However, I’m really bad at taking sick days. I simply just don’t know how to be still, and I certainly can’t stay in bed and drink tea all day. I attempted to stay in bed today, but it didn’t happen. I was too tempted by the promise of a french press of coffee and a good book.

I trudged up the stairs to the kitchen with the intent of making coffee, and was nearly blinded by the sun streaming through the kitchen windows. Everything was bathed in light…it was just gorgeous. I made coffee and read Game of Thrones, and basked in the sunlight. The coffee warmed my stomach and the sunshine warmed my soul. Suddenly, I felt a lot better.

And then I saw my jars of preserved lemons, sitting on the counter and they looked so pretty with the light shining on them. They’ve been sitting on the counter for a week, taunting me. Preserved lemons take nearly a month to fully preserve, so for now I just have to look at the pretty little jars of lemons. I can’t actually enjoy them yet. For now, they’re just really lovely to look at.

Since they looked so lovely in the sunlight, I decided to take a few photos and share the recipe.

I’ve never made my own preserved lemons before, but I’ve cooked with them and enjoyed them in many a delicious dish. Preserved lemons are mainly found in the dishes from India, North Africa, and Morocco – but they can be used in a myriad of different dishes. I plan on using my preserved lemons in a number of different ways: lamb tagine, roast chicken, pastas, soups, salad dressings, and more.

PRESERVED LEMONS
Adapted from Burwell General Store
Makes 3 jars

Ingredients:

15-20 meyer lemons*
about a cup and a half of kosher (or pickling) salt
3 bay leaves (1 per jar)
15 black peppercorns (5 per jar)
3 pieces of cinnamon stick (1 per jar)
3 cardamom pods
6 whole allspice berries (2 per jar)

*You could use regular lemons, but I prefer Meyer Lemons. They’re a touch sweeter and I think they taste wonderful once preserved.

Method:

1. Wash the lemons. Slice off the top of each lemon and then cut the lemons into quarters, but only make each cut 3/4 of the way through the lemon so that the quarters do not fully separate. (See here for a visual). Rub salt into the cuts of each lemon.

2. Pour a 1/4 inch of salt into 3 clean and sterilized jars (enough to cover the bottom of the jar). Start packing lemons into each jar, and press each lemon down firmly so that it releases juice. Salt each layer between the lemons. Pack the jars with as many lemons as you can, pressing the lemons firmly to ensure they release juice. Add spices to the jar, salt the top, and seal the jar. Give the jar a good shake.

3. Leave the jars in a cool, dark place (Note: mine were in the sun, and I’ve since moved them!). Shake each jar once a day. The jar will gradually fill up with lemon juice over the next couple of days. If the jar doesn’t fill up to 3/4 full in the first 2 days, add some extra fresh squeezed lemon juice to the jar.

They lemons will be ready to use after a month, and should keep for up to one year. Enjoy!

My heart is still bursting from all the good things that happened this week, and I feel the need to say thank you. I’d like to thank Leela Cyd again for her amazing photography skills and for featuring my kitchen on The Kitchn. I’d like to say hello (and welcome!) to any new readers that discovered my blog this week because of that post. And lastly, I want to say I’m humbled and honored by all of your responses to The Kitchn feature. I’m so glad you like my kitchen (and my bunny!).

It’s been quite the week at our house, and as a result, I’ve had zero time in the kitchen. Thankfully, I had a 3-day weekend (thank you, Presidents!) and so I took advantage of the extra time to dive into kitchen projects.

I will admit, I don’t do a lot of canning and preserving in the winter. I don’t grow a winter garden, and so my access to fresh and seasonal produce is somewhat limited. But, there are always onions. It seems that no matter what time of year it is, I can find boxes of onions at the farmer’s market. They grow year-round and they store well. Even in the dead of winter, onions are plentiful. So, I decided to preserve some onions. And let me tell you, making a big batch of savory onion jam is a great way to preserve onions.

I understand that onion jam might sound weird to some, but I promise you that it is totally delicious. Onion jam is somewhere between a fruit jam and a vegetable relish. It has hints of sweetness, but it’s also dark and savory. I got the idea to make the jam from my friend Beyth, who always brings a few jars of her onion jam to the PDX Food Swap. I’ve sampled her onion jam quite a few times and I’m always so impressed by its versatility. I’ve had onion jam on a grilled cheese sandwich. I’ve eaten it on a burger. I’ve had it paired with wine, cheese, and crackers. It never fails: onion jam is good with (almost) everything.

