Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Recipe: Crispy Gochujang Korean Tofu




Delicious and super easy to make. I really liked the spiciness of the sauce. The only thing that was a letdown was the tofu which wasn't crispy. We can probably use a different tofu recipe for this easy, healthy dish.

Ingredients: tofu, soy sauce or tamari, cornstarch, breadcrumbs, rice, cucumber, carrot, avocado, sesame seeds

Sauce Ingredients: soy sauce or tamari, gochujang, tomato paste, vegetable broth, honey, toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, cornstarch, water

Tips/Notes:
  • Added edamame

Sunday, May 3, 2026

Recipe: Pork Meatballs with Carolina Gold Sauce


Food & Wine Magazine, May 2026, p. 48
4.9 stars

This was so easy to make especially since we used Impossible Italian Plant-based Meatballs. Love the sauce (sweet and tangy almost like a BBQ sauce) -- and I ALWAYS love polenta!

Ingredients (modified for our recipe): Impossible Italian Plant-based Meatballs, polenta, light brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, ketchup, hot sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, vegetable broth, olive oil, black pepper, parsley


Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Recipe: Thick Gluten Free Cookies (Levain Style!)





eatwithclarity.com
5 stars

Another EatWithClarity.com successful recipe! I love Levain Style cookies (if you haven't had them, they are big and gooey and delicious -- the brand has a number of bakeries in NYC).

These were delicious! They actually 1) weren't as sweet as I thought they would be which was a plus, and 2) they weren't as gooey but then we baked them for the full 16 minutes. (Levain Style cookies are HUGE, and this recipe was supposed to make just 9 cookies, but I made 19 ~ so made the cookies smaller for portion control).

Notes/Tips:
  •  As mentioned above, portioned this out to make double the # of cookies (so smaller cookies) which still were big/normal sized cookies
  • Baked these for 16 minutes but will try a minute less next time
  • The recipe writer forgot to add "salt" (which is in the ingredient list) to step 4

Wednesday, April 22, 2026

Recipe: Spanish Squash Soup


Spanish Squash Soup
America's Test Kitchen 
4.9 stars

We saw this made on American's Test Kitchen (the show on TV) and wrote down the recipe. I honestly wasn't sure how this was going to turn out, but it was absolutely delicious -- so flavorful!

Ingredients: kabocha squash, fennel, leeks, cannellini beans, Italian sausage, vegetable stock, garlic, parsley, red pepper, pepper, salt 

Tips/Notes:
  • Used plant-based Beyond Sausage

Wednesday, April 15, 2026


Wow - these brownies were so good that I'm sad that we finished them and I'm debating whether to make them again right away or try a different recipe! It's my FAVORITE brownie recipe -- and so EASY!

Ingredients: semi-sweet chocolate chips, eggs, refined coconut oil, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, tapioca starch, cocoa powder, salt

Tips/Notes:

  • Used avocado oil instead of refined coconut oil (I knew this was a good substitute from research and other recipes)
  • Used cornstarch instead of tapioca starch per the recipe's notes

Wednesday, April 8, 2026

Recipe: Gluten Free Ramen


This was so delicious -- great flavor. I dare say it beats Marcus Samuelsson's Vegetable Ramen Recipe. 

Ingredients: gluten free ramen noodles, eggs, shiitake mushrooms, bok choy, edamame, vegetable broth, green onions, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, tamari, rice wine vinegar, white miso paste, sesame seeds and sriracha

Tips/Notes:
  • Doubled the recipe
  • Used broccoli instead of bok choy
  • Added +1/2 tsp of tamari
  • Didn't double the vegetable broth but instead add 1 cup of water
  • Added tofu

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Recipe: Chorizo, Potato, and Bean Breakfast Burritos


Food & Wine Magazine, Feb 2026, p. 43
4.7 stars

Good -- basically what we make for breakfast on ski trips.
Note that we used plant-based chorizo.

Ingredients: flour tortillas, frozen potato tots, Mexican chorizo, red bell pepper, red onion, black beans, eggs, extra sharp cheddar cheese, cooking oil, whole milk, Kosher salt, black pepper

Serve with: sour cream, salsa, hot sauce, shredded lettuce

Tips/Notes:
  • Used plant-based chorizo instead of chorizo
  • Diced up a potato instead of using frozen potato tots
  • Added cilantro and radishes since we had them on hand

Recipe: Tofu Larb Bowl


Food & Wine Magazine, Apr 2026, p. 32
4.9 stars

Tasty! Great textures all around! We made this plant-based.

Ingredients: white rice, ground chicken, scallions, red cabbage, cucumber, mint, cilantro, baking soda, sesame oil, sweet chile sauce, fish sauce, lime juice, cornstarch, garlic, canola oil

Tips/Notes:
  • Used plant-based chicken
  • Used 3 Tbsp of lime juice instead of a 1/4 cup
  • Used avocado oil instead of canola oil
  • Used broccoli slaw instead of red cabbage

Sunday, March 29, 2026

Recipe: Tortilla Soup


Food & Wine Magazine, Feb 2026, p. 66
4.8 stars

We modified this recipe to make it VEGETARIAN -- it was delicious. My only complaint is I felt like there were too many onions like French onion soup. The tofu was a great substitution; make sure to sautee it in advance. Avocado and queso fresco are a must.

