This recipe is inspired by the beans and soup my good friend Libby Lyon posted about the other day on her Instagram. She slowly simmered her beans with a few generous glugs of olive oil, herb stems, garlic, lemon, salt, and pepper.
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Golden crispy roasted potatoes! What's my secret? Well, I’m not the first to come up with this idea, but parboiling my potatoes before I roast them- a bit of a hassle, yes, but worth it- helps them cook evenly so that when they come out of the oven, the exterior is golden and crispy, while the interior is soft and velvety. They never fail to impress.
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Today I went to the grocery store in hopes to get ingredients for marinated French lentils with arugula and chevre. Well, the whole bulk bin section being what it is these days, French lentils and black (both which are delicious and hold their shape well) were out of stock. Luckily, there was plenty ol' plain green - not split pea, mind you- so... we improvise.
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Lobio is a hearty, yet good-for-you Georgian bean stew chock-full of earthy spices and vibrant herbs that is traditionally served with cornbread.
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This curried butternut squash soup is a golden recipe I've been turning to for years.
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The power of food—to transcend boundaries, both geographical and cultural, and unify—has been the main idea behind Chesnok. By focusing on the recipes that have allowed my own family to bond through the years, I have created a space, a virtual communal table if you will, where I too can forge a connection with others in my community and around the globe. This week marks exactly one year since I’ve started to share a little of my life and my family’s food heritage with you all and I’ve been rewarded with a warm and welcoming embrace. To know that others believe in me has gone, and will continue to go, an incredibly long way towards this passion project of mine.
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In my last post I talked about summer’s generous bounty—how do you take full advantage of it?? It’s a bit tough, I have to admit—not only is there so much variety in produce available, but there’s also the sheer abundance of it too. At work, as a baker, I can’t seem to make enough pies, buckles, coffee cakes to keep up with all the peaches and nectarines that need to be made use of. Outside of work, I can’t seem to keep up with my impulse buying of heirloom eggplants, tomatoes and peppers at the farmer’s market. How can I resist when they’re all seeming to say, “Buy me before the season is over!!”
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In Tbilisi, the central marketplace is a city dweller’s link to the country. With two huge floors of stalls, not to mention the labyrinth of the outdoor market, you have an enchanting and exhilarating destination where vendors of every shape and size, from every part of the country, are unabashedly selling their wares. Counters are laden with farm-cured cheeses and meats, their sellers vying for attention and a chance to convince you their product is superior to all the rest. Rows of butchers wax poetic about their meat which, according to them, only that morning was still alive, grazing and sleeping in the meadows. Burlap sacks overflow with every nut, dried fruit, bean, and grain you can imagine, and barrels sit filled to the brim with pickles and marinades, hole heads of garlic soaking in verjuice or pomegranate juice.
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