If you’re still not convinced, let me give you a few other ideas of how to use onion jam:

You can spread it on toast.
You could eat it with a bagel and cream cheese.
Try pairing it with steak. Or pork tenderloin sliders.
You could make a potato and rosemary tart with onion jam.
Make a salad dressing with it.
You could add it to rib-eye tacos.
You could include it on a pizza with fresh ricotta.

And so on and so forth…I think you get the idea. This is a very versatile little spread.

So, if you’ve got the itch to do a little canning or preserving this winter, I highly recommend this recipe. This particular recipe makes 4-5 jars, so it’s great for sharing (or keeping it all for yourself. I won’t judge.)

SAVORY ONION JAM WITH ROSEMARY
(Adapted from Serious Eats)
Makes 4-5 8 ounce jars

Ingredients:
3 pounds sweet yellow onions (about 10 large onions), peeled and sliced thinly
1/4 cup olive oil
6 sprigs of fresh rosemary
2 sprigs fresh (or dried) thyme
3 bay leaves
3 to 4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup red wine
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup white sugar

Method:

Heat olive oil large pot or stock pot (with a tight fitting lid) over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add in onion slices and stir until all onions are coated in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and add in bay leaves, rosemary and thyme sprigs.

Place the lid snugly on the pot, and simmer the onion mixture for 15-20 minutes. The onions should have lost a lot of their liquid at this point.

Remove the lid and add in both vinegars, red wine, honey, and sugar. Add in a bit more black pepper, as well as the red chili flakes. Allow to simmer over medium-low heat, uncovered, until half the liquid is gone (about 20 minutes).

Once half of the liquid is reduced, remove the bay leaves, thyme, and rosemary sprigs. Taste, and add more salt (or sugar) if needed. Allow the mixture to simmer until the liquid is reduced and the jam is thick, dark, and sticky (30+ minutes). Be careful not to let the mixture burn.

Transfer to clean & sterilized jars. Seal the jars and store in the fridge. The jam will keep for 3-4 weeks. (Note: The original recipe says that you can preserve the jam via water-bath canning but I personally do not believe there is enough acid to safely can this jam. If you would like to keep the jam for a long time, I suggest freezing it.)

Let me list the reasons why…

*I woke up this morning in a terrible funk. My husband (who works in coffee) had to work at 5am and I woke up to the sounds of our cat tearing about the house. I trudged up the stairs to yell at the cat, only to discover that my husband was definitely not at work. Rather, he was in the kitchen whisking up hollandaise for a Valentine’s breakfast for us!

*Nich and I decided to forgo the traditional Valentine’s date, and instead opted to go to a Portland Trailblazers game this evening. We splurged on nice seats and we’re going to eat burgers and drink crappy beer (and we’ll probably yell at the refs a few times). Honestly, I can’t think of a better way to spend Valentine’s day.

*The big news of the day is that my funny little vintage kitchen is featured on The Kitchn today (!!!). The lovely and talented Leela Cyd took photos of our kitchen last week and I’m so flattered that she thought our kitchen was worthy! She also took a lot of pictures of Lil Omar during the photo shoot, which is awesome. If that little bunny doesn’t fill your heart with love, I don’t know what will.

*My friend Kirsten posted a two-part interview with me on her blog, Food is a Love Story. If you want to know my thoughts on Paula Deen, cake pops, and bacon, you should head on over to Kirsten’s blog. (Plus, her blog is just really great. Bookmark it!)

*This past week, I had a guest post on AskChefDennis.com. My post was a recipe for Slow Cooker Tomato-Basil Soup. It’s a great twist on a classic recipe, and I highly encourage you to head over to his site to check it out!

*I have a few fun projects in the works; namely, I’m catering a dinner for the speakers of the Justice Conference. I’m excited for the opportunity to further hone my catering skills. Plus, this means I get to cook dinner for Shane Claiborne! (My sister is super jealous).