Ingredients: chicken stock, rotisserie chicken, white onions, cilantro, can of crushed tomatoes, chipotle in adobo, garlic, bay leaves, cumin seeds, olive oil, kosher salt; avocados, lime wedges, pickled onions, queso fresco, tortilla chips

Tips/Notes:
  • Used vegetable stock instead of chicken stock
  • Sauteed 2 blocks of tofu and used instead of the rotisserie chicken
  • Added cilantro as a garnish
  • Added sliced radishes as a garnish
  • Did not add pickled onions

Wednesday, March 25, 2026

Recipe: Creamy Tomato Pasta


Food & Wine Magazine, Aug 2025, p. 87
4.8 stars

This was delicious -- almost restaurant worthy! Great flavor; burrata is a must for the creaminess.

Ingredients: spaghetti, cherry tomatoes, shallot, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, butter, red pepper, kosher salt, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, burrata cheese, fresh oregano

Tips/Notes:
  • Used gluten-free pasta
  • Served with plant-based sausage
  • Didn't garnish with fresh oregano

Wednesday, March 4, 2026

Recipe: Gigante Beans with Sausage


Food & Wine Magazine, Sep 2025, p. 105
4.9 stars

I was SHOCKED how good this soup tasted and how well it turned out. Such a surprise from reading the recipe and seeing how "watery" this was as we didn't necessarily expect it to be like a soup. It was delicious! We made this plant-based using the modifications below. The Parmesan rind is key for adding the umami flavor.

Ingredients: gigante benas or large lima beans, soppressata log, crushed tomatoes, dry white wine, chicken broth, Parmesan cheese rind, Parmesan cheese, garlic, dried Italian seasoning, extra-virgin olive oil, red pepper, Kosher salt, parsley, toasted bread for serving

Tips/Notes:
  • Do not add any water
  • Used 2 cans of cannellini beans -- next time, use 4 cans
  • Used plant-based sausage instead of the soppressata log
  • Used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth
  • Added cooked quinoa to our bowls 
  • Had red wine in the fridge so used it instead of white wine

Sunday, March 1, 2026

Recipe: Cuban-Style Black Beans

Cuban-Style Black Beans
Food & Wine Magazine, Sep 2025, p. 48
5 stars

Tasty!!! Best black beans we've made and will probably make from now on.

Ingredients: black beans, white onion, green bell pepper, tomato paste, bay leaves, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, dry white wine, ground cumin, dried oregano, Kosher salt, black pepper, water

Tips/Notes:
  • Used 2 cans of black beans beans instead of dry
  • Did not add 5 cups of water -- instead, use liquid in cans of beans and don't add more than 1/4 c of water
  • Used 1 white onion instead of 2
  • Used 1 large green bell pepper instead of 2
  • Used 1 bay leaf instead of 4
  • Used 3 garlic cloves instead of 4
  • Used 1 tsp of Kosher salt altogether (don't add the salt at the end in step 4 (the 2 tsp) -- it had plenty of salt!)
  • Added red pepper for heat

Recipe: Crispy Tofu Tacos


NYTimes
5 stars

This definitely beats the Vegan Tofu Taco Crumbles recipe we tried a few weeks ago. So delicious -- and it's the red tomato paste at the end that takes this to the next level. I actually prefer this to regular taco meat!

Ingredients: firm tofu, tomato paste, soy sauce, ground cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, olive oil, black pepper; avocados, mayo, lime zest and juice, tortillas, onion, radishes, cilantro

Tips/Notes
  • After adding the tomato paste, it says to continue baking 10 to 15 minutes; it needs an additional 5-10 minutes on top of that
  • Used crunchy taco shells
  • Didn't make the avocado cream
  • Used white onion instead of red onion
  • Added lettuce and tomatoes

Wednesday, February 25, 2026

Recipe: Bucatini with Shiitake Cream Sauce


Food & Wine Magazine, Oct 2025, p. 50
4.9 stars

Super delicious and flavorful -- restaurant worthy! It's very mushroom-y because of the mushrooms in the sauce AND chopped up. We made it plant-based by using plant-based sausage. The leftovers have been so good.

Shiitake Cream Sauce: oyster mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, garlic, shallot, dry white wine, heavy cream, olive oil, red pepper

Pasta: bucatini, spicy Italian sausage, oyster mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, garlic, shallot, dry white wine, chicken stock, olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper, lemon zest and juice

Tips/Notes:
  • Use plant-based sausage
  • Used vegetable stock instead of chicken stock
  • Next time add 50% more mushrooms to the pasta

Friday, January 30, 2026

Recipe: Vegan Tofu Taco Crumbles




Vegan Tofu Taco Crumbles
Sam Tumball (ItDoesntTasteLikeChicken.com)
4.5 stars

This was fine, not amazing. I have another NYTimes recipe for something similar so will compare. For this one, the tofu was still really wet even though we baked it longer; didn't use all the salsa as that would've caused it to be even more wet!

Ingredients: tofu, chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, soy sauce, oil, salsa

Had this in hard shell tacos with cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, cilantro, avocado


Saturday, January 24, 2026

Recipe: Protein Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies

Chelsea Plummer (MaesMenu.com)
4.7 stars

Pretty good -- good for a snack and breakfast!

Ingredients: high-protein oats, chocolate chips, overripe banana, unsweetened applesauce, natural peanut butter, vanilla protein powder, chia seeds, hemp seeds, maple syrup, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, pinch of salt

Notes:
  • Didn't add hemp seeds
  • Add more cinnamon
  • Add 2 pinches of salt
  • Next time add some date sugar to add some sweetness