The Kitchen Operas

Let’s pretend you’re having a dinner party.  And twenty minutes before the guests arrive, you realize you forgot to buy a baguette to go with the stew! What’s a good host to do but make some quick flatbreads? Of course, there’s no time to wait around for dough to rise — but that’s no problem, [...]

This summer I was fortunate to eat again at my favourite west-coast spot: Chez Panisse. As part of my decadent meal, I had a gorgeous salad: “Willey Farms Eggplant & Rocket Salad with Red Onions & Mint” It was so good, I’ve been eating nothing but lemony arugula salads at home.  And then Solveig introduced [...]

One of my absolute favourite foods is Spanakopita — you know, the lovely Greek spinach pastry wrapped in phyllo dough.  Now I love everything to do with spinach, but somehow the flaky pastry/spinach combo is my favourite.  (And to Sarina, I promise I’m working on a vegan version for you, hopefully for October’s Vegan Month [...]

So what’s a girl to do with leftover mung beans?  (Holy cow, a small amount dried turns into a huge amount of cooked mung beans!)  Why, make latkes of course! These would probably be better called fritters, patties, or even croquettes (like my White Bean, Parsley & Chive Croquettes!), but the texture and smell reminds [...]

Alright, on the theme of entertaining, I’ve got another appetizer for you. If you want to impress people with a dip, this is the one to go with. It’s a deep, dark, black olive tapenade. (Photo courtesy of the talented Dominic Tremblay: @d_tremblay on Twitter) And the secret is to use sundried black olives — [...]

So by now (if you are a regular Kitchen Operas reader) you probably know all about my friend Louise. You know, my foodie friend who made macarons with me, who introduced me to turning squash into “jam”, who convinced me I could poach an egg, who has mulberry and quince trees (!), who likes all [...]

There’s a veggie food blog I read, Food Blog and The Dog (Cook Eat Live Vegetarian), where somehow, every post is something I want to eat.  This was especially true of the Butternut Squash and Chickpea Crumble with Caramelised Onions, Cream Cheese & Oaty Cheddar Topping.  Which looked so divine, I had to make it [...]

So earlier this week, I picked up a bag of kelp noodles (the Sea Tangle brand, if you’re wondering), and stuck them in the fridge. “What the heck are kelp noodles????“, you may be asking?  Well, they are just like they sound.  They’re made from kelp (seaweed) and have no taste of their own, so [...]

My friend Tanya makes the best Caesar salad.  Seriously.  I don’t even eat Caesar salad because there can so frequently be sneaky-fish in the dressing (anchovies or Worchestershire sauce) — but this one is veggie-safe! And it is not only so good, it’s so easy.  You’ll be putting it on everything.  I’m dreaming of Caesar [...]

Our January 2011 Challenge comes from Jenni of The Gingered Whisk and Lisa from Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. They have challenged the Daring Cooks to learn how to make a confit and use it within the traditional French dish of Cassoulet. They have chosen a traditional recipe from Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman. [...]