five recipes we loooove

i really enjoy cooking and especially trying new recipes. but often i get so overwhelmed by all the options out there and, after scrolling through too many recipes online, just end up whipping together one of my "go-to" meals.

today i wanted to share five recipes we looove at our house.
what are your go-to recipes?! let's all share in the comments section!

one: melt-in-your-mouth kale salad

my mom and i came across this recipe when she was here with us right after moses was born and i've made it pretty much weekly since. everyone i have shared this with really likes it. even ian, who is not always fond of ingredients like kale, loves this salad. finely shredding the kale in the food processor makes all the difference - it's so much more palpable that way! and is well-coated and wonderfully complimented by the other simple ingredients. 
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-in a food processor, finely chop one big bunch/bag of kale.
-in a small bowl, whisk together 1 tbs olive oil, 1 tsp honey, and the juice of one lemon.
-in a large bowl, mix the kale, 1/3-1/2 cup currants, 1/3-1/2 cup chopped nuts (the original recipe calls for pine nuts; i have used both almonds and hazelnuts) and a big pile of freshly grated parmesan cheese.
-drizzle the dressing on top and toss to combine! 
this salad stays super yummy dressed and in the fridge for several days.

{psssst...have you heard about the website positive health wellness? it's a treasure trove of inspiration and ideas for taking care of our amazing bodies. check out this article with some awesome kale recipes!}

two: avocado cilantro dressing

i snagged this recipe from my sister shawni's blog a couple of months ago and keep going back to it. we've used this dressing with a variety of meals, but the most usual is this: i quickly cook some chicken on the stovetop (saute, then add a little water and cover to steam) and then put it in our kitchenaid mixer to shred with some homemade taco seasoning (i make a big batch every once in a while and keep it in the cupboard). then we pile mixed greens, diced cherry tomatoes, roasted sweet potatoes, the shredded chicken and some crumbled feta on our plates, and top with this dressing!
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-blend together: half an avocado, 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt, big bunch of cilantro (with stems), a hearty dash of salt, 1 clove of garlic, the juice of a half a lime, and about 1/2 cup water (adjust to get the desired consistency).

three: curried chicken, ginger and apple soup

this will forever be one of both ian's and my favourite meals to eat at home. it's especially perfect this time of year - hearty and cozy! we like to eat this soup with some nice crusty bread.
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-chop three chicken breasts into bite size cubes. dice up one onion, one yellow pepper and one green pepper. use a garlic press to mince up five cloves of garlic
-heat up a bit of olive or coconut oil in a large pot and then add all the ingredients above, plus 2 tbsp curry powder (i sometimes add a bit more just to saturate the curry flavor a bit stronger), 1 1/2 tbsp ginger (it's even better with 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger, but i don't often have that on hand so i use a little more than 1 tbsp powdered ginger from a spice jar), and a good sprinkling of salt and pepper.
-let everything saute, stirring occasionally, until all is soft and the chicken is no longer pink.
-add 4-5 cups chicken broth (depending on how thick you want your soup to be), 2 15oz cans of chopped tomatoes, and about 1 cup rice (again depending on how thick or rice-y you want it to turn out). bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and let cook.
-while the soup is cooking, chop up two granny smith apples into small chunks, and add them in after everything has simmered for about twenty minutes and the rice is tender. cook for an additional eight minutes to soften the apples.
-serve with a dollop of plain greek yogurt and some chopped cilantro.

four: lentil lacos


my friend sara sent me this recipe when we first moved to london, and we absolutely love it. it's so simple but so tasty. i've expanded the recipe as i've played around with different additions. i especially like this recipe because i've been trying to incorporate more meatless meals into our regular eating.
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-finely chop up one small onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic (i tend to like my food extra garlic-y!)
-turn on oven to about 400 degrees, and then heat up a bit of oil in a medium pot, add the onion and garlic, and cook for five minutes, stirring occasionally. add 2/3 cup dried lentils (and colour will do) and 1 tbsp taco seasoning (i make my own). cook and stir for one minute.
-add 1 2/3 cups chicken broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes (until lentils are tender).
-while the lentils are cooking, chop up some sweet potatoes, put them on a baking sheet, drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle them with a bit of taco seasoning, and put them in the oven. roast them for about 20 minutes (until they are soft and slightly browned).
-meanwhile, dice up some cherry tomatoes, mix them up in a small bowl with some chopped cilantro (i like to use scissors to cut up cilantro leaves!), and squeeze a bit of lime juice and a bit of honey over top - then stir to combine. in a separate bowl, pit, slice and scoop out a few avocados. add some mixed greens or chopped lettuce into another bowl. and in a final bowl, crumble some feta cheese or grate any other type of cheese.
-when the lentils are cooked, stir in 2/3 cup of your favourite salsa.
-warm up some tortillas and then let everyone at dinner pile on the lentils, sweet potatoes, tomato/cilantro mix, avocado, lettuce and cheese according to their heart's desire ... and then roll it all up and enjoy!

