We are thrilled to have welcomed our new baby boy Nicolas on March 13th.  He is beautiful and perfect just like his brother Gabriel!   I haven't written in my blog in the last month or so but that is to be expected.  First few weeks with a new baby are exciting, exhausting and filled with new hopes, and I embrace the whole of the magical ride.  These beginning moments however can include your head bopping from side to side like you ...

Portobello mushrooms have great consistency and texture and can please even the most hard-core carnivores.  Simply baked Portobellos are already delicious all on their own.  Add tofu ricotta on top and it gets more interesting as you create a sophisticated hearty meal to serve on any occasion.   I am thinking as a lovely dinner entrée or as an appetizer if you cut up each mushroom into four pieces. Tofu in its raw state is qu...

Some store-bought hummus are not bad but nothing like making it at home.  I find that I can taste more of the tahini in the homemade version and I can always adapt it to add a bit more of this and a bit more of that to get the exact flavor I want. Hummus is really nothing more than chickpeas/garbanzo beans, garlic, tahini (or sesame paste), olive oil, lime or lemon and whatever else you want to put in it to give it a kick such a...

My Philippine friend Tony turned me on to mung beans a few years back.  Tony said I should take a shot at making them so that he could eat them given that mung bean dishes are not a staple in the U.S.  Being Latin and all I wasn't shy to trying a new bean and going through the soaking process etc.  Instead of using the typical spanish cumin, onion and tomato paste sauce I used a curry one instead and the dish was fabulous.  I rememb...

Pesto is easy to make, vegan and or not.  You can literally whip it up on the spot and serve it on pasta, salads, hors d'oeuvres or anything else.  And, yes, you can make pesto without the parmesan and have it taste just as piquant.  Instead of pine nuts, which are becoming harder to find and more expensive, I used walnuts.  Walnuts give it a thicker consistency and more nutty taste.  Pesto will keep fresh refrigerated in an ai...

Cashew Crumble~ Cashew everything has been all the rage in gluten-free and vegan magazines.  And rightfully so since it is a versatile seed.  Vegan cheese made from cashews is creamy, and has a similar texture to cheese.  But more on vegan cheeses in another post.  I have been using cashew crumb in desserts, like for a filling in a trifle, as breading on top of baked dishes, salads,  and as crumbled cheese, such as a blue chees...

Agave Cranberry Sauce~ Since I have a massive sweet tooth (I know I always say this), I look forward to all things sweet at Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Sometimes I just like to pretend it’s a holiday, most everyday in fact, so that I have an excuse to serve dessert.  Unlike Christmas, Thanksgiving became a new holiday for me when I arrived from Peru at the age of eleven. I didn’t quite understand the concept then, although it was...

I can whip up this topping quickly and use it on top of any dish like rice, pasta, steamed veggies, quinoa, etc., and it adds flavor and a bit of spice to what otherwise may turn out to be a borish meal. Serve it with crackers for a tasty snack. Save Print Curry Vegetable Topping Prep time:  5 mins Cook time:  15 mins Total time:  20 mins Serves: 2   Ingredients 1 large onion sliced in m...

Tahini is not only superb in taste but it is also a high-protein spread that we can use in anything from desserts to dressings.  It's nutty taste mixes well with other ingredients to give a vibrant and complex bite.  When mixed with Miso, an anti carcinogen and also a protein source,  it creates a creamy, deep dressing with oaky undertones.  For this dressing I have used a sweet Miso, Mellow White Miso by Miso Masters.  The ginger ...