Last, but certainly not least…

I made a Valentine’s Day playlist called ‘ALL IS FULL OF LOVE‘ on Spotify. I happen to think it’s the perfect soundtrack for today. Not all of the songs are romantic, but they all remind me of the person I love. I have specific and wonderful memories with so many of these songs. (For example, I walked down the aisle to Arcade Fire’s ‘Intervention’ and our first dance as a married couple was to Tom Waits ‘You can Never Hold Back Spring’.) These songs are special to me and I feel love in each one of them. I hope that you enjoy them.

And wherever you are, I hope that your life is full of love in all it’s forms.

I hope that your cup runneth over.

Happy Valentine’s Day!
-Lindsay

I’m super pleased to announce that my recipe for Slow Cooker Tomato-Basil Soup is the featured guest post over at AskChefDennis.com today!

I’m honored to be a guest on Dennis’ blog, and I encourage you all to stop by his site to check out the recipe…

Let me explain…

First of all, I made these stuffed poblano peppers for this month’s Recipe Swap. If you aren’t familiar, the recipe swap consists of 25 foodies and writers from all over the world, and each month we re-interpret a vintage recipe (selected by Christianna of Burwell General Store) and post our creations on the first Sunday of the month. This month, Christianna asked us to re-create a recipe for Wild Rice Dressing.

I was really excited to dive into this recipe. I love wild rice, and felt that this recipe could so easily be re-interpreted in a number of interesting ways. The possibilities were endless!

Which brings me to the second bird I killed with this post. This weekend, I went to a dinner party with friends out at a gorgeous Bed & Breakfast in Dundee. My friend Mari was making Pork Molé for the main course, and I wanted to bring a side dish that would compliment the molé. While dreaming up my dinner party side dish, I also realized that I still needed to make something for this month’s recipe swap. And thus the idea of Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce was born.

The stuffed peppers were a fantastic tribute to the wild rice stuffing and they were the perfect compliment to pork molé tacos. (If you’re counting, that’s two birds…)

The third bird was more of a happy accident. I had a whole bunch of the quinoa and filling leftover, so I decided to make these stuffed peppers again for the Superbowl. I’m not a huge football fan, but I do like to use the Superbowl as an excuse to eat a lot of snack food and watch a few good commercials. And since I was asked to post a recipe on Superbowl Sunday, I think it is completely appropriate to make said recipe for a Superbowl snack! (Confession: this is the one day a year I allow myself to eat Doritos. Specifically, Salsa Verde Doritos. They’re so bad, but so good.)

So with one post, I created a recipe for the swap, a side dish that paired nicely with pork molé, and a radical Superbowl snack. Huzzah!

With that being said, happy Recipe Swap and happy Superbowl Sunday! If I were you, I’d skip the Madonna halftime show and instead I’d recommend you visit the Recipe Swap page to see all the amazing creations my fellow swappers made! ;)

Quinoa Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Roasted Red Pepper Cream Sauce

For the Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
1 cup roasted red peppers
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (+ 1 teaspoon of the adobo sauce)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin

For the Quinoa Stuffed Peppers:
4 Poblano peppers
1.5 cups cooked quinoa (I used a tri-color quinoa blend, but any quinoa will work)
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 carrots, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
1 heaping cup roughly chopped swiss chard
1 can of black beans
1 cup frozen corn
Cotija cheese
1/2 teaspoon cumin
Salt & pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons roasted red pepper sauce

To make the roasted red pepper sauce:
Blend all sauce ingredients together in a food processor or blender. Taste, and adjust seasonings to your liking. Set aside until use.

To make the stuffed peppers:

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add in the diced onion and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add in garlic, carrots, and celery and continue to cook over medium heat until the vegetables are lightly browned, 5-7 minutes. Add in the chopped chard and cook until chard is wilted, another 4-5 minutes. Once the chard is cooked, add in the frozen corn and black beans. Cook until they are heated through. Turn off the heat and stir in quinoa and 3 tablespoons of the roasted red pepper sauce. Set aside until needed.

To prepare the poblano peppers, cut each in half and carefully remove the stems and seeds. Place poblano halves on a baking sheet and lightly brush each side with olive oil. Place poblanos under the broiler, and broil each side for 3-4 minutes (until starting to blacken on each side). Remove poblanos, and set aside to cool. At this point, turn off your broiler and set your oven to 350 degrees.

