinoa with Brussels sprouts, leeks and almonds.

If you've been hanging with me for awhile here on Gluten-Free Goddess, you already know how much I dig quinoa. It's one of my favorite gluten-free grains. I've grown to love- even crave- quinoa's distinct smoky-nutty flavor. More assertive than rice or oatmeal, the taste of quinoa gives gluten-free baked goods and grainy side dishes a certain je ne sais quoi that feels nourishing, healthy, and satisfying all at once. In a very understated, happy blue skies kind of way, I mean.

Not in a pious eat-this-it's-good-for-you kind of way.

Though I'm sure there are plenty of quinoa converts that proselytize its admirable qualities in the nutrition arena (and why not? Its protein profile is a vegan's wet dream) I prefer to love my quinoa on its own unassuming terms. Even though folks have dubbed her Queen of Grains and Mother of all Vegan Goodness in the Bunny Scampering Universe, I love her just because. Without projection. Without expectation. Or assumption.

I meet quinoa where she stands. I accept her for who she is. In all her cute as a button faux grain glory. After all, her botanical name is Goosefoot. Not a very glamorous moniker. Imagine being saddled with that one.

Hey, you! Goosefoot. That's right. I'm talking to you.

Sweet Mother Mary. Can you imagine? No wonder she chose to change her name. Keen-wa is so much sexier.

So Quinoa, honey. What are you doing tonight? Wanna come over? I've got some Adele.

You can even stay for breakfast.

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Baked Grape Tomatoes with Basil and Gluten-Free Cornbread Crumbs

Baked grape and cherry tomatoes with basil and cornbread crumbs.

I'm all for eating local (if it's organic- I can't see the point of chowing down on pesticides for the virtue of having traveled only sixty forty twenty miles to my plate). I'm also big on eating in tune with the seasons. I sashay right by strawberries in February- with nary a twinge of envy. I ignore tomatoes in January with a disdain worthy of a cane-wagging Dowager Countess.

With one glaring exception.

Those flirtatious little baskets of grape tomatoes- and those shameless, curvy cherry tomatoes. So plump and sweet and brazen. So... come hither. The rosy taste of summer itself.

Beckoning.

And although my winter cravings tingle toward a melting, bubbling, butter soft gluten-free lasagna hot from the oven, I admit without shame I miss the bright, acidic burst of Venus' favorite fruit. And I succumb. I cave like a saddle-shoed Catholic school girl offered a menthol in the girl's room. Without a blink of embarrassment. Because I have a plan, thanks to food blogger Lydia at The Perfect Pantry.

A plan to coax these devilish beauties from their summer vacay glory into the guise of winter comfort food.

I gather them and cradle them in olive oil and toasted gluten-free cornbread crumbs.

I bake them.

A taste of summer, hot from the oven.

As soon as I saw the recipe for Baked Cherry Tomatoes over at The Perfect Pantry I knew I would love it. Tiny tomatoes, fresh garlic, Italian herbs, olive oil, breadcrumbs. What's not to love? It's Mediterranean cooking at it's simplest and most sublime.

I've tweaked the recipe to make it gluten-free, of course. There's not a speck of gluten in my version. But you'd never guess. Which makes this easy-to-create side dish an instant top ten favorite for pot lucks and picnics and any number of anxiety inducing gatherings we gluten-free goddesses fret about.

Serve this heavenly dish without a whisker of apology. Don't even bother mentioning its gluten-free and vegan status. These Italian baked tomatoes are so tasty you'll be asked for the recipe. By gluten eaters. By carnivores. I promise.

In place of plain bread crumbs (a definite no-no for gluten-free folks) I used a wedge of my Yeasted Quinoa Cornbread to make tender golden crumbs that taste like polenta. For the tomatoes I used both yellow and red organic grape tomatoes (to me they're slightly sweeter than cherry tomatoes; but use what you can get in your part of the world; both are delicious baked). And for the oregano I used basil.

Just because.

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Quinoa Taco Salad

Quinoa taco salad with avocado and lime- perfect for a gluten-free diet.

