Sole, I’ve decided, is a very forgiving fish to cook with. Though I would likely heed warnings that it might not be the best thing to grill, it’s certainly pliable. Because of its pliability, I decided I wanted to attempt rolling it with some sort of stuffing and baking it.

The first recipe I found was one that called for stuffing the sole with crab meat, from Epicurious. At first this sounded really, really good, but then I ran into a couple of issues. Firstly, we didn’t have any crab meat in the house which, OK, could have been easily remedied by a trip to the grocery store. Secondly, though: the reviews weren’t all that comforting. Many said the crab was just OK or needed some “spiking” to get to be tasty enough with the sole. Then there was the breadcrumbs with the stuffing … I just wasn’t feeling it.

Then I found the recipe noted here: Sole wrapped around asparagus, topped with a beurre blanc sauce. It sounded easy; it sounded delicious; and it looked awesome.

Putting it all together was just as easy as it sounded from the recipe, and though the fish was skinless, it rolled easily around the asparagus without breaking apart. The beurre blanc was also incredibly simple, and was made even easier by the fact that it can be be quickly done during or anytime after the fish is finished cooking.

As you can see from the photo I took above, it really is a beautiful dish. The tangerine juice added to the beurre blanc appears to be more for a colorful accent to the sauce rather than for taste. Sure, it’s flavorful enough, but not as much as I’d have expected. During the steps for making the sauce, it instructs one to add the pan juices from the cooked fish to the beurre blanc; I’m not sure what this added, if anything, so it could likely be skipped.

The rest of the recipe’s instructions were spot on. The fish and asparagus were cooked to perfection. If I had to change anything, I’d look for a way to give the sauce a bit more of a kick in some way, as the most flavorful part of the dish was the asparagus — that just doesn’t seem right.

While not the most flavorful of dishes, I can’t say I won’t ever try this one again. It’s beautiful to look at, but it’s not necessarily what I’d call company food. So why would you bother with it again if only you are enjoying how it looks more than how it tastes? To post photos for everyone to admire, of course.

I may not be writing much lately, but I have been cooking. I’ll get my original recipes posted at some point, but here’s a little taste of some recipes from around the internet I’ve recently tried out.

I mentioned this curried carrot soup in my recent post about souped-up carrot soups, but at that point I hadn’t tried it yet. I loved everything about this recipe. It was the perfect flavor, the perfect texture … the coconut milk, curry powder and fresh ginger was the ultimate combination and my lunches all last week were divine.

This roast pork with garlic and rosemary was incredibly flavorful. We served it for guests with the fig and port sauce I created for roast chicken. This too, is a keeper.

If it’s possible for this fragrant orange chicken to be tastier than the recipe and description implies, then it was. We didn’t even marinate it for 2-4 hours like the recipe calls for and it was still incredibly tasty. It was a huge hit with the 6-year-old too, so we’ll definitely be making this again.

I’ve fallen head over heels for Jamie Oliver’s green chili. It’s different — made with ground pork and sage, with lettuce, scallions and fresh mint. Yes people, it’s a super-healthy chili. Get over it and try it.

Braised beef with carrots is such a simple and delicious recipe … and oh-so-French! I could only think of Julia Child as I kept dumping more wine into the pan. We served this with mashed potatoes and a salad.

And this … this would top off any of these meals to perfection. I had been wanting to try to make a coconut milk flan (or creme brulee, which is next) ever since we discovered La Tartine Gourmande’s recipe for baked lime custards. It was easy and delicious, but next time we’re going to try to spike the caramel with some Chambord and serve it with fresh berries.

I will admit that, in general, I am kind of a health nut. It’s mostly because I was raised to think that way, and I’m sure if my mother was reading this (hi, Mom!) she’d laugh at me, but it’s true. Compared to most people, or at least Americans, I’m a very healthy eater. Lots of fruit and veggies, all-natural and organic, as few byproducts and chemicals as possible, use olive oil instead of butter, leaner cuts of meat, rarely eat red meat – the whole shebang. But if there’s one area that I completely fail at eating healthy, it’s desserts.

Partially, it’s quantity. I just have a massive sweet tooth, and it’s hard to say no to a cupcake when the only interesting thing to eat besides that is a yogurt. And, partially, it’s the fact that when I eat dessert, it’s never healthy (for a dessert), like a piece of chocolate and fruit, or a light coffee cake. No. Whatever. I’m eating dessert. I want it to be bad for me. I want it to be terrible for me. That’s why I’m eating dessert. That, and because when food is bad for you, it’s kind of delicious.

