Delicious & Fluffy Yeast Pancakes

When S headed to college I fell out of Sunday mornings pancake making tradition, so when I saw this Red Star Yeast recipe, I was eager to give this yeast version a try and get back on the Sunday morning pancake wagon. This Sunday is Spring like, cheery and sunny, birds are chirping, a perfect bright day to add this yeast pancakes version to my ever growing pancake recipes sash.

Golden & Red Beet Tartare with an Apple Cider and Dill Vinaigrette

I am already fast forwarding into next month imagining my holiday table and dishes that will adorn it. This dish was inspired by Jean-Georges', Cooking at Home with a Four Star Chef by Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Mark Bittman.The trio of Beet Ravioli with Beet Sauce, Beet and Ginger Salad and Beet Tartare is an inspiration. This recipe is entirely different from the ones in the book, but for years now, just before the holidays, I pull the book off the shelf and leaf through it in complete stillness. The sensations the images invoke are indescribable. Turn to the thinly sliced, layered and stacked up high, wedge of apple confit, and you will experience the sensations the images jumping out of the pages invoke as well.

Silent Sunday - Beets

Green Falafel - Mediterranean Chickpea Fritters

The Oscars came and went and with them my fantasies of being a fly on the wall at Wolfgang Puck's Oscars party catering kitchen. I wouldn't interrupt, for the most part, just let me in to experience the commotion and sneak a slider or two, while the perfectly starched, uniformed waiters, zip by with the trays carried so elegantly high.

Indian Inspired Black Radish & Mung Bean Salad

When I read 'The surprise of a winter radish' by Emily Horton at The Washington Post Food section on Wednesday I felt antsy. I couldn't wait for Sunday to arrive to make my excursion into the farmers market in DC for this elusive, new to me radish. All week I fantasized about....black radish!

Meatball & Rice Dumplings Soup, A Romanian Style Chorba (Ciorba)

It felt like spring today and I spent it mostly outside picking up debris and sweet gum balls in the backyard. The birds were chirping bright and early, just before the crack of dawn, building a nest just outside our bedroom window sill. The daffodils are full of buds almost bursting with flowers and the mossy grass is speckled with glory of the snow blooms. Nature is coming alive, entirely confused.

Multigrain Oatmeal Bread

Occasionally I pick up healthy multigrain and seeds breads at various markets and bakeries. The density of these loaves is perpetually disappointing. Although I bake with yeast for many years now,  tackling home made multigrain and seeds breads has been on my to do list for awhile. This particular recipe yields such a light and airy loaf that I can see pairing it perfectly at any meal during the day. A toasted slice of multigrain oatmeal with a homemade jam or marmalade in the morning, or a freshly baked slice with a vibrant yolk fried egg for dinner at night, or paired with avocado and alfalfa sprouts or arugula on a picnic lunch.

Apples - Photography

A Wintery Balkan Cannellini Stew Comfort

Come winter, I crave hearty, comforting dishes and I pull out my Balkan food cookbook, sitting lonesome, shunned and tucked away the rest of the seasons. As earthy as the Balkan dishes are, they possess their own intricacies and flavor pairings sensibilities, and every winter I look at the cookbook for a refresher on the Balkan cuisine subtle flavor pairings brilliance.

Sardines - Silent Sunday

Cinnamon Buns, a College Care Package & a Giveaway!

This is the second post in the series of my professional collaboration with Red Star Yeast. It fits beautifully with my love for breakfast and brunch pastries. As you already know from my first post in the series, Marbled Rye Bread, I mostly like baking with yeast. More importantly I decided to bake cinnamon buns for my beautiful son away in college. He would be so happy to get this care package with his binoculars for his Natural Resources Conservation field work, some folders he had at home, granola I packed in individual small bags as snacks and these cinnamon buns. He will probably share the buns and granola with his roommate and floor buddies. He's got a generous spirit and a big heart. He is proud of my 'concoctions' and thrives on company, so feasting together and sharing  makes him so happy, even when I say save some for yourself for the next day.