Once the poblanos are cool enough to handle, begin stuffing the peppers. Sprinkle a small amount of cotija cheese in the pepper halves, and then fill the pepper halves with the quinoa mixture. Sprinkle more cotija cheese over the top. Place in a baking dish, and arrange the poblano halves snugly in the dish (so that they support each other). Bake for 10-15 minutes in a 350 degree oven, or until the cheese is nicely browned and the peppers are cooked all the way through.

Serve warm, with roasted red pepper sauce.

This isn’t one of those awful recipes that makes a lot of promises (It only takes 15 minutes! It will look perfect! Everyone in your life will love you forever if you make this for them!), but then fails to live up to said promises (It actually took two hours! And it looks/tastes like cat food! Everyone hates me!).

No, this isn’t one of those recipes (I’m looking at you, Martha).

I will not promise you the moon. Instead, I will make very realistic promises about this dish.

This dish will can be prepared in under two hours (realistically, it should take 15 minutes).

This dish will taste good (as long as you like the taste of broccoli and as long as you don’t add so much Sriracha that your tongue burns off).

These are the promises that I’m prepared to make at this time.

In all seriousness, if you like broccoli you should make this. I invented this recipe one night, in a desperate attempt to quell my hunger after a long workout at the gym. I came home and was disappointed to find a rather empty fridge: I had raw broccoli and some leftover brown rice. I was tired, sore, and cranky – but somehow I managed to throw together this dish. I’m so glad that I did. This is now my new favorite side dish/main course/work lunch/ mid-day snack. I’ve made this broccoli 3 times in the past week and a half. I’m slightly obsessed.

So, I felt that I had to share it with you all.

Roasted Broccoli with Sriracha, Honey, and Soy

1 small crown of broccoli, cut into bite size florets
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon Sriracha
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup slivered almonds
4 green onions, sliced thinly
Optional: Red chili flakes

Method:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil or a Silpat.

In a small bowl, mix together soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, Sriacha and black pepper. Pour mixture over the raw broccoli and toss to coat.

Spread broccoli pieces in an even layer across the baking sheet. Roast for 8-10 minutes, until broccoli is tender (and the outer edges are beginning to turn dark brown).

Remove broccoli from the baking sheet to a bowl. Toss with almond slivers, green onions. Taste and adjusting seasonings if necessary. Serve immediately. (I like to eat it atop brown rice with a little extra soy sauce…)

Life is certainly never ever boring. I’ve been running around like a chicken with my head cut off for the past few weeks and I don’t even know how to start writing about it. I keep starting blog posts, but then I never finish them. I feel overwhelmed, but in a good way.

So I’ll just start with the basics.

*If you happen to be reading my blog, you might notice that the site looks completely different. The blog got a whole lot prettier recently (thanks to Randall at Dept3), and I’ve been overwhelmed by the positive response to the new look. Thank you all for your kind words!

*I went to Los Angeles for a long weekend and ate a lot of good food and saw a lot of good friends. Highlights included: meeting Christianna of Burwell General Store (and dining at the fantastic Cook’s County Restaurant, where she currently works), eating a classic beef dip sandwich at Philippe’s in downtown LA, spotting Julie Taylor (Friday Night Lights!) at Intelligentsia, taking in the Pacific Standard Time exhibit at The Getty Museum, and discovering The Thirsty Crow’s amazing happy hour ($5 Manhattans, Moscow Mules, Old Fashioneds, etc.). Overall, it was a fantastic trip.

*Secondly, my first two articles for the Plate & Pitchfork Almanac were published a week ago, so if you haven’t seen them yet I’d encourage you to check out the first issue. The P&P Almanac is a collaboration between a few talented Portland ladies, and the first issue contains great photos, stories, and reports from the Portland food community.

*In a moment of complete and utter insanity, I signed up to run the Shamrock Run. I am not a runner. In fact, I generally hate running. But, my sister talked me into signing up for the Shamrock and so I best figure out how to run a 15k (9 miles) by March. This could be interesting. ;)

*This past weekend, I was hired to do “craft services” (aka provide food) for a commercial shoot and it was a great experience. It’s a lot of work, but it’s also a lot of fun. Strange as it may sound, I really enjoy the challenge. It’s experiences like this enable me to learn more about my abilities as a cook. I love it. Bring on the challenges!

