Shakshuka Pita Pizza

March 9, 2017 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

“I received free samples of Toufayan Pita mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Toufayan Bakeries and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.”

Shakshuka. Shakshuka is a dish that has been on my list of recipes to blog about for a long time now. When I first heard about shakshuka, a dish in which eggs are poached in a seasoned tomato sauce, I was not enthusiastic (as I have blogged about before, I tend to be a bit of an egg purist), but the dish just kept showing up in different places and was mentioned by chefs and bloggers that I respect and admire. So finally I decided to push myself out of my comfort zone and give it a shot. And, of course, it was delicious and super simple to make—a win, win!

But today I want to share with you and even simpler meal that I am calling Shakshuka Pizza. This is one of those meals that is great for a crazy weeknight when you have about 15 minutes to get dinner on the table but everyone is sick of quesadillas and grilled cheese….

Lasagna Soup

February 16, 2017 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

A few years ago I was really desperate to find ways to get vegetables into my younger son. I had tried the battles, I had tried the pleading, and now I was trying to use the division of responsibility approach, which meant that I would choose what foods were offered but that he then would have the freedom to choose what he ate out of what was on the table and there would be no special meals or negotiations. What that meant for our family was that some nights I made a dinner that had vegetables on the side, which he almost never ate, and some nights I made a one-pot meal that included the vegetables in the dish. Often times he would pick around the vegetables, but sometimes I would find a dish that he loved so much that he would plow right through, not even noticing the vegetables.

There were two types of one-pot meals that tended to work for us. Soups and baked pastas. The kid loved (and still loves) pureed vegetables soups, which was very helpful when I felt like I was going to lose my mind. And while he would sometimes pick around the vegetables in a baked pasta, some strays would make it into his mouth and he was always cheerful when pasta was involved. Win-win. So when I discovered lasagna soup I knew I had to give it a go….

Mexican-Style Potato Gratin

December 21, 2016 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

While I am not a huge risk taker, I do love it when something pushes me outside of my comfort zone just a little bit. As my family and close friends will attest to, I love adrenaline rushes, as long as they don’t involve flying over water (I am cool with heights, but am terrified of drowning, go figure). So when this month’s The Recipe Redux challenge showed up I was psyched because it felt like a fun risk to take.

The challenge was to grab the closest cookbook and use a recipe from any page in the book that included the digits in 2016 as inspiration for a new recipe.

Why is this a risk? Because the cookbook that was closest at hand was a true favorite because the recipes are as close to perfect as I think you can get and because it already offers lots of variations, so coming up with a new version would be a challenge. Also because it is a cookbook by a chef, Rick Bayless, who loves to use spicy peppers, which was going to be tough on my kids and husband, none of who are big fans of spicy foods. But I was up to the challenge!

The recipe I landed on was his Seared Zucchini with Roasted Tomato, Chipotle and Chorizo (Tinga de Calabacitas). I decided I was going to focus on two areas of change, simplifying the recipe and making it seasonal. In order to simplify the recipe I removed two steps: rehydrating chipotle peppers and roasting tomatoes, especially since it isn’t tomato season. Instead I used chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, which are canned, and canned fire roasted tomatoes. In addition, instead of zucchini I wanted to use a seasonal vegetable and ended up settling on potatoes. And that is when it hit me! I could change this sort of stew recipe into a gratin recipe instead! It would be simple, packed with flavor, and very flexible—all qualities I strive for in my recipes. Oh, and one last added bonus: the leftovers are to die for so it makes a great lunch the next day!…

Getting Over Your Fear of New Ingredients and a New Recipe: Baked Squash Blossoms

June 23, 2016 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

Six years ago my family joined a CSA (community supported agriculture), otherwise known as a farm share. We joined because I really wanted to take advantage of local, responsibly grown produce. Being a member of the farm share has been a truly wonderful experience—from the warm and friendly staff, to the community atmosphere amongst the members, to the access to truly seasonal fruits and vegetables!

Our CSA is sort of unique in that instead of just picking up a box of pre-selected produce, you get to pick your selections in a farm stand-type set up. When I was first starting out, this feature was nice because I was nervous about cooking with unknown vegetables, so falling back on familiar ingredients made me more comfortable. As I have become a more confident and curious cook, though, one of the things that I have really grown to enjoy is trying out a new ingredient every week (or almost every week). This season the highlights so far have been kohlrabi, tatsoi, and squash blossoms.

As I have experimented with these new ingredients over the years I have figured out five tricks to make it fun and easy:…

Spinach and Cheese Toaster Pastries

February 18, 2016 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

Growing up my family never really ate convenience foods. There were no freezer dinners, no hamburger helper, no pop tarts, and no hot pockets. I was always intrigued by those forbidden foods since the commercials made them looks so appetizing and my brother and I were definitely known to beg and plead to try them. Finally, when I was about 10 my mom agreed to let us get the boxed mac n cheese, but only if I was going to make it myself and only for special occasions, like when we had a babysitter.

