In my former life as a pastry chef at the bakery where I honed my craft, Easter weekend was one of our busiest times of the year. We carefully mapped out our prep work for the week to maximize production and minimize a nervous breakdown come Good Friday. We started our “day” around midnight, pumping […]
Category Archives: What’s Cooking at SRP?
21
Mar
Mar
I spent my childhood on a tiny British Columbian island in the Pacific Northwest called Salt Spring. The region is famous for its incredibly tender and mild-flavored lamb. Sometimes it seemed as if there were more sheep than people, and the locals revered them with an almost cult-like status. The sheep also make abundant souvenir […]
14
Mar
Mar
Lately, we’ve had an influx of beautiful, sunny, and warm weather around these parts—and I’m not complaining! I see hints of green grass peeking through the dry, yellowing blades that linger from our fairly arid winter. The seed pollens of my wild arugula wafted from my veggie garden many years ago, and ever since they’ve […]
07
Mar
Mar
Well, here we are, the beginning of March. I can just feel spring around the corner! Many of you who frequent my blog know that even though I appreciate the downtime of winter, by the start of the year I’m eagerly awaiting the burst of freshness, life, and motion of my all-time favorite season. There […]
28
Feb
Feb
It’s been years since I made a commitment to take back my health and alight from the sugar train. I’ll be honest: eliminating all added sweeteners from my diet has never been the easy for me, and it still isn’t to this day. But the enormous benefits I’ve reaped as a result have made it […]
What’s Cooking at SRP?
Grilled Shrimp, Tomato, and Avocado Fiesta Salad: Craving a Taste of the Tropics
21
Feb
Feb
There comes a time when the excitement of the holidays is over, the motivation and enthusiasm of the new year has waned, and the burst of bustling spring energy still seems far off. This is about the time of year when I get sick of winter, and I start longing for the beach. More specifically, […]
14
Feb
Feb
Growing food in Colorado is a challenging endeavor. Because I come from a fairly balmy Pacific-Northwest climate, I’m used to putting some seeds in the ground and reaping huge rewards with little effort. My plants grew grow massive and lush, and the winters were usually warm enough that I could have a cold frame going […]
07
Feb
Feb
Refresh Your Spice Pantry and Your Palate A well-stocked pantry plays a significant role in preparing healthy, home-cooked meals. It’s also practically indispensable for customizing your meals and keeping your taste buds happy and intrigued. Assorted condiments, vinegars, canned and pickled goods, herbs, and spices can make all the difference in taking your meals to […]
24
Jan
Jan
Versatile and tasty, cauliflower “rice” is one of the newest trends of the times. Formerly confined to a scant few home kitchens, it’s now making waves in the marketplace. You can even find it, premade and packaged, in some grocery store aisles. It’s essentially nothing more than plain old cauliflower that’s pulsed in a food processor to look like rice and then subbed into your favorite recipes instead of such. […]
17
Jan
Jan
The most common explanation I get from people who have difficulties eating a healthy diet is that they lack time to prepare home-cooked, nourishing food. Understandable. The pressure of jobs, commutes, and family responsibilities makes it quite difficult to put nutritious, quick meals on the table each night. For many of us, it’s not a […]
What’s Cooking at SRP?
Chocolate-Dipped Einkorn Shortbread (Two Ways): Pistachio-Cherry & Coconut-Chai Spiced
10
Jan
Jan
One of my all-time favorite quotes is by Aristotle: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not a singular act, but a habit.” A new year is the perfect time for new beginnings and a significant chance to wipe our slate clean of negative habits. Come the start of the January, many of […]
03
Jan
Jan
For many of us, the holiday season is typically full of bustling activity and a veering away from our usual routines. We frequently indulge in too much food and drink, and we feel added pressure to attend social and family functions. Our sleep patterns sway, and we experience even more stress as we strain ourselves […]
27
Dec
Dec
I’d be terribly hard-pressed if I had to choose a favorite international cuisine. I appreciate and enjoy almost all good, wholesome food. And thankfully, today we have an abundance of globally inspired flavors and nutritional benefits at our disposal, so we’re free to experiment and introduce our taste buds to new foods quite easily. Every […]
20
Dec
Dec
I was recently presented with the task of reinventing a classic comfort food found in diners: biscuits and gravy. The challenge was to elevate this dish using real, whole food ingredients. Skeptical at first that I could accomplish this with much success, I was incredibly impressed by the outcome. So much so that I knew […]
13
Dec
Dec
Every family has unique holiday customs they call their own. Growing up in a large, nontraditional, multispiritual family, our rituals were as diverse and distinctive as us. We pulled pages from cultures and religions around the world and imbued them with our own important traditions. Against this backdrop and our collective imagination, we created winter […]
06
Dec
Dec
I wrote last week about staying strong and healthy through the busy holiday season. Nutritious food is one of my most important pillars of self-care, especially around this time of year when illness is aplenty (and downtime not so abundant). One of my secret weapons is to sip on rich, nutritious meat stocks throughout the […]
29
Nov
Nov
This time of year is made for rest and recharging. The cooler temperatures and darker days beckon us to look inward, recover our strength, and give our body, brain, and spirit a break. Unfortunately, this time of year is also very demanding. Expectations and pressures from both others and ourselves are often heightened during the […]
22
Nov
Nov
I’m pretty sure I’ve confessed this before to all you readers, but here I go again: I’m one of those people. I enjoy holiday leftovers far more than the original meal itself. And not simply because when there’s leftovers I have one less dinner to prepare (though occasionally that’s a welcome break). It’s just that […]
15
Nov
Nov
Growing up, I don’t recall ever seeing any heavily sweetened Thanksgiving side dishes on our table. I’m talking candied sweet potatoes with marshmallows, green bean casserole with condensed cream of mushroom soup, and jellied cranberry sauce shaped exactly like the can it came from. Instead, our celebrations were more like the traditional American Thanksgiving, and […]
08
Nov
Nov
Now that fall is upon us in full force, my last yearnings for the crisp and cool flavors of summer have dwindled, and I’m getting into the spirit of all the wonderful, comforting, seasonal ingredients this time of year has to offer. Earthy root vegetables, hearty squash, and juicy pome fruits—the family of fruits with […]