Low Carb Recipes

Asparagus
Selland's market-cafe in Sacramento is an uncommonly good café and often a source of inspiration for foods to prepare. Recently I had some of their asparagus and loved the texture - slightly crunchy (definitely not mushy!) - and the hint...
Asparagus Frittata
My father got bit by the frittata bug this week and made these for us for lunch a few days ago. This is a quick and easy, no-nonsense recipe that makes a terrific frittata in hardly any time at all.
Asparagus Soufflé
Have you ever attempted to make a soufflé and it just didn't live up to your expectations? That's when it pays to have friends who actually know what they are doing. After trying unsuccessfully to recreate a fabulous soufflé I...
Baby Bok Choy with Cashews
Sometimes the simplest things are the most enjoyable. My mother whipped up this quick and easy baby bok choy dish the other night. It was so good I made her make it again the next day so I could watch...
Baby Bok Choy with Sherry and Prosciutto
I admit, I am not the greatest fan of bok choy, perhaps as result of too many poorly done stir-fries during college. That said, my father made this recipe the other day and it was so good I made a...
Bacon-wrapped Pork Roast
An easy way to dress up a simple pork roast is to wrap it in bacon. The bacon fat brings extra juiciness and flavor to the roast.
Baked Ling Cod with Lemon-Garlic Butter Sauce
Have you ever seen a ling cod? They are almost primeval looking - huge, gaping mouths with sharp teeth. As with any fish, the most important factor for how good it tastes is its freshness. I picked up this fillet...
Beef Bouillon Soup from Oxtails
Many recipes call for beef stock (e.g. French onion soup), but good beef stock is hard to come by, with beef prices these days, expensive to make. Beef oxtails make a wonderful stock and sometimes you can get them (try...
Beef Bourguignon
Beef Bourguignon is a classic French stew of cubed beef, slow cooked in red wine and broth, and served with sautéed mushrooms and pearl onions. This is a family favorite recipe, adapted from Julia Child's approach to making Beef Bourguignon.
Beef Brisket
A simple, delicious way to prepare beef brisket.
Beef Roast Braised in Zinfandel
"This isn't your everyday pot roast," my father declared as we sat down for dinner to enjoy the roast that he had been cooking all afternoon. No, indeed it isn't. The sauce includes an entire bottle of bold red Zinfandel...
Bouillabaisse
According to tradition, there should be at least five different kinds of fish in a proper bouillabaisse. In Marseille, considered the mecca of bouillabaisse, they use at least seven, not counting the shellfish. The fish should be extremely fresh...
Braised Beef Short Ribs
My father made the most succulent, tender, "Wow" beef short ribs this week. Yes, it is a 2 day process, but the actual hands-on cooking time is at most two hours, and is broken up over two days. It is...
Braised Onions
Braised onions are the side of choice with beef Bourguignon but they are also wonderful with roast beef and other stews. Trader Joe's sells a pack of multi-colored pearl onions that cook up beautifully as braised onions. The catch? You...
Broccoli Stir Fry with Ginger and Sesame
Some people get chocolate cravings. I get broccoli cravings. Sometimes I think it's my body's way of telling me I've been laying on the bacon a bit too thick (or maybe the chocolate!) But honestly I could eat broccoli every...
Brussels Sprouts
I never used to like brussels sprouts, until one day I had them when they weren't over-cooked. Still just a little bit crunchy, they had a wonderfully nutty flavor. Who knew brussels sprouts could taste so good? Now I love...
Buffalo Wings
Football (American) championship season. Sports bars, beer, and spicy things that make you want to drink more beer. Darts, pool, loud conversation, an either ill-spent or well-spent youth, depending on your perspective. Once in my early twenties I happened to...
Carbonnade: Beef and Beer Stew
When the cold season begins, so does the season for hearty stews. Known as Carbonnade a la Flamande, this Belgian Beef stew is made with dark beer and lots of onions. We found this recipe in Cook's Illustrated magazine, which...
Cardamom Honey Chicken
On my recent trip to New Zealand, my hosts sent me home with a wonderful cookbook from BeesOnline, a local café and honey factory right outside Auckland. The Cardamom and Honey-Glazed Chicken recipe caught our eye and we made it...