As I got older I had the opportunity to try some of the other foods that I had salivated over for years and years and time and time again I found them to be highly disappointing. They always tasted sort of cardboardy and fake. And, yet, even today the allure of those foods that patiently wait for you in your freezer, ready to miraculously turn into a meal is a strong one. So, when I have the time, I try to stock my freezer with homemade versions. Empanadas are a favorite, as are black bean burgers, and this week I have a new one to share with you: spinach and cheese toaster pastries….

Chicken and Kale Noodle Casserole

January 28, 2016 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

This winter has been a weird one, hasn’t it? Crazy warm for a while, then a blizzard on the East Coast that has wreaked havoc. It is kind of hard to know which way is up. My response to such wackiness? Comfort food. Creamy, warm, nourishing comfort food.

My mom calls these foods nursery foods because it is what you would feed little kids in a nursery back in the day. And I’ve got an updated version of nursery food for you today! This is a recipe I developed for a cooking client, but it was such a hit with them and my own family that I thought I would share it with you. This Chicken and Kale Noodle Casserole is sort of like a baked chicken alfredo pasta with a bonus dose of kale. It is creamy, soothing, and warm—all those things we crave at this time of year. But it has the added perk of being healthy enough that it won’t derail your goal of eating healthier in the New Year (if that was a goal of yours)!…

Freezer Breakfast Pockets: A flexible, portable breakfast

October 8, 2015 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

We all know the drill. Scrambling to get lunches packed, breakfast eaten, teeth brushed, clothes on, maybe showered. There is a lot to do before leaving the house for work/school in the morning! One of the ways I try to streamline that process for our household is to prepare breakfast foods over the weekend that can go into the freezer to be pulled out throughout the week. Muffins, mini-frittatas, spinach pop-outs, waffles, pancakes, oatmeal, I make them all. But even with all of that variety, my kids have been starting to get a little sick of the offerings. So I wanted to come up with a different option: breakfast pockets.

That’s right. I wanted to come up with homemade hot pockets (a treat I was never allowed to have as a kid, but that’s a story for another post)….

Brazilian-Style Fried Rice: Dinner in 7 Minutes

August 27, 2015 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

Many moons ago, when my now-husband and I first started dating, we did the thing that many couples do: we tried to increase our appeal by cooking meals for one another. At the time, neither of us cooked very much, so we both fell back on comfort foods that we had grown up with. For me, that was my dad’s Bolognese sauce. For my husband, it was eggs and rice.

When he first told me of his love for eggs and rice I was dumbfounded. Outside of fried rice at Chinese restaurants I had never heard of the combination. And to be completely honest, I thought it sounded absolutely awful. But in the interest of being a good sport with my new boyfriend, I agreed to try it. As I looked down at my plate of rice topped with a fried egg, I was still doubtful. And then I took my first bite and I was blown away! It was delicious, nourishing, and comforting. It felt like something I would imagine a grandmother would make for you when you were home sick….

4 Reasons Why You Need Rice Bowls in Your Life

May 7, 2015 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

When I was a kid one of my favorite dinners was tacos. I loved it because it was delicious, but I also loved it because it was fun. The table was filled with bowls full of all kinds of colorful options: green chopped lettuce, red chopped tomato, bell peppers of various hues, black or brown beans, white cheese and sour cream, red or green salsa, maybe a meat of some sort, Tabasco sauce, onions, etc. I loved that I was about to make my meal my own. I loved that it was such a communal experience—passing bowls, discussing our favorite ingredients, seeing who could pile their tacos with the most food and still fit it into their mouth. It was wonderful.

In my own house I have taken that same approach and expanded it to include all sorts of rice (and other grain) bowls. There are a number of reasons why these are a staple in our house:…

Simple Grain Salad: A side dish without a recipe

February 19, 2015 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

One of the recommendations I often make to clients and in workshops is to “cook once, and eat two, three or more times.” Many times, life can get so busy that meal planning seems impossible and all we can do is try to quickly figure out the next meal—tonight’s dinner, tomorrow’s school lunch, etc. When we do that we are constantly searching for recipes and depending on our creativity, which can quickly burn us out and leave us resentful of having to cook at all. But, with a tiny bit of planning and maybe some flexibility we can turn one round of cooking into two or three simple meals.

One of my favorite ways to stretch the food I make farther is with a grain salad. If I am making a pot of grains—rice, quinoa, millet, couscous, etc.—I always make extra. So much can be done with leftover grains: you can turn them into breakfast porridge, throw them into a big green salad for some added heft, mix them into soups or stews, fold them into veggie burger batter, and, my favorite, turn them into a grain-based salad. Grain salads are great because they can serve as a hefty side dish and are so incredibly flexible—any leftover vegetables, cheese, or salad dressing you have lying around can get thrown in!…

The Balanced Kitchen

Time for food. Time for Life.