Case in point: the Blanc Manger (or Blancmange). I discovered this tasty confection last summer and instantly fell in love. It’s essentially a whipped cream gelatin, or a very, very light cheesecake. And since whipped cream and cheesecake are two of my favorite desserts, when I saw the recipe I knew I had to make it. Convincing my mother, however, was another story, because she’s one of those healthy dessert people. She’d be all “but it’s so bad for you!” and then I’d be all “but it’s dessert! It’s supposed to be! Plus, it’s got tons of calcium, and aren’t you always saying I need more calcium?” and she was all “yes, but not if you’re going to die of a coronary at the age of 45.”

I finally wore her down and made a traditional peach blanc manger last summer, and it was absolute bliss, but it was, frankly, kind of boring. I could do better. It took another year’s worth of wrangling and begging before getting my mom to give in with a giant sigh to me trying my newest blanc manger experiment, mostly because it was for after Yom Kippur and if there’s one way I can convince her to be unhealthy, it’s with the arguments of “but it’s a holiday!” and “I’m taking it to other people’s house, so I’m not going to eat all of it”.

My idea was simple — I wanted to start experimenting with spices and taking desserts to a more exotic place, and I’d set my eyes on cardamom to serve that purpose once I read that it was often used in fruit dishes in Middle Eastern cuisine. Originally I was going to pair it with figs, but I’d never worked with figs before, and so that left me a little gun shy. Instead to keep it out of the ordinary, I mixed in some cinnamon and nutmeg with the cardamom, and threw in a little espresso powder so it had a Turkish coffeehouse feel to it. (I say having never left this country for anywhere more exotic than Canada.)

A traditional blanc manger is served either out of a custard bowl or over sponge cake, and more modern ones are served over a graham cracker crust, so I tossed that aside for a ground almond crust and voila! This cake/blanc manger/not-really-a-torte-but-close-enough was a huge hit. It was delicious. And you know why it’s delicious?

It’s really, really bad for you.

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Julia’s Coffee House Torte

Crust:
2 cups ground almonds
½ cup butter, softened
¼ tsp cinnamon
1 tbl sugar

Cake:
1½ cups heavy cream
¾ tsp cardamom
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
¾ cup whole milk
¾  cup ground almonds
½ cup sugar
1 generous tbl instant espresso powder
¼ ounce packet of gelatin
3 tablespoons cold water
2 tsp vanilla extract
Optional: Chocolate chips/shavings for garnish

1. First, create the crust by mixing the almonds, butter, cinnamon, and sugar together. You can use a fork if you’re squeamish, but hands work best. Mix until it’s a soft, consistent texture, and then press into the bottom of a springform pan. The size of the pan isn’t terribly important since this is a no-bake recipe. I used a 10″ pan because that’s what we have at my house, and it turned out a flatter cake. If you want a thicker cake, I suggest an 8″ pan. If the butter got very soft from the heat of your hands, put the crust in the refrigerator to chill.
2. Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the cream, cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg until cream holds soft peaks. Do not over-beat, or you’ll get butter. Put whipped cream to the side, or refrigerate if it’s warm out.
3. Get a pot (and make sure it’s big enough to hold the whipped cream you just made, because that will go in there eventually), and pour together the milk, almonds, sugar, and espresso powder. Put on medium to low heat until the sugar and espresso dissolve and the mixture is consistent. Stir occasionally to make sure the milk doesn’t scald.
4. While your milk mixture is heating up, prepare an ice bath for the pan.
5. In a small, microwave-safe bowl, empty the gelatin packet, and then add water. Mix with a fork until the gelatin is spongy, and then heat in the microwave for fifteen seconds, just long enough for it to turn liquid. Pour the liquid gelatin in the milk mixture and immediately remove the pot from the heat.
6. Put the pot in the ice bath to cool it. Add in vanilla, and stir liquid until it’s cool, but do not leave the milk in so long that it begins to gel.
7. Once the mixture is cool, gently fold in your whipped cream, mixing until the color is consistent.  Spread over the almond crust, and then place in the refrigerator. Ideally set to gel overnight, but gel for at least three hours before serving.
8. When you are ready to serve, take out of the refrigerator and garnish with chocolate, if desired. Before you take the cake out of the springform pan, be sure to run a butter knife around the edge to separate. Keep any leftovers refrigerated.