Carne Asada
Carne asada shown wrapped up in a flour tortilla with pico de gallo and avocado Carne asada is the thinly sliced, grilled beef served so often in tacos and burritos. It is also commonly served as is, with rice and...
Ceviche
The first time I made ceviche, I was amazed. I could actually see the lemon and lime juice turning the color of the fish from translucent pink to opaque white. The acid from the limes and lemons change the structure...
Cheesy Crustless Quiche
I had this crustless quiche recently at a ladies weekend (you know, the kind where husbands and kids are left to fend on their own and the gals take a well deserved break from the regular chaos) and couldn't wait...
Chicken Apple Arugula Goat Cheese Salad
Arugula on its own is so peppery it can almost be too much. However, partnered with either walnuts, goat cheese, or in this case both, mellows the tanginess of the arugula. A perfect, light, luncheon salad.
Chicken Bacon Roulades
Chicken breasts, pounded thin, stuffed with bacon, shallots, and Parmesan, rolled up, browned, roasted, then served sliced, with a creamy white sauce. Yowza. This meal, a veritable feast, is dedicated to Simply Recipes frequent commenter jonathan who knows that if...
Chicken Curry in a Hurry
I received a review copy of Mark Bittman's Quick and Easy Recipes from the New York Times in the mail this week and thumbing through it found this recipe for a quick chicken curry. Are you familiar with Mark Bittman...
Chicken Marsala with Pancetta and Cream
Chicken marsala is one of those Italian American dishes that seems to be a standard in many a home cook's repertoire. It consists of flour-coated thin chicken breast cutlets, cooked with a Marsala wine reduction and usually mushrooms as well...
Chicken Paprikash
We've been experimenting with chicken lately and stumbled upon a recipe in a 10 year old Good Housekeeping for chicken paprikash, a Hungarian dish. The printed recipe actually called for roasting a whole chicken; we chose to use pieces. What...
Chicken Prosciutto
My friend Leigh Anna prepared this delicious chicken for me the other day. The sage and prosciutto bring so much flavor to the chicken breasts.
Chicken Salad
My mother and father make the best chicken salad. It's a joint effort; dad assembles all of the ingredients, mom makes the dressing. There are a few things that distinguish this chicken salad recipe from a standard version. First, we...
Chicken Salad with Tarragon
Inspiration for good food can be found anywhere, even Starbucks. I had a delicious chicken salad sandwich there last week. The key ingredients other than chicken? Cranberries and tarragon. French tarragon is a distinctive herb, with a slight anise or...
Chicken with Goat Cheese and Arugula
We have a patch of arugula in our garden that not only re-seeds itself every year, but manages to seed itself outside its raised bed as well. No one in a temperate climate should ever have to pay a dime...
Chicken with Mushroom Cream Sauce
"Your website readers are going to love this," my father exclaimed when he finally finished his plate of chicken smothered in creamy mushroom sauce. Mom found the recipe from one of her favorite cookbooks* now long out of print. The...
Chiles en Nogada (Chilies in Walnut Sauce)
Guaymas Restaurant in Tiburon is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Northern California and their Chile Poblano is the best item on the menu. It is a green poblano chili stuffed with a picadillo and covered in a walnut creme sauce...
Chilled Turkey Loaf
Rummaging through old Sunset Magazine, mom and dad have both been finding plenty of recipes to inspire them. Personally, I would never have picked this one out of the bunch, but something in it caught my dad's eye. Perhaps that...
Chipotle Citrus Marinated Pork Tenderloin
Before sprinkling with cilantro This recipe comes from the Sacramento Bee article on Bill Niman of Niman Ranch. They picked it up from Gary Fuller of Laurier Cafe and Wine in Houston. We made it today and it was absolutely...
Chipotle Lime Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp
When I put the call out a few weeks ago for July 4th grilling suggestions, Simply Recipes reader Chuck mentioned bacon-wrapped shrimp. I'm sure this is a standard fare for many of you, but I can't remember ever eating bacon-wrapped...
Chorizo and Eggs
Growing up, we had some of the standard American foods for breakfast - cream o' wheat, oatmeal, waffles, fried eggs, pancakes (no sugar coated cereals in this household!) - and a couple things I never saw in any of my...
