A few weekends ago I finally got around to making my own sukiyaki from a recipe in a new cookbook, Japanese Hot Pots. When we had this for the first time in Japan, I loved the social nature of the meal, chattering as we plopped in the ingredients, the discussion of whether or not the individual pieces were ready for eating yet. It was a lot of fun, and something I so wanted to recreate.

So I did, and it was so much easier than I anticipated! I headed to the Japanese grocer to pick up the ingredients, which did lend a hand in the ease of this meal (my beef was already sliced to the perfect thickness – though you could easily get everything you need at your normal grocery and take the time to slice your own). This was fun in itself, as I got to wander the aisles, seeing what new treasures this grocery had to offer (dried sardines with sticky sweet soy sauce was one!). (more…)

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Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten free, Japanese, World traveller by Courtney

After a very blessed Thanksgiving with plentiful food on the table, I have a few leftovers in the fridge, and I’m not just talking about dressing and turkey. The Stuffed Pumpkin I made only needed half of a butternut squash, so today I’m faced with what to do with that other half.

Luckily, this is a pretty easy conundrum for me to face. One of my favorite ways to cook butternut squash is to roast it with a bit of salt until tender, then coat it with an oil flavored with pancetta and red chilis. And what goes better with pancetta then sea scallops? So I did a quick pan fry of those with just a little salt and pepper, and voila! Thanksgiving leftovers that weren’t very Thanksgiving at all.

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Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten free, Quick and Easy, Thanksgiving by Courtney

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

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Thanksgiving by Courtney

What would Thanksgiving be without gravy? When creating my South Indian Thanksgiving menu, the gravy was the thing that posed the biggest issue in my mind. I needed something that would stand up to the big flavors of the tandoori turkey and spicy mashed potatoes without overwhelming the taste buds. I thought about it for quite a while before I decided upon a Tamarind Gravy.

Tamarind is a fruit pulp that is often used in Indian and Caribbean cooking, as well as many other Asian and African cuisines. It can range from sour to sweet, depending on how ripe the fruit is. It can be bought in a block or a paste (which is easier to deal with) at many ethnic grocery stores.

Out of all the dishes I made for my South Indian Thanksgiving, this was the one I thought might end up in the garbage can. But the resulting flavor was delicious, and my husband and I were reaching for second and third pieces of naan to sop up the gravy on our plate. The great thing about this recipe is it is based on a roux of butter and flour, so you can make it vegetarian by adding vegetable stock instead of a poultry stock if you have vegetarian guests. (more…)

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Dairy free, Dinner, Indian, Thanksgiving, Vegan, Vegetarian by Courtney

I always struggle with what types of greens to put on the table for Thanksgiving. Though I love creamed spinach, it always seems too indulgent for an already cream-and-butter-laden meal. Green beans are my default, because everyone else seems to love them so much, but they’re really not my favorite. Asparagus isn’t in season, and broccoli just doesn’t seem very Thanksgiving at all.

However, for last year’s Southern Indian-inspired Thanksgiving, the sides weren’t too creamy, so I decided to do a riff on creamed spinach that contained a hint of cream, but was also filled with flavors and spices of India, so as not to be bland. The result is one of my favorite ways to serve spinach, Thanksgiving or not! (more…)

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Dinner, Gluten free, Indian, Thanksgiving, Vegetarian by Courtney