Monthly Archives: October 2013

{gluten-free} Pumpkin Pecan Muffins (…and some butter love)

Let’s talk about butter.

Those of us who can have it, love it, right? I’ve been off all cow-dairy above butter for about 20 years now, and am so thankful that when my stomach is strong enough I can handle it, because it just makes everything taste delicious, and when you’re cutting out this and that, anything naturally delicious is a plus.

So, yeah, I’m all about a moderate amount of butter in my diet.

But I’m tired of this whole brown butter thing.

Yes, browned butter is delicious. Christina Tosi swears by it, so it often makes its way into our Milk Bar Mondays recipes (returning in November!), like this Cinnamon Bun Pie. I’m guilty of using it specifically in my Maple Ginger Cakes with Brown Butter Caramel and Nutty Gluten-Free Peach Buckle, amongst others. Continue reading →

{gluten-free} Baked Apple Cider Donuts

Until last week I was in denial that the weather was really, truly changing.

I don’t like being cold. Yes, I like bundling up and being cozy, but cold is not my thing. When you live in a city, you cannot help but meet with the elements in full force, and I know soon I’ll be facing pools of slush on stopped-up street corners, shlepping my tiny dog through sopping snow four times a day, and dealing with the wind tunnels that take over some of the avenues, melting faces and freezing fingers. Yes, New York is gorgeous in the autumn with the falling leaves, and nothing fills my heart like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade prep on Wednesday or accidentally finding myself near Rockefellar late at night after the tourists are sleeping off their days. I love New York during the holidays. But I’m still not ready to give up on flip-flops and jacket-less tromping.

And yet…

Continue reading →

Black Pepper Shrimp and Zucchini “Fettuccine”

Black Pepper Shrimp and Zucchini Fettuccine

This is probably the ugliest photo of a plate I’ve ever put on this site.

But this zucchini “fettuccine” is one of the most popular vegetables I ever made as a private chef, and one that family members have loved and recreated after I’ve made it for them.

It’s ridiculously simple. With a good vegetable peeler and a flick of the wrist, zucchini gets shredded in ribbons and tossed quickly in hot olive oil until it softens to an al dente-like texture. My former boss didn’t know it wasn’t pasta the first time I served it to him. My father downed his plate in minutes. A client’s guest asked me for details at a repeat dinner visit when he couldn’t quite replicate it after his first go.

So simple, so yummy. Continue reading →

{gluten free} Pumpkin Bread

Ugh, I hate when I make something so delicious as this pumpkin bread, sometimes.

It’s just too, too much for one little body.

But when the leaves start to shift from green to gold — yes, even here in New York City — and I can no longer wear flipflops when walking Mitra in the mornings (sniff), my thoughts turn to pumpkins and squash and apples with such a force that recipes like this get penciled in my day between interviews and rough drafts and number crunching, or whatever it is the day may hold.

Continue reading →

{gluten-free, dairy-free} Kallari Chocolate Coffee Cake

Gluten and dairy-free Chocolate Coffee Cake with Kallari Chocolate

Gluten and dairy-free Chocolate Coffee Cake with Kallari Chocolate

I have a fun little history with Kallari chocolate.

One of my darlingest lady friends, who I commonly refer to as Muffin on here, went to Ecuador for a semester while we were in college. Amongst the many experiences she came back with, one was literally a sweet treat for her friends; bars of chocolate wrapped in wax paper from a cooperative set where the Andes and the Amazon overlap. Kallari was a small company then, one that strove to independently own and sell their chocolate to make a much healthier living wage and quality product, and I indulged in buying a few bars. Dark, slightly bitter, and incredibly floral and fruity, I didn’t forget the name. Kallari. Continue reading →

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