*In the middle of all the madness, I found the time to make these delicious blackberry scones. Yes, I know that blackberries are decidedly not in season in January. But there they were, staring at me from the shelves of my local Trader Joe’s. They were so plump and perfect looking, I simply couldn’t help myself! So, I caved and I bought blackberries in January. (I then made myself feel better by justifying my purchase by using the fresh blackberries in combination with the last of the blackberries in my freezer from last summer’s pickings.)

Honestly, I’m just happy I found time to cook anything at all! In the middle of a busy couple of weeks, these scones were a welcome change from chard and beets.

That being said, you could easily substitute other berries (raspberries, marionberries, blueberries, etc) in these scones. I plan on making them again with the last of the raspberries I have in my freezer!

Blackberry Cream Scones with Lemon Glaze
(Adapted from Eat Live Run)
Note: I tripled this recipe, as I was cooking for 20+ people. I originally wanted to make blackberry sage scones, but realized that I was all out of dried sage. So, I used a bit of dried thyme, which worked nicely.

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup white sugar
1 cup blackberries (fresh or frozen)
3 tbsp cold butter, cut into small squares
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon whole milk or cream

for glaze:

1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons cream

Method:

Preheat oven to 425.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Cut in the butter with your fingers and work mixture together until it resembles coarse sand. Gently cut in the blackberries, making sure to not overmix. You want large chunks of blackberries in the mix.

Add the cream and mix with your hands (or gently with a spatula) until a wet and sticky dough forms. On a well-floured surface, form the dough into a small circle and slice the dough into 8 small wedges. Place wedges on a lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, until golden brown.

To make the glaze, mix together the powdered sugar and cream. Add in lemon zest and vanilla, and mix to combine. Once the scones have cooled, drizzle the glaze over the scones.

Note: I forgot to take pictures of the scones after I iced them, so you’ll just have to imagine how lovely they were!

And the more I think about it, the more I’m starting to be OK with being a “food blogger”. I’ve made a lot of great friends through this crazy food blogging world. I’ve been challenged to become a better writer, a better cook, a better photographer, and a more rounded person. It’s pretty great.

So, when I saw this week that a few of my favorite food bloggers were participating in a little thing called “Food Bloggers Unplugged”, I was glad to see that I’d been asked to participate (ahem, thank you Toni and Mari). I think this is a great way to let you know a little bit more about myself, while highlighting a few food bloggers that I love dearly.

With that being said, I’ll jump right into it.

What or who inspired you to start your blog?
My husband. He knew that I’d been contemplating starting a food blog – as I enjoy writing and cooking – but I didn’t have a decent camera at the time. For Christmas that year he gave me a digital camera, along with a stocking full of spices, vinegars, oils, and cooking supplies. It was so stinking thoughtful and I was thrilled to have the tools to start a blog.

Who is your foodie inspiration?
I have so many: Marion Nestle. Michael Pollan. Julia Child. Mark Bittman. But if I’m being really, truly honest I’d have to say Anthony Bourdain. The guy can be a complete asshole, but I adore him nonetheless. I love the way he narrates the world, and he’s opened my eyes to so many interesting cultures and cuisines. Bourdain is a great writer (I’ve read multiple books by him) and I appreciate that he tells it like it is. Plus, he’s funny as hell.

Your greasiest most batter splattered cook book is?
How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. It’s my go-to reference for all culinary questions and I use it all the time. He’s got all the basics covered (as well as some advanced techniques) and he gives such good practical tips for home cooks. It’s accessible, well-written, and an encyclopedia of wealth. I was given a copy as a wedding present, and I now make it a point to give this book to other couples on their wedding day.

The best thing you have ever eaten in another country, where was it and what was it?
This is going to sound really strange, but the best thing I have ever eaten in another country is a slice of cold Pizza Hut pizza in Mazatlan, Mexico when I was 11 years old. My family lived in Mexico for 3 months when I was 11 (missions trip with YWAM) and we spent most of our time in rural areas on a small budget. Meaning: we hadn’t had good food in months. We ate a lot of tuna fish sandwiches. At the end of our stay in Mexico, my parents took me and my sisters to the beach for two days. After living very humbly for a few months, I suddenly felt like a queen. I remember we begged my parents to let us order Pizza Hut (and they obliged) and then later on that evening I took a hot bath and ate a leftover piece of cold pizza in the bathtub. After months of cold showers and tuna fish sandwiches, I’ll never forget that one bite of cold pizza. It was utterly precious.