five: molasses spice cookies

although i very rarely bake sweets (usually just for very special occasions!), come november i make a batch of these cookies pretty much weekly until the new year. because they are the best. cookies. ever. -- and because they just delightfully taste like the holidays to me. we had our first batch of 2016 just yesterday!
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-heat oven to 375.
-in a medium bowl, mix together 2 1/4 cups flour, 2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp allspice and 3/4 tsp ground cloves.
-in a standing mixer, cream together 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup white sugar. then mix in one egg, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1/3 cup unsulphered molasses (i can't find this in the uk so i just bought a waaaaay-too-expensive bottle off amazon - it's just necessary for me to have this on hand in november and december!).
-slowly add the dry ingredients while your mixer is on low.
-put about 1/3 cup white sugar in a shallow bowl. roll small balls of dough in that sugar until they are finely coated. place the sugar-coated dough balls on a cookie sheet.
-bake until the outer edges start to set and the centers are soft and puffy. start with eight minutes and see how they look – they may need just one-two minutes more. they should not look “done” when you take them out – and if you overcook them even a little you’ll miss the perfect consistency that makes these the best!

Comments

  1. That soup recipe looks AMAZING. Definitely going to try it this weekend. Though, I'm not so sure how I feel about the apples. I may substitute a sweet potato instead :)

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  2. Would you mind telling me how you buy your kale? They sell pre-washed, chopped bags by me, but the thick stems are often attached. I'm wondering if you chop those up in the food processor, or if you cut away the stems first... Thanks! I love kale salads and can't wait to try this tonight!

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    1. i just put everything in the food processor. if i happen to catch a thick stem i pluck it off, but for the most part they just get chopped up and it's fine. :)

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  3. Drizzle on some warm browned butter frosting on top of thoes cookies and you will love them even more!!

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  4. Thank you for sharing! They all look fantastic!

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  5. Thank you for these! Would you please share your recipe for taco seasoning? I've been trying to get away from the mccormicks packets and have looked st several very different recipes for seasoning but can't decide which one to try...

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    1. i just googled homemade taco seasoning and probably made the first thing that popped up (allrecipes)? i think they are all pretty similar.
      xo

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  6. Now I'm curious about your homeade taco seasoning. This gives me some fresh ideas. I'm excited to try a few!

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  7. I saw the avocado dressing on Shawni's blog, and now that you're both singing it's praises from the rooftops, I guess I have to try it! Thank you for sharing 😊

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  8. These are all right up our alley, thank you! If you google " homemade taco seasoning" you get lots of options. We keep some on hand as well.

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  9. My sister gifted me a bean club membership (who knew!!Rancho Gordo thats who!) one Christmas ago. I love beans and lentils - I mean I am vegetarian and all, but I have ended up with A LOT of beans. Haha...
    Here is a recipe I make often - its a vegan version of posole verde (green posole). You can use short cuts (like canned tomatillos) and frozen spinach if you're short on time. I don't always use the seitan (yes, its pronounced say-tun - awful sounding isn't it ;-). But I just love the flavors and its perfect to use up any smaller white beans. It makes a good amount (a few meals) and oh its just so warming and filling and yum. Top with some avocado or pickled radishes/onions or cheese or tortilla chips.
    http://uptonsnaturals.blogspot.com/2010/12/green-posole-stew.html

    Here's another one that's super yum - uses chickpeas and I just buy Harissa paste (no time to make it ;-). Serve it with sliced boiled eggs or yogurt or bread and oh its just the loveliest, warming and feel good meal.
    http://www.alexandracooks.com/2016/01/28/leblebi-moroccan-chickpea-stew/
    Love your blog Charity and I have got to try your salad and lentil tacos - they look so delicious. I love to cook too but suffer from immense indecision at times, so thanks for sharing ;-)
    P from Cali

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  10. Aaaaaand thank you for doing my meal planning for the coming week. If I ever started the recipe swapping/meal planning club that I dream of starting, I'd want you in it. I regularly make the southwestern sweet potato salad that you posted a couple years ago and always get rave reviews. (I don't remember what you actually called it, but it has sweet potatoes, black beans, corn, cilantro, and a honey lime dressing.) I am constantly on the hunt for more meatless recipes too and regularly get very overwhelmed. I really liked these cauliflower and chickpea tacos (with a few adjustments) and so did my meat-loving husband. http://www.shelikesfood.com/1/post/2014/08/bbq-cauliflower-chickpea-tacos-creamy-lime-slaw-gfv.html

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    Replies
    1. thanks carly! so glad you like those burrito bowls - i love that recipe!!

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