Each week, fabulous recipes grace Debbie’s in-box and pop up on her computer screen, and she’s sharing her favorites with you.

I just can’t stop thinking about comfort food. Last week was that kind of week. I made Shepherd’s pie, a big batch of my lentil vegetable soup and pasta with homemade pesto and sausage. If there’s one good thing about winter, comfort food is it.

It’s no wonder that my weekly collection of recipes are pretty much all comfort foods. Homemade vegetable bouillon can make countless soups, turkey meatloaf speaks for itself and white lentil soup with chorizo and paprika cream (with a poached egg) couldn’t be more comforting if served in an afghan. Not quite sure if pizza counts, but you can’t miss drooling over the duck pizza recipe, so read on!

Heidi Swanson, my culinary hero (or one of them) has done it again. I never would have thought to make homemade vegetable bouillon, but if you have salt and a food processor, you can do it with ease. I love that I can control the amount of saltiness this way, and also the type of salt, because I find many store-bought bouillons far too salty for my tastes. Exciting!

Someone please explain to me why this recipe for turkey meatloaf caught my eye. I have never made a meatloaf before and we really don’t eat like that in my house. For some reason the simplicity of this comfort food got to me and I really think I’m ready to try a good ol’ fashioned meatloaf. Can I still be a food snob if I eat meatloaf?

Or pot roast? Kelly Estes posted her recipe for pot roast on her new blog, Hot Cookin‘. With my penchant for whole foods, I can’t see myself ever making a recipe with a soup mix as an ingredient, but it looks as though her pot roast came out spectacularly!

OK, I’m back to being a food snob with this recipe for white lentil soup with chorizo and paprika cream. The thing is, it’s still comfort food and it’s still very easy to make. Now this is the way we usually eat in this house! Incidentally, La Tartine Gourmande is fast becoming a favorite of mine….

Just to solidify my standing as food snob after my strange deviance with the meatloaf recipe, I’ll add in this duck pizza with hoisin and scallions. Dude, who would do that to a pizza? Oh me, definitely me.

Tell us about your favorite comfort foods, so we all can drool while curled up in our afghans.

As I’ve written before, those stuck at home with a five-year-old don’t generally party on New Year’s Eve, but that doesn’t stop this household from enjoying a delicious celebratory meal to ring in the New Year. In fact, last night we decided to invite the kid to join us rather than sneaking our meal after his bedtime.

It was the best decision we’ve made: not only did we all have a wonderful, unhurried meal (that was not at 9:00 at night!) but Owen set the dining room table and arranged a festive centerpiece. Since he was so invested in our celebration, he was the best company we could have asked for (other than turning rack of lamb into a finger food, but that’s just a little thing….).

We kept it simple so we wouldn’t be slaving away in the kitchen all evening. White bean dip with sun-dried tomatoes and roasted garlic was the perfect appetizer for munching-while-cooking, and rack of lamb (bought pre-seasoned from Trader Joe’s) is as simple as plopping it on a pan and baking for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. We put a tray of halved Brussels sprouts in with the lamb and turned the oven up to 400 degrees convection bake at the end for a few minutes to roast them all yummy and brown.

Three more things and our meal was complete:

• Edamame and fresh basil risotto … I’ll post the recipe soon!
• A sauce made with shallots, all-fruit preserves (Trader Joe’s Super Fruit Spread), balsamic vinegar and butter, based on this one from Rachael Ray
• a divine Chateauneuf du Pape

We hope you enjoyed your New Year’s eve food as much as we did ours … and that you’ll share what you ate in the comments! Happy New Year!

I’m sure you’ve fallen into the same trap with your kids. No matter how healthy you try to be, as soon as they’re old enough to start ordering their own food at restaurants, they discover the kids’ meals… and the French fries. I really have a bone to pick with pretty much every restaurant in the northern hemisphere, because if they didn’t celebrate the French fry as a vegetable, then perhaps children across America would be eating more broccoli.

Nevertheless, the four-year-old loves French fries, so we give him French fries, often and in great, heaping quantities. But stop! Before you report me to the Department of Social Services, we make him oven-roasted potatoes cut in the shape of French fries, and he doesn’t know the difference. And yes, mine are as crunchy — sometimes crunchier — than the deep-fried versions at your local watering hole… uh, I mean restaurant where you’d appropriately take your kid. Yep, that’s what I mean.