Another Food Blogger’s table you would like to eat at?
There are so (so!) many good ones to choose from, but I’d have to say Heidi from 101 Cookbooks. Everything she makes sounds ridiculously wonderful and I’d just love to meet her in person (and try her food, of course).

What one kitchen gadget would you like Santa to bring you?
A dishwasher. Being a food blogger (and occasional caterer) without a dishwasher is the worst. My husband would readily agree, as he’s usually the one who does the bulk of the dishes.

I’m coming to you for dinner, what is your signature dish?
That’s a tough question, as I like to make so many different things. Honestly, the one thing I’ve made over and over (and over) again is my Kale Apple Salad. It isn’t fancy but it is delicious, easy to make, and people love it. I bring this salad to most holiday gatherings, and have paired it with a variety of different dishes. It’s always a hit.

What is your guilty food pleasure?
Maraschino cherries. Yes, the horrible neon aberrations of nature that are bleached and soaked in chemicals and then dyed neon red. I am completely aware of how horrible they are and yet, I could eat them by the spoonful. I even made my own maraschinos with northwest sour cherries, but I still prefer the neon ones I buy at the store.

Reveal something about yourself that others would be surprised to learn? Before I moved to Portland, I lived in Southern California and worked for an independent record label. Back then, I worked long hours and made very little money, and thus lived off frozen dinners. I’ll never forget the time that I was in line at the grocery store and I noticed that my basket contained Lean Cuisine frozen dinners, bottles of Vitamin Water, a bottle of red wine, and cat litter. I realized that I was on track to becoming the saddest cat lady of all time, so I picked up and moved to Portland and started a new chapter of my life. It’s the best decision I’ve ever made.

To conclude this post, I’m supposed to describe my ideal dinner party and tag five bloggers that I’d like to dine with. In a perfect world, I’d sit down to dinner with a whole bunch of you (i.e. more than five). There would be a lot of good food, fine wine, and great conversation. I’m quite certain of that.

But, I was instructed to pick just five, and so I have done just that. (I think that this means I’ve ‘tagged’ you to write an Unplugged post of your own, but there is no pressure for you to actually respond. I was in a post-vacation writing funk and needed to get the creative juices flowing. Plus, I’m a sucker for things like this. I mean, who doesn’t want to dream about a giant dinner table filled with their favorite foodies?!)

My ideal dinner party would include…

Sarah of Pearl and Pine: Every time I read Sarah’s blog I have the urge to yell out, “ME TOO!”. We’re strangely similar in all sorts of funny ways. I love her writing style, her honesty, and her quirkiness. Her photos are also stunning. I check her blog on a weekly (ok, daily) basis and I always enjoy her posts. In addition, she’s from Seattle so we often commiserate about the horrible Northwest weather.

Mari of The Unexpected Harvest: It’s probably cheating to say that I’d want Mari at my ultimate table of bloggers, because I get to dine with Mari often. She’s one of my best friends in the whole world and she’s an amazing cook. Mari is also a wine geek and she never ceases to amaze me with her knack for wine pairings. Fun fact: Mari and I have quarter season tickets to the Portland Trailblazers and we have matching LaMarcus Aldrige Jersey’s. We’re nerds.

Kelsey of Happy Yolks: Kelsey is an amazing cook (and photographer) with a huge heart. You can feel her passion for life in every post. Her words are so sincere, and her recipes (and photos) are a thing of beauty. Kelsey inspires me to be a better cook and a better person, and I’d be thrilled to have the chance to dine with her someday!

Kirsten of Food is a Love Story: Kirsten is a new(ish) friend who works in food PR and recently started writing a blog. I love it. It isn’t really a ‘food blog’, which is part of what I love about it. Her love for food is apparent in all that she writes, but her content is varied (and fantastic). She’s funny, sassy, and super talented. Oh, and she likes sports. Girls who love food and sports are the best. (#ladieswhoNBA)

Sarah of Simply Cooked: Sarah’s blog is one of the very first food blogs I started reading. I’ve always appreciated her healthy point of view, and her recipes challenge me to use more whole grains (and less sugar). She’s also in an online book club called the Kitchen Reader and they read books about food and review them. I think a food book club is the best idea ever.