Cilantro Pesto
I have, over the years, attempted to grow cilantro several times. Each time the plants bolted before I got much use out of them. This year I planted a bunch of seed in October, when the scorching Sacramento summer weather...
Cioppino
"I'll make cioppino," my brother John announced as the family discussed what to make over the holiday weekend. "Great!" said my father and I, relieved that someone else would do the cooking for a night. "Have you ever made cioppino...
Classic Baked Chicken
This baked chicken recipe is one of those recipes that every home cook should have in their repertoire. It uses a minimal amount of ingredients - chicken, olive oil, salt and pepper (and if you want gravy, chicken stock or...
Cobb Salad
Cobb salad is the quintessential American salad, first pulled together on a whim by Robert Cobb of the former Los Angeles landmark Brown Derby restaurant when he needed to feed Sid Grauman late one night (1937). It was such a...
Coleslaw
The word "coleslaw" comes from the Dutch word, "koolsla", "kool" meaning cabbage and sla, salad. The word entered our English language from the Dutch in New York in the late 1700s. Since then it has been a featured side dish...
Crab Bisque
During the winter months, our local Whole Foods gets one or two shipments in a week of freshly cooked Dungeness crab. Like all seafood, crab tastes best when it is as fresh as possible. When buying crab, ask the guy...
Crab Dip
Winter is fresh crab season here in Northern California. When our local Whole Foods gets in a shipment, we're first in line for the biggest (anything greater than 2 lbs) fresh, cooked crabs, already cleaned and broken. Dad calls it...
Crab Mango and Avocado Salad
I first encountered a crab mango salad at Fringale, the exquisite French-Basque restaurant on 4th St. in San Francisco. Recently at a restaurant in LA I had another delicious crab mango salad, this time with avocado and surrounded by peeled...
Crab Salad with Pear and Hazelnuts
Most crab lovers know that fresh crab pairs well with avocado. But have you ever tried it with roasted hazelnuts (also called Filberts)? I got this idea from a crab hazelnut pear appetizer prepared by Oregon chef Jason Stoller Smith...
Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup
Last spring I discovered with delight wild morel mushrooms popping up in our backyard. After two winters of biking the American River bike trail looking for edible mushrooms, having been bit by the wild porcini bug on forays in Northern...
Creamy Asparagus Soup
Spring here means strawberries and rhubarb, sweet peas and asparagus, and dreams of the summer bounty to come. Asparagus are everywhere, big, fat, and fresh. And yes, although we can get them all year round, I'm especially happy to eat...
Cucumber Salad with Mint and Feta
When the hot weather hits, nothing is more cooling than a cucumber salad. Inspired by a fabulous cucumber salad shared with a friend at the Sea Salt restaurant in Berkeley, I canvassed my neighborhood grocers for some delicate Persian cucumbers...
Cucumber Yogurt Salad
We eat a lot of hot and spicy dishes around here; a great way to cool the palate is with the delicious combination of yogurt and cucumber. This easy-to-make cucumber salad, also called "tzatziki", is a refreshing accompaniment to spicy...
Dad's Fish Stew
My father has been making this soup for several years now. It is incredibly easy to make, given how tasty the results. The key ingredient is the clam juice, though I have prepared it for people with shellfish allergies substituting...
Deviled Eggs
Deviled eggs. Easter egg hunts and summer picnic potlucks. I have been known to devour a dozen of these in one sitting. These were quick and easy. If you want them to be a little prettier, put the egg filling...
Easy Poached Eggs
Poaching eggs is one of the easiest, quickest, and lowest calorie ways of preparing eggs, as there is no added fat. Poached eggs make great additions to salads, such as the French salad Lyonnaise, or sandwiches, or just served simply...
Flank Steak Stir-Fry with Asparagus and Red Pepper
A few weeks ago I got a call from my friend Elizabeth who said, "You've got to try my mother's flank steak; it's soooo good!" I begged the recipe from Maria (Elizabeth's mother) and tried it out last night. It...
Franks and Sauerkraut Paprikash
When my father told me he had made "weenies and sauerkraut", all I could think of was, not another pork and sauerkraut recipe. My dad must have sauerkraut running through his veins by this time, given how often he eats...
