Vegetarian

Hearty Buckwheat Salad with Creamy Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette

We discovered three bags of buckwheat groats in one of our suitcases when we returned to Haiti a few months ago.... some toddler packing assistance, perhaps?! Buckwheat is one of our favorite salad grains that we make seasonal adaptations of throughout the year. I especially love the nutty flavors of buckwheat with a creamy sweet roasted garlic vinaigrette and toasted vegetables. Beets and carrots are all plentiful in our Port-au-Prince markets this time of year, and we love the slightly offbeat grassy flavor of local okra in the mix. 

For other grain based salads try our Spring Picnic Orzo Salad with Asparagus and FetaHearty Quinoa & Chickpea Salad, Spring Buckwheat Grouts Salad, Wild Rice & Quinoa Salad with Mushrooms & Asparagus.

Hearty Buckwheat Salad with Creamy Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette

Marinated Tomato Mozzarella Salad

It has been a bit of a blur since Gideon's arrival, as we remember what it's like to go weeks without a full nights sleep. Little Gideon and Mom are both doing well, and so we are on track to returning to Haiti in early August. As we wrap up our last weeks here, stateside, we are relishing the tastes of North American summer: impossibly good sweet corn, tart local blueberries with a dash of cream, and fresh peak-of-summer tomatoes and herbs. This Marinated Tomato and Mozzarella Salad has been a frequent highlight on our table these last few weeks. It is ready in minutes, bursting with summer flavor, a balance of bright sweet tomatoes and creamy fresh mozzarella.

Marinated Tomato Mozzarella Salad

Spring Picnic Orzo Salad with Asparagus & Feta

We love outdoor eating, and as temperatures rise in Northern Indiana, we've been honing our pasta salad line-up for the picnic season. Spring Picnic Orzo Salad with Asparagus and Feta is an edgier alternative to the traditional picnic classic. In our pasta salad, we replaced the larger pasta with small rice shaped orzo, added crunchy asparagus, bell peppers and cherry tomatoes, and tossed it with an assertive garlicky lemon vinaigrette, herbs and feta. Enjoy this early picnic season with Spring Picnic Orzo Salad with Asparagus and Feta.

For other grain based picnic ready salads try our Hearty Quinoa & Chickpea Salad, Spring Buckwheat Grouts Salad, Wild Rice & Quinoa Salad with Mushrooms & Asparagus.

Spring Picnic Orzo Salad with Asparagus & Feta

The Last Salad of Winter & A Caramelized Apple Vinaigrette

Paul and I are nuts for winter fennel salads, and it turns out that our 14-month old daughter is a big fan as well... that is until we upped our game and added this amazing caramelized apple vinaigrette. Madeline ignored the salad completely and licked the vinaigrette off all the salad components, all the while loudly commenting "mmmmmm." We realize that a 14-month-old cannot be our barometer of good food, but darn it if we don't love this salad combination ourselves, and want to lick the vinaigrette off the bottom of our plates. The tart green apple, crisp fennel, sweet blood oranges and sweet and sour notes of this wonderful caramelized apple vinaigrette make this a winner.

The Last Salad of Winter & A Caramelized Apple Vinaigrette

Rosemary Lemon Roasted Potatoes

The smell of roasting potatoes makes my mouth water every time. These golden brown orbs of puffed potato deliciousness have been my dish of choice this past month. And I think the addition of rosemary and lemon makes the house smell like Sunday dinner. Happy roasting!

Rosemary Lemon Roasted Potatoes

Spiced Moroccan Carrot Salad

When the winter chills set in, this colorful tangerine hued salad, with its bright splashes of pomegranate, feta, and cilantro is a full flavored pick you up. This is a long-standing recipe in our repertoire, with a captivating citrus and spice vinaigrette. 

Spiced Moroccan Carrot Salad

6 Winter Salads

For us, a good meal involves contrast, vibrant vegetables and meatless mains, even in the coldest months. We’ve put together a collection of 6 of our most popular hearty winter salads to inspire your winter salading. 

1. Wild Rice & Quinoa Salad with Mushrooms & Asparagus

2. Kale Cobb Salad with Avocado Green Goddess Dressing

3. Roasted Vegetable Fattoush Salad

4. Crisp Apple Fennel Salad with Tangerine Vinaigrette

5. Beet & Goat Cheese Salad

6. Slow Cooker Lentil Salad with Roasted Squash

6 Winter Salads

Mayan Red Spice Paste, Recado Colorado

complex base, potent marinade, or vibrant accent flavor. Mayan Red Spice Paste, Recado Colorado, is popular, both for its beautiful vibrant red hue, and warm tangy flavor. Rich in color, and fall flavors, our non-traditional take on Recado Colorado streamlines the preparation process. Recado Colorado is excellent for making red rice, a great base for barbecue sauces, a go-to rub for meats, on burgers, and a potent flavor boost for chilis and other soups. Stay tuned for two fantastic recipes using our Mayan Red Spice Paste coming up in the weeks ahead.

