Fun ingredient: seed toppings.

If you’ve dined out recently, you’ve probably spotted this new food trend: toasted seed toppings on all kinds of salads and main dishes. I’ve been playing around with toasted seeds (and with seed-herb blends) to dress up my summer cooking. It’s like adding a pretty scarf to a plain dress — just that little bit extra that makes it memorable. Get the recipes for toasted seed toppings and start playing yourself!

Read More ›

pasta with swiss chard pesto and creme fraiche recipe | writes4food.com

Pasta with chard pesto and creme fraiche.

Here’s another taste of California Wine Country cuisine for you: a bright, velvety, gorgeous pesto made with Swiss chard, enhanced with the creamy tang of creme fraiche. (Who knew?) Get this recipe for pasta with Swiss chard pesto, inspired by our recent travels!

Read More ›

radish and avocado salad with toasted seeds recipe | writes4food.com

Radish and avocado salad with toasted seeds.

A recent trip to California provided tons of culinary inspiration! It’s such a cliché, but California cuisine is just so fresh, so flavorful, so simple. This recipe for a beautiful salad of radish, avocado and toasted seeds typifies this method of cooking. Nothing complicated about it, but it’s jaw-droppingly delicious. Get the recipe!

Read More ›

poached eggs and sweet potato hash recipe | writes4food.com

Poached eggs and sweet potato bacon hash.

A recent trip to California’s Sonoma County and its lovely wineries and dining scene provided a ton of much-needed inspiration for new recipes — especially for dishes that are simple, seasonal and produce-centric. I’ll be posting several of these new recipes in coming weeks. First up: a fantastic sweet potato-bacon hash with poached eggs that’s great for brunch or “breakfast for dinner.” Get the recipe!

Read More ›

fresh strawberry pie in salted brown butter graham crust recipe | writes4food.com

Strawberry pie in a brown butter graham crust.

We’re on the cusp of strawberry season, and I plan to eat as many local strawberries as I can, prepared in as many ways as I can, for as long as I can. First up: my grandmother’s classic strawberry pie, moderned-up in a salted browned butter graham cracker crust. Yeah, you’re gonna want to make this. Get the recipe!

Read More ›

Awesome side dishes to make for Memorial Day.

So, you’ve got the whole grill thing figured out for your Memorial Day cookout: burgers, brats, chops, whatever. Now you need to focus on the sides. Skip the icky storebought potato salad and the greasy, overdressed pasta salad. Here are THE side dish recipes you need for your Memorial Day menu. Check ’em out!

Read More ›

whole grain farro salad with corn and tomatoes recipe | writes4food.com

Whole grain salad with tomatoes and corn.

This recipe is inspired by a dish that a colleague many years ago brought to an office potluck. Some 15 years later, it’s still one of my favorite lunchtime salads, and a great side dish for grilled chicken, too. This fantastic salad features whole-grain farro, sweet vegetables, herbs and an easy balsamic vinaigrette dressing. Get the #recipe!

Read More ›

Arugula green garlic pesto.

A glut of overgrown arugula in my garden — combined with some beautiful green garlic I scored at the farmers’ market — went into a big batch of spring arugula and garlic pesto this week. It’s fantastic over pasta, or as a condiment for grilled Italian sausages and new potatoes. Get the recipe!

Read More ›