French Onion Soup
The trick to a great French onion soup is starting with good stock. French onion soup is usually made with beef stock. I've made delicious soup with stock from the leftover rib bones of a rib roast. Another important element...
Ginger Chicken with Almonds
My friend Steve-Anna recently sent me this wonderful recipe for ginger chicken and claimed that it was one of her all time favorites. My father doesn't eat ginger if he can avoid it, so when I made it I just...
Glazed Salmon
This simple but delicious salmon recipe comes via my friend Heidi in Carlisle, Massachusetts, who got it from the Boston Globe (Thanks Heidi!). Because there are so few ingredients, the recipe relies completely on the freshness of the ingredients.
Greek Meatballs
I found this recipe in the weekend edition of the Wall St. Journal as good "noshing" food for New Year's and had to give it a try, with a few minor changes. It comes from chef Michael Symon of the...
Green Beans with Almonds and Thyme
This green bean recipe comes from my friend Heidi who loves to prepare beans this way for holiday and dinner parties. Can't go wrong with butter, garlic salt and toasted almonds!
Green Beans with Shallots and Pancetta
It doesn't take much to dress up green beans for a holiday meal. In this recipe the beans first blanched and then sautéed with pancetta and shallots, with some salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning. You can use...
Grilled Butterflied Leg of Lamb
Where to start? Somehow I suspect that the following method - fat is good, flame is good - is going to get me in trouble with some of you. But since this was the best lamb roast I've ever eaten...
Grilled Lime Chicken with Black Bean Sauce
This recipe for grilled chicken, marinated in lime juice, and served with a cilantro infused black bean sauce comes from my dear friend Steve-Anna, who, by the way, lives in Arizona, and is clearly not afraid of using her grill...
Grilled Marinated Flank Steak
Recipe updated July 10, 2007 Flank steak is a lean, somewhat tough but flavorful cut of beef that benefits from the tenderizing effects of a marinade. It is best cooked medium rare and thinly sliced at an angle. It actually...
Grilled Spicy Citrus Ribs
As any Southerner will tell you, the proper way to cook ribs is to barbecue them "low and slow" in a smoker built for that purpose. But not everyone has a smoker, and not all of us have the time...
Grilled Tri-Tip Steak with Bell Pepper Salsa
Have you ever come up with your own, never-before-seen recipe (at least not seen by you) and it turns out so well you just want to stand up and take a bow? Well, some of my friends do this all...
Hashed Brussels Sprouts with Lemon
These got a little browned, but they were still crunchy and delicious. When I announced that I wanted to make brussels sprouts, inspired by a recent recipe in the New York Times, my father let out a loud groan. Dad...
Heidi's Steak Diane
Steak Diane is tradtionally made with a thinly pounded steak, and a cognac, butter, and shallot sauce that is flambéed right before serving to great dramatic effect. Doing some research into Steak Diane, I found that the "Diane" part refers...
Herbed Roast Chicken
This is my father's favorite recipe for roasting a whole chicken. Adapted from a recipe by Jamie Oliver.
How to Make Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs
I love hard boiled eggs. For years I ate one every morning until my doctor told me that you shouldn't eat the same food every single day. So now I eat them only a couple of times a week. Sometimes...
Huevos a la Mexicana
Huevos al la Mexicana, or Mexican-style eggs, are essentially eggs, cooked and scrambled in salsa. My mother has been serving "huevos" (pronounced weh-vose, with the beginning like "when" without the n) prepared like this forever, as her mother before her...
Italian Flank Steak
Preparation time: marinade 2 hours, prepare and cook 1 hour. Italian flank steak is a butterflied flank steak, marinated, then layered and rolled with prosciutto, basil, and Parmesan cheese and peppers.
Italian Pot Roast
A few weeks ago my mother and I attended a cooking demonstration by our local celebrity Italian chef, the delightful Biba Caggiano. We Sacramentans are proud to call Biba our own; she has a fabulous restaurant, is the author of...
Italian Sausages with Ratatouille
My father loves ratatouille and Italian sausage, so when he saw a recipe in a magazine that combined the two, he was inspired to create his own version. This is a great way to use up last-of-the-season garden vegetables.
Jerk Chicken
I recently had the jerk chicken at a local Davis hangout, the psychedelically inspired Delta of Venus. The place looks a bit scruffy, but my oh my is their jerk chicken good. And hot. My meal there led me to...