You may have noticed that we have a fondness for spice pastes here at The Hungry Hounds. If you too have caught the flavor paste obsession, check out our two other potent pastes: Smokey Mexican Chile Paste, Chilmole, and Garlic Ancho Chile Paste

Mayan Red Spice Paste, Recado Colorado

Zucchini Falafel Burgers with Green Tahini Sauce

It's burger time, and not just for meat lovers. We're combining the summer's bounty of zucchini with loads of herbs for a burger riff on the falafel. While these patties are delicious on their own, we went a little nuts with the toppings, including a tangy herb scented green tahini sauce, and an addictive tomato, cucumber and feta salsa. Zucchini Falafel Burgers with Green Tahini Sauce are a vibrant celebration of summer flavors. Happy 4th and Canada Day to our American and Canadian readers! 

For more burger inspiration check out smokey ancho cheddar burgersbacon bison burgersturkey feta burgers with yogurt curry sauce & portobello burgers with green olive tapenade.

Zucchini Falafel Burgers with Green Tahini Sauce

Potato Beet Salad

The days are hot, school is out, the grill is fired up, and it's potato salad season. We're adding some color to ours today with a Haitian variation of Potato Beet Salad. Potatoes and beets are a lovely earthy combination with some parsley, and pickled red onions, this is great mellow tasting accompaniment to your early summer grilling. Check out other non-traditional potato salad variations: moroccan roasted sweet potato saladgrilled potato salad with jalapeno, bacon & blue cheese & tuscan potato salad.

Potato Beet Salad

Marinated Herbed Zucchini

Craving something fresh, Paul picked up a basket of summer squash at the market on the way home from work yesterday. Marinated Herbed Zucchini is a beautiful and flavorful summer starter that transforms summer's bounteous zucchini and squash into something unexpected and delicious. Whether you're looking for a creative new salad...or just searching for something other than zucchini bread to make with the summer squashes piling up in your kitchen, this is a winner!

Marinated Herbed Zucchini

Smokey Mexican Chile Paste, Chilmole

Last weekend, Rebecca and I moved into our permanent house here in Haiti. What a relief after months of transition. With food on the mind, our first order of business was setting up the grill! And yes, if you were wondering... it is the same grill we had in Pittsburgh for 8 years, lovingly disassembled and brought over in a suitcase by my MacGyver-of-a-father. As temperatures rise, there is just something special about grilled food. Maybe its that the smokey char reminds me of campfires and sleeping under the stars, maybe its just the uncomplicated joy of cooking over flames. For me, this Smokey Mexican Chile Paste is the closest thing there is to bottling all that is beautiful about grilling. Our non-traditional take on Mexican chilmole paste tempers the hard char of the classic black version, for a lighter, more fruity chili flavor. This paste is excellent for making red rice, a great base for barbecue sauces, a go-to rub for meats, and a potent flavor boost for chilis and other soups. 

Smokey Mexican Chile Paste, Chilmole

Haitian Pikliz

It is a big week for us. Friday marked our first official day as country representatives, and tomorrow we are moving into our new house. The thought of unpacking after 6 months makes me giddy! This week's transition seems more final than the previous ones, it feels like we have finally arrived at our destination, Haiti is home. As we have explored Haitian culture through food, pikliz was our first culinary attempt. Pikliz is a beloved Haitian condiment; a pickled cabbage dish with spices and citrus notes, that often accompanies rich or fried foods. Our usual make-taste-adjust routine was somewhat stymied, when after our 9th batch, we just couldn't seem to get a consensus from our Haitian friends and co-workers, of the flavor profile for the perfect pikliz. More heat, more sweet, less sour, more citrus, less salt, more salt, add color, more crunch. Finally we figured it out, there is no perfect master recipe. This is our favorite version of our many, many batches. Enjoy tinkering with the recipe to make pikliz your own. This tangy condiment is fantastic with all manner of meathot dogsburgers, and stewed dishes.