So there you have it. The makings of an excellent dinner party.

(Please note, I didn’t ‘tag’ Christianna of Burwell General Store, Toni of Boulder Locavore, Jacqueline of The Dusty Baker or Sabrina of The Tomato Tart simply because I’d seen that they’d already been mentioned a couple of times on various other bloggers Unplugged posts. I love you all dearly, you’re just too popular. ;) But, I still want you at my ultimate dinner party.)

(I chose not to use the official “Food Blogger Unplugged” image, and opted to use another I liked a little better. Image courtesy of The Calm Before The Storm.)

I think it’s the perfect day to make a grilled cheese sandwich.

Why? Because grilled cheese is the perfect winter meal.

In addition, the grilled cheese sandwich is a prime example of a time-tested culinary rule: melty cheese + bread = culinary magic. (If interpreted loosely, this rule also applies to pizza, quesadillas, nachos, lasagna, mac n’ cheese, cheeseburgers, etc. You get the idea.)
So, this sandwich is essentially a dressed up version of the bread and cheese rule. I took a couple slices of quality bread and added goat cheese, roasted beets, wilted chard, caramelized onions, along with a healthy dollop of creamy horseradish.

The result? My new favorite winter meal. I’m not kidding. This sandwich is a wonderful tribute to the season, and utilizes some of my favorite winter vegetables: beets, onions, and chard. The creamy goat cheese melds together perfectly with the earthy winter veggies, and the horseradish gives the sandwich just the right amount of punch.

If this is what winter tastes like, then I hope winter lasts forever.

(OK, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit with that last sentence. At the very least, this sandwich makes the winter much more tolerable.)

Wintery Grilled Cheese: With Goat Cheese, Roasted Beets, and Wilted Chard.
(Inspired from a similar sandwich I consumed at Bunk Bar. Thank you, Tommy. You rule.)
Makes 4 hearty sandwiches.

Ingredients:
8 slices quality bread (I splurged on Grand Central Bakery’s Sliced Campagnolo. So good.)
4 ounces goat cheese (Chevre), room temperature
3 cups of rainbow chard, roughly chopped
1 large yellow onion, sliced thinly
2 medium-large beets
Horseradish, to taste

Method:
Roast the beets: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash beets and trim off beet greens, leaving a 1/2 inch “stem”. Wrap each beet individually in tin foil. Once the oven is hot, place wrapped beets directly on the oven rack (or on a pan, if you’d rather). Roast for 40 minutes (up to an hour), until beets are soft all the way through when pricked with a fork. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, unwrap beets and remove skin. The skin should come off easily (I usually use a paper towel and gently rub off the skin). Set beets aside.

While the beets are roasting, caramelize the onions. In a medium size non-stick skillet, heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil over medium-low heat. Once the oil is hot, add in the sliced onions. Allow to cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until brown and caramelized (about 30 minutes). If they begin to cook too quickly, turn the heat down to low. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

In the same skillet (no need to clean it, the onion flavor will just enhance the chard), heat a splash of oil over medium heat. Add in the chopped chard and allow to heat. Stir, and after a minute or two, add one tablespoon of water to the pan. Cover, and turn the heat down to medium-low. Allow the chard to cook like this for 5 minutes. Check on the chard, if the water has evaporated but the chard is still under-cooked, add a bit more water and cook for 2-3 more minutes. I like my chard leaves to be wilted, but I like the chard stems to still retain a bit of crunch. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Set aside until ready to make your sandwiches.

Once the beets, chard, and onions have cooked, your sandwiches are ready to assemble!

I trust that you all know how to make a grilled cheese sandwich, so I’m not going to go overboard with instructions. Essentially, spread a (thick) layer of goat cheese on one slice of bread. Top with beet slices, wilted chard, and caramelized onions. Spread creamy horseradish on the other slice of bread (along with a little more goat cheese, if you so desire). Butter the exterior of your bread slices, and cook your grilled cheese sandwiches on a griddle (or non-stick skillet) over medium-high heat. Cook sandwiches for 3-5 minutes on each side, until bread is golden and the goat cheese is warm and ‘melty’.