Jim's Famous Hamburger
Most summer grilling is done for large groups and as such is not too fancy - burgers, hot dogs, steaks, and the occassional kabob. For this recipe I've borrowed a tip from my good friend Jim Honniball - a way...
Kale with Seaweed, Sesame and Ginger
Living for a while in Japan does strange things to your food preferences. Instead of thinking, "eating seaweed? PHEW!" one gets a warm glow and a faraway look in one's eyes thinking, "Eating seaweed? Ahhh. Yummm. Which kind do I...
Lamb Shanks
Preparation time: 2 to 2 1/2 hours. The trick to delicious lamb shanks is to sear the shanks first to seal in the flavor.
Lemon Chicken
Overheard at the market, "I'm a breast girl." "Really? I'm definitely a thigh girl," pause..."dark meat, so much more flavor." Had to laugh, I'm so so so much a thigh girl myself. Here is the secret to fabulous lemon chicken...
Liver Pâté
I love baked liver pâté, or "pâté maison" as it is sometimes called. It is especially good with French rolls with lettuce and tomato.
Liver and Onions
Once a month, my entire childhood, mom would serve us liver and onions for dinner. I think it was the only dish in which whining was even remotely tolerated. "Liver and onions, OH NOOOOO," was the hue and cry from...
Low Carb Cranberry Cooler
Let me just say right up front, that in general I do not believe in diet-induced substitutes for the real thing. In other words, I use butter, not margarine, and sugar, not splenda. If I want to lose weight I...
Low Carb Round Up - January Week 1
In keeping with the low(er) carb theme for this month, I did a quick spin around the food blogosphere to see what inspiring low-ish carb recipes I might find that were posted posted this last week among some of my...
Low Carb Round Up - January Week 2
Time for the January Week 2 Low Carb Round-up of enticing low-ish or low carb recipes found around some favorite food blogs this last week. Inspiring!
Low Carb Round Up - January Week 3
Well, it looks like I'm not the only one making an effort to go lighter on the intake these days. This month's efforts have been focused on lower carbs than the usual fare over the holidays. Here is a...
Low Carb Round Up - January Week 4
January is quickly coming to a close, and with it our focus here on low-er carb eating. An important lesson was learned by yours truly regarding this low carb experiment, and that is low carb eating only helps you...
Mom's Pan-fried London Broil Steak
"London Broil" used to be a way of describing a method for cooking lean beef cuts such as flank or top round, which originally was to pan-fry it quickly on medium high to high heat, cook it only to medium...
Mom's Perfect Pork Chops
Sometimes the best food is really the simplest. We experiment frequently with different ways of preparing pork chops, but the way we have pork chops most regularly is with a simple dry rub and pan frying. My mother's been making...
Mom's Roast Turkey
Turkey ready to go in the oven My mom's turkey is unlike others. The breast meat isn't dried out, requiring cupfuls of gravy to taste good, but moist and flavorful. I've been watching her make our family turkey for...
Mom's Summer Squash
Preparation time: 20 minutes. My mother is the only person I have ever known who can make summer squash taste this good. Often this time of year gardens are overflowing with zucchini and summer squash. This quick and easy recipe...
Mom's Turkey Soup
Updated Every Thanksgiving my mother takes what's left of the turkey carcass and makes a delicious turkey soup that we enjoy for days. The first step is to make the stock, which you can get started on right after dinner.
Mushroom Stir-Fry
When my father announced he was interested in trying out a stir-fry recipe, I was skeptical. I've been avoiding my mother's stir-fry my entire adult life (twenty years of experiments with water chestnuts, bok choy and soy sauce and still...
Napa Cabbage Picnic Salad
Every year around the Fourth of July, my friends Rich and Chigiy throw a huge barbecue party for their friends, and for number two son Dashiell, a July 4th baby. Every year, the talented Chigiy (pronounced "chi-gee") makes this terrific...
Osso Buco
I've made osso buco, an Italian dish of braised veal shanks, several times. I've eaten it in fine Italian restaurants. I've never really liked it until now. This is a great recipe that dad pulled from the web a few...
