Whitefish Salad on Everything Bagels

Smoked whitefish from the deep, cold waters of Lake Superior, tossed with homemade, roasted garlic mayo (seasoned with freeze-dried shallots, chives and scallions), celery, freshly-squeezed lemon juice and chopped egg.   Placed atop “everything bagels” with slivered red onions, thick slices of homegrown summer tomato, crunchy sea salt and fresh dill.  I think I’ve died and gone to a New York deli..

Whitefish Salad on Everything Bagels

Freshwater whitefish belong to the same family (Salmonidae) as salmon, trout and char. A slightly oily fish high in protein and B-Vitamins, this species is rated a Seafood Watch Best Choice.

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Rajmah (Vegetarian Kidney Bean Curry)

Dried kidney beans are picked over and soaked overnight, cooked, drained and simmered with fire-roasted tomatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, chiles and toasted whole spices.  Served over a bed of Indian-spiced, aged basmati rice, this dish totally rocks the taste buds while remaining inexpensive and easy to prepare..

Rajmah (Vegetarian Kidney Bean Curry)

For the Rajmah, I adapted a recipe from Smitten Kitchen, while the cardamom and cinnamon-scented rice preparation comes from Simply Recipes.  In the latter case, you can simply substitute olive oil for the ghee to suit your vegan needs.  Both recipes are seriously delicious just as they are.

This post is part of Meatless Monday, a non-profit initiative of The Monday Campaigns,
in association with the Johns Hopkins’ Bloomberg School of Public Health

BBQ Chuck Roast, Jalapeño Cheese Grits

Locally-pastured, bone-in chuck roast is marinated in mesquite BBQ sauce, crushed chilies, cocoa and cold-brewed coffee with onions, garlic, sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, then braised in a covered earthenware pot for three hours at 300 degrees.  While the roast rests, the cooking liquids are strained, reduced and thickened, then the roast is cut into thick slices, dipped in the finished sauce and served over long-cooked heirloom yellow corn grits with aged cheddar, fresh jalapeños and chopped cilantro..

BBQ Chuck Roast, Jalapeño Cheese Grits

Local sources

Pastured beef from Ross Farm
Mesquite BBQ Sauce from Stubb’s
Coffee from Chameleon Cold-Brew
Herbs and vegetables from my garden

Do you believe in the Whole Foods fairy?

From The Food Renegade

Heather Dessinger of Mommypotamus reveals a disquieting truth about “all natural” product labels and the corporations that use them <— !

Truth in labeling, people!

Insalata Caprese (film)

Here’s a lovely little film that I ran across last night on Cooking Up a Story

Out of death new possibilities emerge…

Shot on location in an alternate universe between time and space, poetic moments of life are snapped into consciousness; the public market becomes a garden from which love springs forth.

INSALATA CAPRESE (12minutes)
Written & Directed by
Jesse Roesler
Executive Producer: David Matenaer
Starring: Matthew Amendt, Val Mudek and Barbara June Patterson