Note: goat cheese does not “melt” like other cheeses, but it will get warm, gooey, and delicious.

It’s our first recipe swap of 2012, and I’m only a few days late to the party. (Oh well! Better late than never, I suppose…)

As many of you know, I’m part of the Burwell General Store Recipe Swap. The swap consists of 25 foodies and writers from all over the world, and each month we re-interpret a vintage recipe (selected by Christianna of Burwell General Store) and post our creations on the first Sunday of the month.

This month, Christianna selected this recipe for the swap: Zabaglione for Two.

I was a bit flabbergasted by this recipe. First off, I had to google Zabaglione as I had no idea what it was. The images that appeared on my screen horrified me: it looked like a rich, lumpy, custardy mess. Granted, this recipe came at a bad time – I had just started my January detox and was feeling particularly over-sugared from the holidays. I couldn’t stomach the thought of a heavy custard. I decided that I needed to transform zabaglione into something light and healthy.

The only problem was that I could not, for the life of me, figure out how to pull off this transformation. I was stumped.

After a lot of thought, I finally decided to make a coconut milk brown rice pudding. It’s vegan, gluten free, and it doesn’t contain much sugar. And, most importantly, it’s easy to digest. It makes my belly happy. And as of right now, a happy belly is a top priority.

I won’t bore you with all of the details, but I do think it is worth mentioning that I have IBS.

Meaning: my stomach hates me.

I’ve tried various medications, elimination diets, fasts, probiodics, kombucha, vitamins, herbs, and more. I’ve been tested for various diseases and allergies, but everything comes back negative. In my opinion, IBS is the diagnosis doctors give you when they can’t figure out what’s wrong with your digestive system. So, I just do my best to take care of myself. I try to listen to my body. I started a detox on January 1st, because I wanted to cleanse after the holidays. I drank a lot of chicken broth and ate a lot of veggies. And the funny/tragic thing is, my stomach felt even worse during the cleanse. I was downright miserable. Nothing I ate or drank (or didn’t eat or drink) seemed to help.

I just didn’t have the heart to cook anything, let alone create a recipe for the swap.

But, I gave it a couple days and gradually I began to feel better. I allowed myself to dream of delicious and tummy-friendly recipes that might work for the swap. And then I remembered an amazing rice porridge I had for breakfast a couple years ago at a local brunch spot in Portland. I specifically remember that I ordered the porridge because I wasn’t feeling well and it was named something clever like “The Belly Pleaser”. It was made with coconut milk and had fresh mango on top. I loved it (and so did my stomach).

So this is my ode to “The Belly Pleaser”. It’s no zabaglione, to be sure. But it is a pudding — a pudding that happens to be vegan, gluten free, low-sugar, and is quite easy on the stomach. It also happens to taste wonderful. And that, my friends, is a fabulous thing.

Coconut Brown Rice Pudding
Adapted from The Witchy Kitchen
Note: This recipe uses pre-cooked brown rice, so make sure you factor that into your cooking time. Once the rice is cooked, however, this recipe takes 5-10 minutes to throw together.

Ingredients:
2.5 cups pre-cooked short grain brown rice
1 can (14 ounces) of light coconut milk
1/4 cup soy milk (or dairy milk)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon corn starch
1 teaspoon cinnamon (plus cinnamon stick for garnish)
1 teaspoon vanilla*
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 cardamom pods
1/4 cup golden raisins (plus more, for garnish)
Slivered almonds, for garnish

*I think this recipe would be incredible with real vanilla bean, I just didn’t happen to have any at home when I made this. Vanilla extract works nicely, I just think that real vanilla would be killer.

Method:
Heat coconut milk, soy (or dairy) milk and sugar together in a medium sized pot. Until warm. Whisk in corn starch and vanilla. Add in rice, 1/4 cup of golden raisins, and cardamom pods and bring to a simmer. Stir constantly and reduce heat if necessary. Allow mixture to gently simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring often.

Once the pudding has thickened, remove from heat. Stir in cinnamon and nutmeg. Serve warm, with a dusting of cinnamon. Garnish with almond slivers and extra golden raisins. Can also be enjoyed cold.