Quinoa Taco Salad

Looking for a fresh idea for a summer picnic or backyard get-together? This cool and breezy quinoa taco salad might be just what you're craving. Laced with lime juice and sea salt, the combo of fluffy quinoa and ripe avocado, spiked with red onion and sunny sweet pepper, served on a crisp bed of romaine lettuce, is a light and healthy twist on the salsa drenched bean and cheese heavy taco salads so ubiquitous years ago. It's a total win for gluten-free vegans and vegetarians. And let's face it.

Quinoa is much more hip than canned re-fried beans.

The inspiration for a quinoa taco salad was sparked over on the Gluten-Free Goddess Facebook page. Reader (and long distance friend) Patsy commented on a thread about Memorial Day picnic salads, mentioning her current fave, quinoa taco salad. We all perked up. 

Quinoa? As a taco salad? Brilliant. 

Patsy generously shared her recipe with me. It called for diced tomatoes, black beans and cheese, so I revamped the flavors to create a lighter, legume-free vegan version. Quinoa is a complete vegetarian protein, so you really don't need the black beans (as a complementary protein), unless, of course, you're fond of those fiber rich little beauties in your quinoa salad.

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Asparagus with Maple Tahini Dressing

Vegan maple-tahini dressing adorns the Queen of Spring: Asparagus.

Spring here in BoHo infused West Hollywood means trading in your Uggs for flip-flops. And hurtling downhill on your skateboard past midnight, apparently.  For four nights in a row now I've been startled awake by the rolling wheels of wild ones zooming past our bedroom window in the wee small hours of the morning. I suspect they are taggers, or teenage paparazzi on the hunt for misbehaving Melrose prey (there have been more helicopters lately). Sleep has been edgy and restless. The season of change is afoot. Or rather on a roll.

Which in an odd and sleep-deprived way, brings me to asparagus.

It's a welcome signal of warmer days (and nights!) when those bundles of slender green stalks are back, standing tall in elegant rows at the local market. Erect, perky little beauties.

My deep and abiding craving for asparagus is surprising for someone who never tendered a single bite of fresh asparagus until my third decade here on planet Earth. Yes, you read that right. Three decades. I admit it.

I was anti-asparagus.

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Quinoa Salad with Pineapple, Broccoli, and Mint

Pineapple quinoa salad with broccoli. Fresh and healthy.

Spring is beckoning. I can feel it. And my winter-stiff body is aching to stretch and move and shed the yearly inertia that descends like a bear with the shrinking daylight. My brain is flickering awake. My taste buds are tiring of the heavy, creamy comfort foods that sustained me (thank you, lovely spuds, lasagna, and mac and cheese, I love you with all my heart).

I'm craving lighter, cleaner tastes.

Not to mention, missing my warm weather jeans. You know the ones. That stack in the back of the closet you haven't fit into since December, when you began wondering if the laundromat medium heat setting was shrinking your favorite Levi's. The jeans you have to lay down to zip, doing your best imitation of Jane Fonda's pelvic tilt, sucking in your breath and praying to the zipper gods. Your skinny jeans. You know what I'm talking about. You have two sets of jeans, right? Winter. And summer.

So here's what I'm thinking. Quinoa to the rescue.

Vegan. Versatile. Easy. Fresh. Light. This new quinoa salad with pineapple and broccoli and fresh mint is all of the above. And maybe, just maybe, it'll be the first step to fitting into those skinny jeans.


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Warm Coleslaw with Chili-Lime Dressing

Warm winter coleslaw recipe kicked up with chili sauce, lime and mint.

Need a little kick to warm your chilled winter bones? How about a warm and slightly spicy coleslaw with crunchy cabbage, chili, lime and ginger? It's a healthy vegan side dish your body will love. And the best part is, it's easy to throw together. You can do it in no time flat. Which is why I always keep a cabbage in the fridge (don't you, Darling?). You never know when hunger pangs will strike, what with all this detoxing and sugar shunning and working out with Jane Fonda's Prime Time DVD -- which I must confess, I love to pieces. Jane is gentle and warm and encouraging (I don't respond well to bullying and drill sergeant meanies, do you?).

