Author Archives: Vanessa

7 Simple, Seasonal, (Nearly) One-Pot Meals

By Vanessa | Published: February 8, 2012
After a flurry of inspiration and posts over the cooking holidays, I’ve been remiss about updating my blog lately. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been eating (and cooking!), it just means I haven’t been cooking anything I’d consider to be necessarily ground-breaking. But yeah, I cook and eat every day, as we all have [...]
Posted in Food and Drink, Latin American, from the market, healthy, hearty, seafood | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A Christmas Food Story: Father’s Nuts

By Vanessa | Published: December 23, 2011
Last Christmas I posted about orevnitza, the Serbian bread we eat at Christmas…What I didn’t mention was that there’s a back story to orevnitza from my childhood. A story about foraging (or stealing), mortification, and class difference. I wrote it down about ten years ago and never published it. When I finally went public with [...]
Posted in DIY, Food and Drink, breads and pizzas, foraging, holidays | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Turkey Chile Soup with Rice and Winter Squash

By Vanessa | Published: November 25, 2011
I first made this soup a couple weeks ago with a small, Soul Food Farm stock bird. I used a technique I use often that provides me with a light but full flavored broth to freeze and use for soups and also a good amount of shredded chicken meat to use for enchiladas, tacos, salad, [...]
Posted in Latin American, Uncategorized, healthy, hearty, holidays | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Albacore Ceviche with Pumpkin Seeds and Persimmon

By Vanessa | Published: November 21, 2011
I’ve been on a ceviche kick lately. It’s the perfect appetizer…satisfying, yet light. And it perfectly suits my way of cooking…invent as you go. Every weekend I’ve been picking up some type of fish (sustainable only) and experimenting with different ceviche flavor profiles. Eventually I plan to go around the word with my ceviche experiments, [...]
Posted in Food and Drink, Latin American, entertaining, food sustainability, healthy, holidays, seafood | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

1st of November Spicy Bean, Kale, Sausage, and Potato Soup

By Vanessa | Published: November 11, 2011
Oftentimes in the Bay Area, the weather doesn’t match up well with the season. Such as it was on November 1, 2011, when I made this soup. It was balmy, high 70s, no wind but I still wanted a winter soup. I couldn’t help myself. So here it is as we head into a weekend [...]
Posted in from the market, hearty | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Baba Ghanoush with Homemade Harissa

By Vanessa | Published: November 4, 2011
I promised to post this recipe after I posted the harissa recipe a few weeks ago. Apologies for my slowness. In the event you still have some eggplant hanging around in the garden or fridge at this late date, here’s a great way to use it. If you don’t have harissa, this is still fantastic [...]
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Homemade harissa d’espelette—a many splendored condiment

By Vanessa | Published: September 14, 2011
Lately I’ve been into making harissas and sambals and other fiery chile-based condiments. I think the attraction is that they provide a quick and easy way for a busy cook to make rather ordinary soups, seasonal salads, and baked chicken or fish a lot more interesting. Less than an hour in the kitchen on a [...]
Posted in DIY, Food and Drink, entertaining, from the market, healthy, pantry staples | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Jammin’ Summer: Wild Blackberries and Feral Plums

By Vanessa | Published: August 26, 2011
There are two summer themes this year—gathering free fruit to make jam, and seeing how little sugar we can get away with using and still call it jam. Ok, sometimes its sauce. But I’m ok with that. I’ve been obsessed with making low sugar jam ever since I served as a judge in the Good [...]
Posted in DIY, Food and Drink, Travel, foraging, fruit, pantry staples, preserving | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fried Green Tomatoes & Burrata for Impatient Gardeners

By Vanessa | Published: July 28, 2011
Chilly Bay Area summers make waiting for that first green tomato to ripen like waiting for Congress to negotiate a budget. Thankfully green tomatoes have a lot more going for them than our typical legislators. They’re way more fun; they have a movie AND a book named after them; they’re tasty; and, instead of making [...]
Posted in entertaining, gardening, hearty | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Plum Gorgeous & Cherries Galore

By Vanessa | Published: July 18, 2011
If you’re a person who reads cookbooks as much for stories as recipes, and aspires to an elegantly rural, abundant lifestyle, then Plum Gorgeous by Romney (Nani) Steele will speak to you. If you swoon over gorgeous photos of seasonal fruits set in dreamy tableaux, Plum Gorgeous, with photos by Sara Remington, will send you [...]
Posted in Books, Food and Drink, dessert, entertaining, from the market, fruit | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

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    The recipes and images on this site belong to Vanessa Barrington. Feel free to link here and if you’d like to use a recipe or image, please ask permission first. Thank you.