Eggplant and goat cheese sandwiches in fire-roasted tomato sauce

GUYS it’s been forever since I’ve posted a recipe, but I had to put this one down on paper (“paper” – haha), because I’ve been making it all the time. So you know it’s tried and true!

7-layer Greek hummus dip

One of my favorite parts about a dinner party is the time right after the guests arrive. Your house is freshly cleaned, candles are lit, dinner is in the oven, and everyone has a fresh cocktail in hand. Your work is done, and you can just relax and spend time with your guests for a little it before serving dinner.

Dinner will soon be served, but you’ve prepared and have some appetizers out for everyone to enjoy. I like to have a few options of appetizers, with one being a healthier option, and this 7-layer greek hummus dip is my new go-to.

Crispy Lemon Leek Chickpea Fritters

Are you looking for a new meatless monday option? Something a bit different, maybe? I hear ya, and I have the perfect thing for you.

Coconut almond granola

It’s Sunday, and for me, that means getting prepared for the work week ahead, and one of the major ways I do that is by meal planning.

To prep for my week ahead, on Sundays, I like to visit my Pinterest board, instagram, and other bookmarked websites, and pick out which meals I want to cook for the week. I usually cook one or two new meals each week, and then mix it in with tried-and-true meals, such as repeat meals from my blog, or recipes I know that I love. I type up an email with the meals planned for each day of the week, adding a link to the recipe. Then I go into my shopping list app (I use AnyList, which I love), and add all the ingredients I need for each of the recipes. Then, grocery shopping is quick and easy.

Taking this extra step of planning my meals means that I don’t ever have to make last-minute runs to the grocery store after work, and it also means I waste less food, because I have a plan for everything that I buy.

Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Walnut Dressing

This recipe was a really awesome find. I usually find my recipes in Pinterest, but this one, I actually found on YouTube. In the past year or so, I’ve started watching Bon Appetit’s YouTube episodes, and one of my favorite chefs to watch is Molly Baz. One of her recent recipes is one for a delicious side dish – crispy smashed potatoes with a salty, oil-based walnut dressing, served over a bed of sour cream and fresh herbs.

I thought it sounded delicious so I gave it a try, and oh man, it did not disappoint.

Ep. 7 – India – Spiked Shikanji + Samosas

For Episode 7 of Cocktails Under Quarantine, we’re traveling to India.

If you’re new to my series, each Friday during this time of social distancing I choose a different theme, and under that theme I create both a cocktail and a snack. So far my themes have involved cocktails from a certain country. I’ve been loving doing this so much, I probably won’t want to stop once isolation ends — I have so many more ideas! Here’s what we’ve done so far:

• Episode 1: France – French 75 + Blue cheese tart
• Episode 2: Northern Italy – Aperol Spritz + Parmesan crisps
• Episode 3: Cuba – Mojito + Empanadas
• Episode 4: USA – Old Fashioned + Bourbon balls
• Episode 5: Spain – Sangria + Potato Omelette
• Episode 6: Australia – Floral Frosé + Anzac Biscuits

This week was an especially fun one – India. When I think of India, I have plenty of food options that come to mind, but a cocktail wasn’t immediately jumping to mind. That is, until I saw an episode of Bon Appetit on YouTube where the chefs make their favorite cocktail. One of the chefs, Priya, made a spiked shikanji, and it was such a unique drink that I could not wait to try it.

“Pantry Pull” Vegan Chickpea Puttanesca

This recipe is the very first vegan recipe that I made.

Well, it was the first recipe that I remember making as an on-purpose vegan dish. Of course, I would have made accidentally vegan recipes many times before (i.e. every time I dipped carrots in hummus), but this is the recipe that sticks out in my mind as my first venture into cooking vegan.

Creamy roasted mushroom and brie soup

O.M.G.

Guys.

This soup.

I wish I could describe just how incredible this soup is. This creamy mushroom soup is the Cadillac of all mushroom soups. It is silky smooth, thick, filling, and full of incredibly complex, earthy flavors. The heavenliness of this soup is in large part due to the secret ingredient, a wheel of brie cheese.

Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas

I realized recently, when looking back at the recipes I’ve posted, especially my vegetarian recipes, that many of them include sweet potato. I’ve always loved sweet potatoes, and it’s really starting to show.

In this case, the sweet potatoes are going inside enchiladas. Rolled up inside these fluffy flour tortillas are a creamy, flavorful mashed sweet potato mixture, and black beans. Once the enchiladas are nestled snugly in the dish, then they’re topped with a tangy green enchilada sauce. The best part is that inside the enchiladas is a special ingredient that kicks things up a notch.

Smashed chickpea avocado sandwich

On the average day, you’ll normally find me eating leftovers for lunch. I am a full-time (and often, more-than-full-time) CPA, and so leftovers are just easy to bring to work for lunch. But on the weekends, I like to try the occasional lunch meal that would be too much effort to bring to work.

This smashed chickpea sandwich is a recipe I’d had saved for a long time – maybe even years – but had never found time to try, given my average lunch is just leftovers. But a few weekends ago, I finally gave it a try. (And I’m so glad I did!)