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Gluten-Free Sweet Potato Fries

Easy, tasty gluten-free sweet potato fries baked with spices.

Like my pal Kalyn I'm a big fan of sweet potatoes. And sweet potato fries. Kalyn's recipe has a different spice blend than mine but our recipes are quite similar. Check out hers if you don't happen to care for my particular spices. Or get down-and-dirty personal and make up your own signature concoction.

Cooking is all about making recipes your own. Developing your own tastes. Your likes and dislikes. Cooking is flexible. And highly personal. It's not precise like, say, brain surgery. Unless you're baking something fussy. Baking folks swear by precision. But I've never actually been that kind of cook. I'm intuitive. I fly by the seat of my jeans. I look at a glistening picture of pasta and vegetables and I feel inspired. I open my pantry and get juiced to play the What If? Game. 

What if I take this ingredient and add it to that ingredient? I wonder. What would that taste like? Then the fun begins.

How do you cook? 

Do you wing it like Chet Baker? Or do you prefer a road map, with precise direction?

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Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Quinoa Mushroom Pilaf

Need some gluten-free inspiration for your Thanksgiving feast? Have I got some side dishes for you. From Quinoa Mushroom Pilaf to Pomegranate Glazed Green Beans, from Sweet Potato Cornbread to Cranberry Applesauce and more, I've gathered together my favorite gluten-free side dish recipes. One glance at these offerings should convince even the most die hard skeptics that living gluten-free can be more than delicious.

It can be beautiful.


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Quinoa Salad with Pears, Baby Spinach and Chick Peas in a Maple Vinaigrette

Quinoa salad with pears, chick peas and baby spinach.

If you're looking for a fresh idea to liven up your ho-hum salad plate, Babycakes, have I got a recipe for you. Light, vegan, and packed with protein, this is no ordinary bunny food. It's got teeth- er, I mean, quinoa. Studded with nutty, buttery chick peas and crunchy toasted pecans and succulent jewels of ripe, juicy pears. And did I mention, in a bowl licking maple vinaigrette?

In fact, this is a salad even salad haters would eat. You know, those stalwart gotta have my meat and potatoes aficionados who eschew anything leafy. Who snicker at fiber. And mock carrot sticks. The sort of individual who gets misty eyed for melted butter and bacon martinis. To said individuals, salad could never be anything but rabbit chow. But this lovely mélange of flavors just might pique their interest. The sheer luxurious deliciousness of these autumnal flavors might coax them into flirting with bunny food goodness. Just this once. Then- who knows what could happen? They might settle in, fork poised, all dubious and dreaming of rib eye. They might take a bite. And then another. And another. And before you can say blueberry pancakes on a stick- they might actually smack their lips and grin and hold out their empty plate for more.

And you.

You could smile back, sly and slow, as you reach for the serving spoon to comply with their new found desire.

And feed their craving.


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Karina's Vegan Coleslaw with Peanut Dressing

Crunchy cool vegan slaw with a light peanut dressing.

It's almost the end of July. How has your summer been? Moonlit and sultry? All Popsicles and kiddie pool? Or just plain flat out busy as a bee? If it's been busy, Sugar, I can relate. Here in our tiny corner of the world we've been too crazy to cook much. We've been living on salads and smoothies. We're apartment hunting. Spending hours in the car navigating the neighborhoods of West Hollywood, searching for the perfect place. Or rather, the quasi-perfect place because perfection is unattainable. I know this. I do. But I still (naively) make a top ten priority list.

If I find a unit with a window over the kitchen sink (high on my list) there's inevitably no dishwasher. If I tour one with a dishwasher, there's no  window, and no patio (I'd love some outside access to put a small table and plant a few pots by the door). Washer and dryer? Ha. You know that saying, If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans? Well, if you want to hear the gods laugh even harder, make a wish list. For an apartment in West Hollywood. For example...

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