Oxtail Stew
Yes, oxtails really are from the tail of an ox (well, maybe not an ox per se, but a beef steer's tail). They have a deliciously rich and distinctive flavor. Like most stews, oxtail stew is best slow cooked for...
Pan Seared Salmon with Avocado Remoulade
"Bacon" variety avocados are in season in the winter; lighter in flavor than the more popular Haas variety, these large, thin-skinned avocados are exceptionally creamy and are perfect for using in sauces. While remoulade is typically made with mayonnaise, in...
Perfect Guacamole
Guacamole, a dip made from avocados, is originally from Mexico. The name is derived from two Aztec Nahuatl words - ahuacatl (avocado) and molli (sauce). The trick to perfect guacamole is using good, ripe avocados. Check for ripeness by gently...
Poached Salmon
This poached salmon recipe is one of the first recipes my father taught me a few years ago. It's his favorite way to prepare salmon because not only can it be prepared in 10 minutes or less, but it doesn't...
Porcini Parmesan
Winter is the best season to collect wild porcini mushrooms in the Pacific Northwest. They usually start popping up a couple of weeks after the first rain in November. Although great sliced and dried for future use, the large fresh...
Pork Chops with Dijon Sauce
We found this recipe in a New York Times Sunday Magazine over a year ago and have prepared it several times since. The Dijon cream sauce perfectly complements the pork. Goes well with new potatoes and green beens.
Pork Medallions with Mustard-Caper Sauce
Dad clipped this recipe from Bon Appetit several years ago and finally got around to making it this evening. It was excellent, and very easy to prepare. The mustard, capers, shallots, broth, and cream make a wonderful sauce for the...
Pork Roast with Cardamom Mushroom Sauce
There are two, no make that three, secrets to making an excellent pork roast. The first is to brine the roast; brining helps the roast retain moisture when it cooks. The second is to not overcook the pork. Take the...
Porkchops with Mushroom Bourbon Cream Sauce
This recipe is from my father's recipe collection (cut out from magazines - can't tell which one this is from). The whisky and the basil add nice touches to the mushroom cream sauce. My mother and I cooked this for...
Pot Roast
Pot roast was a standard growing up, and still continues to be in my parent's household. It requires slow cooking over low heat to ensure tender, flavorful meat. Pot roasts typically use the tougher cuts of beef - a chuck...
Prime Rib
Make sure to buy the prime rib roast properly tied and ready to put in the oven. The rib bones should actually be cut first, away from the roast, and then tied back on the roast with kitchen string before...
Pâté (Pate) Maison
Easy to make liver pate recipe, made with chicken livers and pork sausage, wrapped in bacon, well seasoned with herbs and spices. Also known as "pâté (pate) campagne".
Quick and Easy Artichoke Dip
This is one of the quickest, easiest, tastiest artichoke dip recipes around. All it takes is 3 simple ingredients, plus salt and pepper if you want, heated quickly in the microwave. Dress it up if you want, with garlic, chili...
Ricotta Stuffed Chicken
This ricotta stuffed chicken recipe is based on a recipe from a Weber grilling cookbook, and as such requires that you butterfly the chicken (makes it easier to grill). Although the recipe is designed for grilling, it can easily be...
Roast Beef
My mom knows a lot about cooking beef. She knows all of the cuts and what to do with them. This must have something to do with growing up at a time where people went to their local butchers for...
Roast Chicken with Grapes
I've been roasting chicken this way for over 20 years. The grapes not only absorb the juices and flavor of the chicken, the chicken absorbs the sweet juice of the grapes, making this a succulent way of preparing roast chicken...
Roast Leg of Lamb
The most important thing to remember about cooking a lamb roast is to not over-cook it. Lamb has such wonderful flavor on its own, and is so naturally tender, that it is bound to turn out well, as long as...
Roasted Asparagus
Have you ever had roasted asparagus turn out tough and stringy? Here's a tip from my friend Alanna: use the fat spears, not the skinny ones, for roasting. This is a quick and easy recipe for beautifully roasted, tender asparagus.
Roasted Fennel
Normally fennel tastes like a cross between celery, cabbage, and licorice. Roasting, however, brings out an entirely new flavor - as if pine nuts decided to join the party. Unfortunately, it is very hard to take an appetizing photo of...