Haitian Pikliz

Black Pepper & Lime Caesar Salad

My mother and sister flew to Haiti last week, the final visit in an amazing month of family guests. First Madeline's uncle arrived on a spur of the moment 48-hour trip to cuddle his new niece. Next to arrive was her grandpa and grandma, traveling to Haiti from Indiana, narrowly avoiding a political protest near the airport on the day of their arrival. Madeline's omi and opi from Canada made it in time to see her first smiles, and last week she met her aunt from Pittsburgh for the first time. It has been an incredible expression of love and support from both of our families as they trekked to Haiti, schlepping our many bags along with them. Each time, as I passed our little daughter over to her newly arrived family member, it was a moving experience. Perhaps it's the postpartum hormones... but there was just something about the contrast of having moved to a new place without family, and then watching the faces of our parents and siblings as they held our daughter for the first time that put a lump in my throat. So how does this all relate to this most excellent black pepper lime caesar salad recipe you might ask? My family is nuts for caesar salad. So as I paced the house waiting for my mother and sisters' delayed flight last week, I made my new favorite variation with black pepper and lime. I perfected this version over the last few months while pregnant and unable to eat the classic caesar dressing with raw eggs. I discovered mayonnaise to be a creamy and delicious substitute and swapped out the traditional lemon in favor of local key limes. This is an addictive dressing, so I recommend just going ahead and doubling it the first time.

Black Pepper & Lime Caesar Salad

Rustic French Greens & Buttermilk Soup

Thanks for following along with our new adventures! We recently moved from Pittsburgh to Haiti where we are starting a 5 year volunteer assignment with a non-profit relief and development organization. We will be in transition for the next few months as we complete our in-country orientation, language study, spend time living with host families in both the countryside and capital... and lest we forget, have our first baby somewhere in there as well! Please bear with us as we will not have ready access to internet or a kitchen throughout this time. We will continue to share new recipes that we've prepared in advance, and updates on our new life in Haiti as often as we are able.

This Rustic French Greens & Buttermilk Soup is a simple, green, and earthy foil to the button-busting days of Christmas feasting. This recipe is inspired by a watercress soup Paul came across when we were on a French cooking binge, and we find that it adapts well to any hardy green you have on hand. A surprising hit with guests, this soup has a lovely mellow and subtle sweetness that is truly delicious.

Rustic French Greens & Buttermilk Soup

Spinach, Strawberry, Avocado Salad with Goat Cheese & Pecans

Thanks for following along with our new adventures! We recently moved from Pittsburgh to Haiti where we are starting a 5 year volunteer assignment with a non-profit relief and development organization. We will be in transition for the next few months as we complete our in-country orientation, language study, spend time living with host families in both the countryside and capital... and lest we forget, have our first baby somewhere in there as well! Please bear with us as we will not have ready access to internet or a kitchen throughout this time. We will continue to share new recipes that we've prepared in advance, and updates on our new life in Haiti as often as we are able.

Even before I became pregnant, I was no stranger to food cravings, but looking back, pregnancy has taken me down some odd paths. There was the stage at the beginning, when in between bouts of vomiting, I madly craved salty, tangy and pickled foods. For a while I ate lentil salad with tangy vinaigrette and feta for breakfast every morning. Luckily, the intensity of my craving passed before I fully pickled our baby. In the second trimester, my cravings swung towards tex-mex, and sour-cream became the condiment of choice on everything. Mid pregnancy was notable for my lack of interest in dessert, with an occasional craving for canned peaches. Thankfully for my health, this third trimester has brought a renewed love of fresh fruits and veggies. So while I recognize that this Spinach, Strawberry & Avocado Salad is in no way seasonal, I have happily scarfed it for lunch and sometimes dinner for the month leading up to our departure to Haiti. I like the contrast of crisp spinach, sweet strawberries, creamy avocado nestled beside tangy goat cheese, toasted pecans, and topped with a balsamic vinaigrette.

Spinach, Strawberry, Avocado Salad with Goat Cheese & Pecans

Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup

Yesterday was our last day of work, a bittersweet time in many ways. We left after saying reluctant goodbyes to many wonderful co-workers. It was an unusually silent car as we drove away, each of us lost in our own thoughts, until a loud rumble and clanking sound broke our melancholic lull. Our pensive quiet was replaced with a resigned amusement and a jolt back to practicality; we had managed to get a flat tire before we even left the parking lot. A tire change, careful drive home, and a trip to our local garage later, we were famished by the time we finally made it home. We heated up some Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup we'd made earlier in the week and dunked some of Paul's sourdough bread into the sweet goodness while we talked through our next life step. This soup is a master at capturing the nuanced sweetness of natural caramelization and the subtle nuttiness of roasted onion, garlic and butternut squash. While Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup tastes rich and complex, it is in reality just a very simple roasted vegetable puree turned into a velvety fall soup. We have adapted this recipe from James Peterson. For more information on his soup cookbook and others, check out our bookshelf.

Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Soup

West African Peanut Stew with Kale

Our sister-in-law made this deliciously comforting West African Peanut Stew with Kale on a recent visit to New Haven, and I have been craving it non-stop ever since. The taste and smell of garlic, ginger and peanuts will warm you on these crisp fall days. This simple and hearty vegetarian take on the classic West African peanut stew uses pantry ingredients and works well with whatever greens you happen to have on hand. 

West African Peanut Stew with Kale

Charred Garlic Salsa

To celebrate the garlic season, we've been eating batch after batch of this sweet, smokey, and nutty Charred Garlic Salsa. It's easy to slip into thinking of garlic as a year-round kitchen workhorse, rather than as a seasonal specialty worth savoring in its own right. If you've never paused to taste the difference between early summer's stale grocery garlic and the in-season local variety, this is the perfect vehicle to indulge. Charred Garlic Salsa is inspired by the flavors and techniques of Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, and is delicious with chips, on bread, with grilled meats, tacos, or as an amazing condiment for sandwiches.

Charred Garlic Salsa

Ginger Sesame Green Beans

We celebrated Labor Day in Connecticut with Paul's brother and sister-in-law with lots of amazing vegetarian food. We left salty breezes behind and arrived back to the hot, humid jungly hills of Pittsburgh last night to a barren fridge yielding a dinner of either hotdogs or green beans. We opted to continue the vegetarian theme of the weekend, and whipped up a batch of these Ginger Sesame Green Beans we have been loving all summer. Spicy, tangy and gingery, these green beans are addictive! Check out our summer bounty round-up for other ideas for summer vegetables.

Ginger Sesame Green Beans

Southwest Black Bean Salad

In high school while browsing for recipes for a Mother’s Day brunch, I was struck by a colorful sounding 'Stoplight Salad' in my Mom’s copy of Simply in Season. My sister and I added it to our Mother’s Day menu that year, and it became a family staple. Through the years, I have created my own version with a bit more of a Southwest flair, swapping in a potent lime-cumin vinaigrette and handfuls of herbs and fruit for contrast. In college, when I needed a dish for a potluck with some Amish friends, I didn’t think twice before whipping up my Southwest Black Bean Salad…what had seemed like a good idea in my dorm room started making me nervous when I saw my garishly bright salad sitting amidst a table of creamy noodle casseroles. Before I could withdraw my food offering, the head cook stuck her spoon in my salad, and I was given a nod of approval, I quietly let out my breath and tried to act nonchalant. Southwest Black Bean Salad is a pungent, bright, and refreshing salad with corn, tomatoes, herbs, and a customizable base of seasonal vegetables and fruit. It has been my most requested recipe over the years, and is an infinity adaptable salad that will be devoured every time. I’d love to hear your favorite combinations! To read more about Simply in Season and our other favorite cookbooks, check out our Bookshelf.

Southwest Black Bean Salad

Summer Round-Up

Summer always finds us in a cooking frenzy with gorgeous produce coming to market from local farms. We've put together a collection of some of our favorite summer vegetarian recipes to inspire your cooking. Click directly on the photos above (or the links below) to go to the recipes.

1. Herb Potato Salad

2. Watermelon Chiffon Pie

3. Basil Lemonade

4. Grilled Greek Salad

5. Ratatouille

6.  Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Peaches

7. Berry Dutch Baby

8. Watermelon and Feta Salad

9. Grilled Spelt Flatbread with Tapenade and Tomato

10. Basil Yogurt Panna Cotta with Blueberries

11. Summer Corn Saute with Herbs

12. Summer Harvest Pizza

 

Summer Round-Up

Summer Harvest Pizza

One summer in high school, my sister and I discovered the brilliance of white pizza with fresh summer veggies. The simple contrast of creamy sauce and peak of season vegetables is a dynamic combination. The local favorite at the farm-stand near our house featured sweetcorn and mozzarella. I had this summery veggie pizza in mind as I layered fresh August tomatoes, peppers, corn, and red cabbage on creamy basil studded ricotta and gooey mozzarella, topped with leaves of sweet basil. Heaven. 

For another great vegetarian main, check out our grilled spelt flatbread with tapenade and tomatoes.

Summer Harvest Pizza

Chilled Tomato & Vegetable Soup, Gazpacho

In these dog days of summer, a crisp and refreshing chilled soup is a wonderful thing. Gazpacho, for those unfamiliar, is a type of cold tomato soup that originates in Spain, with many variations in texture and flavor. We love the pure, cool, sweet flavors that develop as garden-fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and onions release their juices and meld together. Chilled Tomato & Vegetable Soup, Gazpacho, is quick and easy to make, especially with a food processor to aid in chopping. Enjoy the fresh bounty of summer and homespun food shared with the ones you love. 

Chilled Tomato & Vegetable Soup, Gazpacho