Spaghetti Aglio e Olio

I did something the other day that I rarely do: I followed a recipe exactly. This is a difficult thing for me to do, not because I believe I am some amazing chef who understands flavors and textures and the science of cooking, but because I have anxiety and sometimes when something seems wrong, I get worried, and make my own choices. In this Bon Appetit recipe, I got nervous a few times (You want me to boil the pasta in kale water? And now you want me to dump this kale water into a pan? What is even happening?), but stuck it out and honestly, made one of the best dishes I've made in awhile. The below recipe makes enough for 3-4 large servings.

Kale & Avocado Wrap

Vegetarians sometimes have a harder time putting together simple lunches than meat-eaters, especially when things like lunch meat exist. Charmington's in Baltimore - you know, the awesome café that hosts my favorite monthly lit reading and even welcomed the President of the United States in January (!!) - makes a plethora of amazing meatless lunch options. Their kale and avocado wrap is my favorite and I just had to recreate it. Grab these ingredients from a grocery store and make enough to last for the week. The following recipe makes one kale & avocado wrap.

Everything Bagel Truffle Oil Croutons

These croutons are my new weakness! I wanted some croutons to bring to the Baltimore Homemade Trade event this past month and figured I would just use whatever bread I had lying around the house. There happened to be a ton of everything bagels in my pantry and once I got the idea in my head about these croutons, I had to make them. This recipe makes about six servings of croutons (one serving per salad or sitting, if you will).

 

Sauteed Mushroom, Pistachio & Feta Salad

I'm sure y'all remember that Simpsons episode in which Lisa becomes a vegetarian. The rest of the family berates her with a chant of, You don't win friends with salad!

I am here to tell you that, actually, you can win friends with salad, if that salad is full of hearty mushrooms, creamy cheese, and a spicy Indigo Frisee mix. So, drop on by your local farmers market & start making friends.

Garlic Butter Spaghetti Squash

I've made approximately one million spaghetti squash recipes in the past few months, and I'm not stopping now. I picked up a small squash for this awesome recipe with two of my favorite things: garlic and butter. This recipe serves two and was inspired by a recipe over at livelovepasta.

Chik'n & Mushroom Arugula Salad

This salad was a spur-of-the-moment, let's-clean-out-the-fridge salad. Sometimes that can go poorly, but this time it went wonderfully. The flavors worked really well together and we didn't waste any produce. This recipe makes two servings. Enjoy!

Portobello & Veggie Fajitas

Veggie fajitas are awesome because they're really filling and fairly low-calorie. Not to mention that they're super-easy to cook, as long as you have a skillet of some sort on hand. This is a highly customizable meal, so throw in any types of veggies, top with any type of sauce, and season as mild or spicy as you'd like. This recipe makes two generous servings.

Creamy Ricotta Pasta

This pasta dish is very creamy without being too high in calories. It's really easy to throw together and you can toss in whatever veggies you have on hand. It is served warm, so it is perfect for these winter months. Here is the original recipe. This recipe serves two to three.