Oven-Roasted French Fries

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Ingredients:

• 3 very large and very fresh potatoes (I used Yukon Gold tonight)
• olive oil
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

I know, the list of ingredients is freakishly small, but go with it. They’re perfect.

Now here’s the trick: the technique, or should I say the process. Start by cutting your potatoes to a uniform size, using a mandoline if you have one. You can toss the cut potatoes in olive oil and spread them evenly on a roasting sheet, or you can spray the pan with olive oi, spread out the potatoes and spray again.

Then, season with salt and pepper.

Cook at 400 degrees convection roast if you have it, or 425 degrees bake, flipping potatoes halfway through cooking time. Cook for approximately 30 minutes or when potatoes are a deep, golden brown. Then shut off your oven and leave them in for 5 more minutes. You can also put the potatoes in the oven before it reaches the desired temperature. This is they key to getting them crunchy, so don’t leave out the low temperature cooking part.

Well, it’s also important to use potatoes as fresh as you can get and as starchy as you can get, because they will definitely turn out crunchier.

So go — make your kids happy and feed them healthy potatoes… they’ll never know.

I make salad nicoise a lot. I mean a lot. And I’ve never made it the same way twice. Sometimes, I do it very traditionally and pared down, with just greens, potatoes, green beans, olives and tuna. Other times, I’ll make a salad nicoise with a twist, and change out the olives for capers and the tuna for salmon.

This time, though, I made the perfect salad nicoise, and I can guarantee I’ll be making this one more than twice. It’s hard to tell exactly where the magic lies, since it’s not that different from other salad nicoises that I’ve made. It could be the fresh herbs in the dressing, or maybe the fact that I used canned tuna instead of a fancy hunk of grilled fish. There were little bites of fish in every mouthful and I loved getting that flavor throughout. It might also be that I generously sprinkled the whole she-bang with feta cheese.

Whatever the secret may be, this one’s worth trying, then tucking away in a super safe place, because you’re going to want to make it again — trust me.

Perfect Salad Nicoise
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Ingredients:

• about 8 cups mixed greens (I used romaine and mesclun mix)
• about 5 red potatoes, chopped into 1-2 inch cubes and boiled until done
• about 5 cups of green beans, lightly steamed
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 2 cans tongol tuna, crumbled
• 1 red onion, chopped and microwaved for 2 minutes to take the edge off
• Kalamata olives to taste
• feta cheese crumbles to taste

For dressing:

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1.5 teaspoons stone ground mustard
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh sage and thyme
• 1 clove garlic, minced and microwaved for 1 minute to take the edge off

Whisk together dressing ingredients and toss all ingredients together with the dressing.

This recipe was — dare I say it — even better the next day. The flavors melded together magically overnight, when usually leftover salad is wilted and gross, this was still … perfect.

I probably make salad nicoise far too often. Let’s face it — it’s embarrassingly easy to steam green beans, boil potatoes and toss it all together with salad, olives and tuna. It makes the perfect dinner salad.

In an effort to mix things up a bit, I really rocked my family’s world last night when I served them salmon instead of tuna, used capers instead of olives, and I made a lemon vinaigrette instead of my usual nicoise dressing. Yeah, it was super exciting.

And did I mention super easy? Yeah, I guess I did, but I wanted to make sure you caught that part.

Salmon Salad Nicoise

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Ingredients:

• 4-6 potatoes, boiled whole then cut in large bite-sized chunks
• 1 pound (or so) green beans, trimmed and steamed
• greens of your choice (I used baby spinach and mesclun mix)
• 1 shallot, finely chopped and slightly cooked (30 seconds in microwave)
• 1 pound salmon, seasoned and grilled as rare as you dare
• 1 tablespoon of capers per serving (about 4)

For dressing, whisk together:

• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• the tiniest pinch of sea salt
• a generous sprinkling of freshly ground pepper

Toss first four ingredients together with the dressing, and prepare on a plate. Top with a serving of salmon and a tablespoon of capers and you’ve got yourself a dinner salad, baby.

You can’t go wrong with Crock Pot Black Bean Chili — beans for protein and fiber, peppers for vitamin C, and herbs and spices for all of their numerous health benefits. If you leave off the cheese, you’ve got yourself a dairy-free and gluten-free meal. Serve with your favorite corn bread and a mesclun salad.

