Pangea Organics founder Joshua Onysko is not only a groundbreaking entrepreneur who’s organic, sustainable body products line is changing the way many companies are thinking about the future of business, he’s also a chef who knows how to cook on a budget.
After starting a Facebook challenge to cook meals for one week that were organic, [...]

I have a not-so-secret shortbread obsession. While I don’t see anything particularly wrong with occasional binges on organic, humane, free-range butter… It’s also nice to know that there are alternatives. This month’s ingredient is Butternut Squash and due to my penchant for purees I’ve also been experimenting with squash-based baked goods.

Making a squash puree or a creamy squash soup is super easy and only takes a few minutes to prepare (after roasting the squash). It’s a very satisfying and comforting dish that can be remade with different spices and complimenting ingredients for lots of variations.
This variation is reminiscent of pumpkin pie and is excellent served [...]

Simply oven-roasting squash is a delicious way to prepare a simple and satisfying dish. Following are directions to oven roast a butternut squash, make squash purée and to how make the butternut seeds into a tasty little snack. (These directions will work with other varieties of squash though cooking times may vary.)

If, by chance, you don’t take me up on my bet to ward off cold and flu season by regular administrations of Superhero Miso Soup, and you do fall prey to a wintertime bug. Never fear. The ultimate sick-fighting tonic is here.
Ultimate Sick Fighting Tonic
To make one cup:
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
4 cloves raw garlic, [...]

I’m rarely the gambling type, but I’d be willing to bet that if you ate a bowl of this soup once a day all winter you wouldn’t get sick with a cold or flu once. The soup is full of superfoods brimming with vitamins, minerals and nutrition dense goodness.

Today is the first day of the eight days of Hanukkah.
Also known as the Festival of Lights, Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish holiday From the Hebrew word for “dedication” or “consecration”. Hanukkah marks the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its desecration by the forces of the King of Syria Antiochus IV Epiphanes and [...]

This vegan chocolate cake is real winner though and easy to make.

A great plan for autumn and winter is to roast vegetables. A great plan for the holidays is to pass on the stress for complicated side dishes and just do ‘em up easy style like this dish

Green beans are great! Unless they’re overcooked and slimy or canned. Don’t go down that road this Thanksgiving. Pair them up with some red cabbage for color and much needed Vitamin C, a bit of dill for that unmistakable uplifting flavor, sliced almonds, season, stir and voila. Green beans to eat by the bowl full! [...]

This mushroom soup is so good. The flavour is deep and intensely satisfying without being too heavy or filling. To make the soup even lighter use more wine (why not?) and less or no cream, or serve with a vegetable garnish instead of bread. I braised radicchio and served it on the side for a [...]

It’s starting to rain a lot here in Oregon. The temperature is still pleasant, but winter is definitely on its way. The real news is, our figs have given their last crop for the season. Insert violin music here.
Ok, well in light of this development (winter is upon us). I have decided that my last [...]

That said, there’s something about this particular combination that is quite exquisite. The fig flavour deepens and spreads out into the buttery roasting sauce, which is good enough to want to eat by the spoonful (and you might).

Unripe or green figs are quite hard and when freshly picked they bleed a milky liquid that is sticky and bitter. However, green figs that have been cooked for a long time with ample sugar and spices produce a marvelous treat! Yisil Incir Receli (Green Fig Jam) is a recipe from a Marvelous book I [...]

From FTY Autumn Newsletter a variation on a recipe from “Vegetable Soups From Deborah Madison’s Kitchen”.
Smoky Tomato Bisque
Serves 4
Preparation time 45 minutes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
5 garlic cloves, slivered
1 tablespoon Spanish smoked paprika (more to taste)
4 pounds of ripe Beefsteak tomatoes, cut into chunks
4 slices of bread, torn into [...]

It’s that time of the year when things are starting to go crazy in the plant world. The harvest is coming in. Depending on where you are in the world it might be tomato time, a fruit fiasco, cucumbers galore, all of the above and more. “Putting up” or preserving food by pickling, canning, jarring [...]

Ooh Basil! I’m still going strong with “l’herb royal“ and concocted a whole basil mezze platter. Basil- quinoa bread (wheat free… I used oat flour which is fine for people with wheat sensitivities but not fine for those who are truly gluten intolerant…), Fresh herb charmoula, olive tapenade (both with basil of course) and a [...]

Servings: 2 cups
Ingredients
4 cups of packed basil leaves
2 cups of virgin olive oil
Preparation
Combine basil and olive oil in a blender.
Puree the mixture until smooth.
In a saucepan, simmer the olive oil and basil puree over medium heat for 45 seconds.
Pour the heated mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl to remove the basil.
Let the mixture [...]

Ok! So I better get going to make good on my promise to do three recipes for IOTM this month. The strawberries are just now beginning to ease up on their production and the raspberries are moving in full force. We have huge rhubarb busting out of it’s bicycle-tire planter and some pretty succulent basil. [...]

The month of June in Oregon is quite fantastic. I can’t believe the abundance of fresh food everywhere I go… Not only in my garden, but grocery stores, roadside stands and farmer’s markets abound with overwhelming varieties of greens, spring onions, herbs, and in the last week the berries have begun taking front stage in [...]