Roasted Garlic
Years ago my pal Peter showed me how to roast garlic whole and eat the warm, toasty cloves right out of the head. How wonderfully simple! And perfect for garlic lovers.
Roasted Garlic Chicken
The trick to this tender, succulent roast chicken is the overnight brining. We usually roast chickens breast side down to ensure tender breast meat. But with the overnight brining in a roasted garlic and lemon juice marinade, the breast meat...
Sake Ginger Glazed Salmon
My sister Karen (Austin's mom) is in town, flush from completing a grueling, 500 mile bike ride from San Francisco to LA. Karen has always been a super athlete, and with her current passion for triathlons takes a lot of...
Salmon Mousse
A cool jelled appetizer.
Salmon Provencal
Here's a salmon dish made for summer. Fresh tomatoes, fresh chopped herbs, a few shallots, lemon juice, balsamic and olive oil make a perfect sauce to accompany baked salmon fillets.
Salmon Salad
Hot days are upon us. A great way to cool off is with a refreshingly chilled salmon salad. This salad is also one way to use up leftover salmon from a summer barbecue. Easy and quick.
Salmon Spread
One of the tastiest appetizers you can prepare for a gathering is a simple salmon spread. Usually salmon spreads are little more than smoked salmon mixed with cream cheese. This spread uses a combination of smoked salmon and freshly poached...
Salmon with Tomato, Onions, and Capers
Every year in mid September, my friend Jim organizes a group of his friends to go salmon fishing off the coast of Marin, north of San Francisco. For the second year in a row, I didn't a catch a fish...
Sauteed Baby Artichokes
For years I've walked by those packages of baby artichokes at Trader Joe's not willing to try them because they just didn't seem worth the effort. I'm glad to report that I was completely wrong. They actually take less time...
Seared Ahi Tuna
After completing graduate school in the late 80s, I spent a year studying martial arts at Kyoto University in Japan. The school cafeteria served many things that one would never encounter in the states (natto spaghetti for example), but one...
Seared Tuna with Avocado
One of the benefits of having your own cooking website is that your friends and relatives start sending you recipes to try. This recipe comes by way of my cousin Laurie in Maryland (thanks Laurie!) and is adapted from one...
Shaved Fennel Salad
When I announced I was making a fennel Parmesan salad, my father remarked something to the effect, "That sounds like something for 'ladies who lunch'." It does, doesn't it? The idea came from a recipe in the South Beach Diet...
Shrimp Ceviche
With the warm days of summer upon us, a great way to cool off is with ceviche. Ceviche is typically made with red snapper that is "cooked" by the acidity of lime and lemon juice (see this ceviche recipe.) This...
Shrimp and Avocado Salad
What better way to cool down in the heat of summer than with a delicious cold salad? Freshly cooked shrimp and creamy avocado are a perfect match, especially with a crisp vinaigrette. The best news? It only takes a few...
Shrimp with Orange Beurre Blanc
At a recent cooking class at Scott's Seafood (Folsom, CA), Chef David Lamonica set us to work preparing shrimp with orange beurre blanc (a French butter and shallot sauce). Chef David says the best shrimp to get are fresh, Gulf...
Smoked Paprika Roasted Chicken
I first experienced smoked paprika on a trip to New Zealand last year in a sweet potato soup. My host laughed as my eyes lit up with "Wow, what's in this?!" Ever since then I've been keeping my eyes out...
Spareribs and Sauerkraut
Spareribs with sauerkraut is something I've never had outside of my own home. My father claims that there are restaurants in Minnesota (where he grew up) that serve them. But I certainly have never seen them as a menu item...
Spicy Chicken Drumsticks
We often cook all drumsticks or all thighs when we prepare chicken. We love the more flavorful dark meat and the fact that the chicken pieces all get done around the same time. The following recipe is based on one...
Spicy Garlic Cashew Chicken
My father found this recipe (adapted from the New York Times) for chicken coated with cilantro, garlic, jalapeño, and cashews, and thought (rightly) that it might be worthwhile to try. When my 9-year old visiting nephew proclaimed, "Hey, this chicken...
Spinach
Popeye was the best thing that ever hit the spinach industry. When I was a kid you couldn't pay me to eat lima beans or peas, but spinach? I begged for it; we all did. Especially if it came from...
