Lunches

Fava Bean Season is Upon Us

30 May 2010 by Jean Johnson
If you have Hippie Kitchen you'll see this picture on page 52. I choose to show off the fava beans in their pods rather than the actual dish because they have been so maligned. Typical instructions in American cookbooks are to do not pass go and double peel the beans--first ...

Thrift + Creativity = Empowerment + Joy

7 May 2010 by Jean Johnson
I'm including these Astonishing Muffins in Grow Your Own, accompaniment as they are to Laurel & Carol's Astonishing Spinach Salad. I don't have the recipe written up just yet, but I did dutifully put dried apricots in along with walnuts. Just the kind of muffin people would think is fun ...

Corn Crescents with Avocado for Justine

6 May 2010 by Jean Johnson
Corn Crescents with Avocado for Justine These little stovetop cornbreads are quick, warm, crowd pleasers. On tours I make them round, stuffed with cheese or refried beans drawing on gorditas and empanadas as my guide. In April 2010, though, Justine, a Facebook pal from Southern California, shipped a box of avocadoes ...

Laurel & Carol’s Astonishing Salad

by Jean Johnson
This is verbatim from Grow Your Own, the third in my measurefree kitchen companion trilogy that comes out this November. Laurel Robertson, who wrote Laurel’s Kitchen with Carol Flinders, is some kind of woman. This salad is adapted from their pages where they titled it “Astonishing.” I’ve made it many ...

Flash Cooking’s Where It’s At

14 April 2010 by Jean Johnson
Flash cooking is the heart of my kitchen scene. It nets me plenty of fresh seasonal vegetables in short order--warm salad style. I've talked about it many times here on the blog, but people resonate with the idea so, that we did a video. It's a 6 minute clip from ...

Corn Cakes with Pepper Jack

14 March 2010 by Jean Johnson
These puppies get more than passing notice. They go with spicy breakfasts and function as fresh bread come lunch or dinner time. They also work baked up as small fry for starters. Like neighbor, Patrick Earnest, said, “We really enjoyed the other night with everyone. The little pancakes had to ...

Flash Cooking & Asparagus

23 May 2009 by Jean Johnson
Flash cooking is the term I've coined for getting veggies ready pronto. Here's the way I describe the technique in Hippie Kitchen, the second in my measurefree trilogy due out this fall: Flash Cooking To flash cook vegetables, start with a puddle of water, spices if you’re in the mood, and ...

Rolled Ups (Crepes) for Mother’s Day

8 May 2009 by Jean Johnson
Crepes if you must, but as in the recipe below from Cooking Beyond Measure (page 38), we just call these easy babies Rolled Ups. Crepes have an aura of being special--and hard to make. Special, yes. But au contraire on the latter. For those who really think crepes are beyond them, ...

Cooking for the New Economy, Thai-Style

10 April 2009 by Jean Johnson
Who better than to take cues for economizing than the Thais. For centuries these creative southeast Asian cooks from  have used local, seasonal ingredients and a flair for building flavor right in the bowl to regale eaters far and wide. Americans, in particular, have fallen in love with Thai food ...

Soupy Soup with Cauliflower and Limas

28 March 2009 by Jean Johnson
Soupy Soup, a dish from Cooking  Beyond Measure, is named after the elderly lady doggie who used to live next door. The spring day I first pulled the soup together, the weather was warm enough to draw me and my bowl outside. Who was waiting by the daffodils but the ...