Tofu Salad Cups

So, instead of a Tofu-Avocado Salad sandwich or wrap . . .

Make a mini phyllo bowl!


Obviously you won't have time or the desire to make something snazzy like this for lunch every single day. But once in a while, a delicious phyllo dough crust is just right. Especially in summer, when light finger-type foods are preferred over gigantic, heavy submarine rolls.

HOW TO:

• If you use store bought phyllo, which I'll get to in a moment, you'll need to thaw in the refrigerator overnight or follow the instructions on the box. So, make sure you do that before proceeding. 
• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a muffin tin with olive oil or butter/Earth Balance and set aside. 
• Make up a batch of the Tofu-Avocado Salad (or even Avocado-Egg Salad) and set aside // refrigerate.
• I used frozen phyllo dough for this recipe because making my own seemed far too daunting. However, if you're interested, here's a recipe for phyllo dough. 
• The secret to making phyllo cups is being liberal with olive oil or butter/Earth Balance. When it gets too dry -- even just sitting uncovered for a minute -- it breaks apart, and there's no returning from it. There should be information on the package about keeping everything moist and pliable.
• Lay down a large sheet of phyllo, brush it with olive oil, lay down another sheet, brush, another sheet, brush, and yet another sheet with more oil. That's 4 layers total. You could do 3 as well.
• Cut into 5 - 6 inch squares and press them -- gently -- into a (again, greased) muffin tin to form a mini-bowl or cup. 
• Bake for 10 minutes or so, until golden brown. Be careful not to over-bake.

Then all you need to do is let them cool and scoop in the salad . . .


It's crisp. It's light. It's fun. We have a Greek food festival coming up this weekend where we live, so I guess phyllo is on the mind. I have already decided I'm going to try and make my own spanakopita over the weekend.

And if you haven't tried it yet, the Tofu-Avocado Salad and Avocado-Egg Salad recipes are simple + tasty + quick to prepare. We eat one of them at least once a week over here.

What's your favorite light meal for summer? Or have you used phyllo in cooking before? How?

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Cheesy Old Bay Biscuits

I struggle with my identity as a "food photographer" -- which sounds like a ridiculous statement to make at all (because who really cares?), but it's true.

Do I want my photos to be fun + brightly colored?
Do I want to make quirky doodles all over the place because I'm feeling insecure?
Or how about some simple + moody shots. Food. Is. Serious. Business.

I honestly think it has more to do with the cloud cover on any given day than it does with my mastery of any sort of tone. Or use of props. Or editing. We'll see what things look like tomorrow, next week, etc.

Nothing new here. Just cut up Brussels sprouts, an onion or two, and a couple portabellas. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle salt and pepper. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Roast for about a half hour, stirring every once and again.

Set aside and drop the oven temperature to 350 degrees F to make these!


CHEESY OLD BAY BISCUITS
Just like the ones at Red Lobster, except not at all. Makes 12.

What you'll need . . . 

• 1-1/2 cups white + whole wheat flour 
• 1 tablespoon olive oil 
• 1 tablespoon baking powder 
• 1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning 
• Heaping half cup shredded Colby-Jack cheese
• 1 cup almond milk

Method . . .

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a standard size muffin tin and set aside. Alternatively, you can just make these drop biscuits and bake on a lightly greased baking sheet.
2. Pour your flour into a large bowl, then add the olive oil in the center and mix around with your hands + fingertips. You want the texture to become crumbly, almost as if you're cutting in butter. I just didn't have butter, but this worked well.
3. Then add the baking powder, Old Bay, and cheese and mix. 
4. Stir in the almond milk until everything is juice moistened. Do not over-stir.
5. Divide evenly into muffin tins. I found heaping tablespoons worked well as a measure.
6. Then bake for between 15 - 18 minutes. Or until the tops are golden brown on the edges. The centers may feel a bit soft, but that's OK. There's CHEESE!

We'll definitely be making these again. Baking powder biscuits in general are so easy to throw together. And you can improvise. I usually just stick with around 1 to 1-1/2 cups flour with 1 tablespoon baking powder, and the rest can be fun to play with.

Like even sweet ones! I made Strawberry Shortcake Biscuits for breakfast yesterday. I didn't get good photos and our strawberries are now long gone, but I will share the recipe soon. Ada helped!

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Roasted + Herbed Citrus

I didn't intend to take a break last week, but after my post about Training the Mind, my computer decided to act up, and I took it as a sign to disconnect. It's funny how the universe sends messages like that sometimes. Or maybe I'm just lazy.

But I'm back in full force this week -- first with this tasty breakfast side. This "recipe" is so simple, I don't know if you can call it a recipe at all.

Have I ever told you that brunch is my favorite meal? Something about the sweet and savory together. The time of day, too, is when I'm usually the cheeriest (and sun streams into our kitchen, which helps a whole lot).

Yeah. Especially in spring, brunch is king. (I didn't mean for that to rhyme, oops!)

A while back, it seemed like everyone was roasting citrus.

So, that's what I did . . . 


ROASTED + HERBED CITRUS
a flavorful side dish to liven up any meal

What you'll need . . .

• 6 pieces of citrus fruit 
• (Blood) oranges, tangerines, and small grapefruits work well 
• Olive oil 
• Fresh or dried herbs of choice, I used rosemary 
• Kosher salt (or even some sugar), to taste

Method . . . 

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Wash and scrub the outside of the fruit and slice in half. 
2. Place a half in each cup of a muffin tin and drizzle with olive oil. You may also just do this on a regular cookie sheet, but using the muffin tin kept everything upright.
3. Chop fresh herbs and sprinkle liberally onto cut citrus tops. 
4. Add a dash of salt to each. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until plump, sweaty, and slightly browned. 
5. Let cool slightly before serving. Slicing is optional. 
6. Best right away -- got a bit bitter after storage. So, plan a party!

So, hello again and thanks for bearing with me. I have a few NYC-related posts to share this week, including the sights + bites we enjoyed, how to tour NYC on foot (running), etc., and maybe even a surprise or two. Who knows!

And later today I'll be sharing a trip photo-bomb on Writing Chapter Three.

Happy Monday!

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Pumpkin Pesto Rolls

I've been holding out on you. Maybe that's not the right way to put it. It was gluten-free month after all. But I made these ages ago, just hadn't had the opportunity to take great photos.

Mind-blown.

PUMPKIN + PESTO ROLLS

What you'll need . . .

• A full batch of Pumpkin Garlic Knots dough, recipe here.
• A full batch of Walnut Basil Pesto, recipe here or your favorite pesto recipe with a similar yield.
• A standard muffin tin, like this one.

Method . . .

1. Let your dough rise + make your pesto.
2. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease the cups of the muffin tin with olive oil and set aside.
3. Knead dough for a minute, then divide into 12 equal balls. Using a rolling pin, flatten and roll out one ball until it is about 4 to 5 inches long.
4. Spread a heaping tablespoon of pesto onto it and roll. Place into muffin tin.
5. Continue with process with the remaining pieces of dough and pesto until all cups are full.
6. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Let cool slightly before serving with your favorite tomato sauce.

I hope the photos convey that this recipe is a MUST-make. I'd also love to figure out a gluten-free version. As always please, please, please let me know how you like this recipe! It's definitely a new favorite.

We ate them up quickly, but if you wrap tightly in plastic wrap and put in an air-tight container, I think you could freeze/reheat these pretty easily.

Enjoy!

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