Spinach Frittata
According to the Wikipedia a frittata is "a kind of Italian omelette that can contain cheese, vegetables, or even leftover pasta. Frittatas are cooked slowly. Most often, they are cooked on the stovetop on low heat until the eggs are...
Spinach with Sesame and Garlic
We found a recipe for a Korean version of spinach in Mark Bittman's The Best Recipes in the World, and had to give it a try. It was a little garlicky for my taste (yes, I know it is a...
Steak Salad
Steak salad is such an easy and delicious thing to make with leftover steak. At a minimum it is simply slices of steak over salad greens with your preferred salad dressing. I tend to spiff mine up a bit with...
Steamed Broccoli
Steamed broccoli is the best cure for over-indulgence I know. It's cleansing, healthful, high in vitamin C, protein (45% of the calories in broccoli are protein), and fiber. The easiest way to dress broccoli is to mix in a tablespoon...
Stuffed Herbed Chicken with Boursin Cheese
Recently my father was inspired to make chicken breasts stuffed with Boursin cheese from a recipe he found online. If you are unfamiliar with Boursin cheese, it is essentially an all natural soft cow's milk cheese dressed up with garlic...
Stuffed Pork Chops with Kielbasa and Sauerkraut
My father is of German Austrian descent, so naturally we eat a lot of pork chops and sauerkraut. Recipes containing the same have almost a genetic pull over him. Add some kielbasa and the urge to try the recipe becomes...
Stuffed Zucchini with Turkey Sausage
If you grow zucchini in your garden, and you're the kind of wonderful person who brings your neighbors a share of your bounty, and such bounty includes foot-long several pound zucchinis, might I suggest that you include a recipe to...
Stuffed, Braised Pork Shoulder
We had a hankering for a pork roast recently and found this relatively easy stuffed pork shoulder recipe in an old The Good Cook cookbook on pork from Time Life (1979). These Time Life Good Cook books are by the...
Summer Squash Salad
Evie suspected that when I tried her summer squash salad recipe that I would have to eat my words (no pun intended) regarding my mom being the only one who could prepare squash well. Well, I have eaten my words...
Swiss Chard
I never liked Swiss chard, until several years ago I had some that had been freshly picked from a friend's garden. It was so sweet and yummy and buttery I couldn't believe it was actually Swiss chard. It was then...
Swiss Steak
Swiss steak is a method of slow-cooking a relatively tough cut of beef, such as a round steak. The meat is browned, and then braised in a tomato sauce. According to The American Century Cookbook, recipes first starting showing up...
Tilapia with Pimiento Sauce
Tilapia, a tasty farm-raised fish originally from Africa, has become more and more popular here in the states. I recently brought home a whole tilapia from our local Asian fish market and made quite a mess of trying to fillet...
Tuna Salad Sandwich
My parents started making tuna fish salad sandwiches this way years ago, and as far as I'm concerned theirs is the best and only way to make a tunafish sandwich. First it helps to start with high quality canned tuna...
Turkey and Bacon Rolls
Wandering around the web the other day, I encountered this recipe for gorgeous looking rocamboles de volaille, basically a poultry roll, on a French-language website about Portuguese food. In Brazil apparently rolled foods are called "rocamboles"; if there are Brazilians...
Vegetable Soup with Sweet Basil
My father found this recipe by Wolfgang Puck, who says that he got this recipe from his mother. It's really an excellent vegetable soup. Surprisingly tasty.
Wax Beans with Mint
Every weekend during the summer, if we are lucky, there will be a good supply of wax beans at the farmers market. These golden yellow (and sometimes purple) versions of green beans are harvested young, and are sweet and tender...
White Beans and Cherry Tomato Salad
If you've ever grown cherry tomatoes in your garden, you know how wonderfully prolific they can be in summer months. The following salad combines the sweetness of summer cherry tomatoes with white beans and parsley. The secret sauce is the...
Zucchini Ricotta Frittata
Did you know that yesterday was "Dump Your Extra Zucchini On Your Neighbor's Doorstep Day"? According to our local newspaper it was, though I think they may have been joshing. Then again, maybe not. This excellent zucchini ricotta frittata recipe...