Crockpot Chicken Curry is loaded with zesty flavors, from fresh ginger root and mango chutney to crushed red pepper and cilantro. This one could be — dare I say it? — company food. Serve it over brown rice.

For some fine French fare, Three Bean Cassoulet fits the bill, and it’s healthy to boot. Legumes times three! You know you want to bake some of Jen’s baguette (add the rosemary!) to go with this one.

You may have noticed that I like vegetarian dishes done in the slow cooker. It’s an easy way to eat veggies, and the legumes always come out perfectly. So try this Squash, Chick Pea and Red Lentil Stew; it’s North African inspired — a little sweet, somewhat spicy and definitely hearty.

Greek Chicken and Vegetable Ragout is a mix of wholesome veggies, lean chicken and that lemony Greek sauce that makes my mouth water just writing about it. Soak up that sauce with some Psomi — Greek bread.

Whole foods make up all of these slow cooker recipes. You can use your slow cooker, save time preparing your meals, and still stick to your healthy lifestyle. Steer clear of the canned soup aisle in the supermarket and make no compromises!

Portions of this post were originally posted by me on That’s Fit.

I know, I’m paying attention — Valentine’s Day was yesterday. In our household, though, Sunday is the big breakfast day, the one that we linger over , savoring every delectable bite… as our four-year-old begs for cartoons and computer time. But hey, we take what we can get, and the kid does know how to eat, so we enjoy cooking some elaborate breakfasts on Sunday mornings.

So here are some extra-special breakfast recipes you can celebrate with or sink your teeth into on any ol’ weekend morning.

Camembert and Apple Omelette with Champagne Normande — Yes, apple and cheese is divine any way you serve it, but wrapped in eggy goodness and served with a champagne cocktail elevates it to new levels of Yum.

Fresh Fruit Omelet — This isn’t just egg with fruit shoved inside it, people; this is a spectacular creation with creme fraiche, honey, cinnamon and goat cheese.

This collection of Valentine’s Day breakfast recipes includes Belgian waffles with cherry sauce and stuffed French toast, just to name a couple. There are some breakfast casseroles too.

Heart-shaped Egg in a Nest — C’mon, get yourself a heart-shaped cookie cutter and try this easy (cutesy… ) toast with a twist. Awwww….

And here’s a healthy version of stuffed French toast that gets the green light even for diabetics.

I’ve gotta say it: holidays centered around unhealthy food really drive me crazy. I hate that Halloween is all about candy, and the sugary junk meant to say “I love you” is running rampant right now. With Owen’s food allergies and sensitivities, it’s hard going to playgroups, get-togethers, even school without running into foods he can’t eat.

It’s something Owen is used to, so he’s very good about it, and I bake healthy, Owen-friendly treats often so he’s not deprived of special foods we all love.

Owen loves breakfast food and coconut milk, so when I saw this delicious recipe for crepes with strawberry filling and coconut creme, I knew I’d found a winner. It’s an easy recipe to make with very few ingredients, it’s got a festive red filling with strawberry preserves and fresh strawberries, and the dollup of coconut creme is the perfect topping.

Do you have any favorite recipes that are food-allergy sensitive?

A pizza topping combination that’s just unique enough to excite you.  One that’s just traditional enough to make you feel all warm and fuzzy. Definitely one that’ll make you salivate. Have you tried roasted garlic and peppers pizza?

Anything roasted is a big hit at our house — even broccoli! So imagine the smoky, tangy roasted pepper combined with the spicy, slightly sweet flavor of roasted garlic, all smothered in cheese, with onions, sun-dried tomatoes and fresh parsley.

Probably you won’t find it at your local pizza joint, but it’s easy enough to make.

Recipe Pizza has an easy-to-follow recipe for roasted garlic and peppers pizza that you might like to try. They just make it on a pre-made crust, but I’d suggest making your own dough, either from scratch or using your bread machine. It’s worth the extra effort if you care at all for the way your pizza actually tastes.

And here’s the lineup of toppings they include in this pizza recipe (a keeper!):

• roasted garlic
• roasted onions
• roasted red peppers
• sun-dried tomatoes
• dried basil (I’d use fresh)
• fresh parsley
• mozzarella cheese
• feta cheese

C’mon! I’m salivating, and planning this to be my pizza for next week. If there’s anything you need to know, I’ll report back! What do you think — does it sound amazing, or what?