Raw Nanaimo Bars - A Healthier Twist on a Classic

Nanaimo bars are a Canadian classic dessert, named after the city of Nanaimo, British Columbia, on Vancouver Island. It generally does not require any baking, and more traditional versions that I have come across are made of a crumb layer with coconut, often with nuts or crumbled graham cracker crumbs, a middle creamy layer, often made with vanilla custard powder, and a chocolate topping. I have made nanaimo bars on more than one occasion, including this classic version, a slight variation of the classic version with a walnut base, and also a version with avocado as the shining ingredient for the filling.

3-Ingredient No-Bake Tahini Fudge

Many bakers believe that making fudge can be an ordeal, often requiring a candy thermometer for exact precision to ensure that the candy is not overcooked on the stove top, and sometimes a long wait in the oven too. It turns out that this is not the case at all, depending on the method you use. And raw fudge is just about the easiest treat to make, and while there is still waiting time involved, in this instance it is only a bit of patience while the fudge sets in the freezer. And this fudge has only three ingredients — well, four, if you include some crunchy peanut butter as I did — and no special equipment is required either. Simply melt the coconut oil, stir everything together in a small bowl, and transfer the mixture to a mini muffin tin to set.

Another advantage to this recipe is it's not overly sweet either, which is another drawback of more traditional fudges. Sweetened only with maple syrup, the texture is creamy and it's certainly sweet and tastes just as delightful and decadent as the fudge you may have grown up eating. And although the recipe does include coconut oil, the taste of coconut is barely detectable, so if you are one of those people who is not overly fond of coconut, don't let that prevent you from trying this quick and easy recipe.

Ginger Cashew Cookies

These most delightful ginger cookies with raw cashews, almond butter, fresh ginger and a scattering of sesame seeds are sweetened with medjool dates, and are also eggless and flourless. With only five ingredients, they are also remarkable easy to prepare, especially if you have a food processor or high-powered blender to speed up the mixing process. Simply shape the dough, and bake for 10 minutes. Let sit for another 10 minutes, and enjoy. Ginger cookies are a popular treat all year round, especially during the holiday season, so you may want to consider making up a batch or two as part of your holiday baking. Best of all, they are packed with protein, not overly sweet, so if you want to enjoy a cookie for breakfast, you'll have no need to feel guilty. Moist and portable, peanut butter could also be used instead of the almond butter if you so choose.

Skillet-Fried Flatbread with Lentils and Fenugreek (Dal Methi Paratha)

Breads in different shapes and forms can be found as part of a meal in many cultures around the world, from baguettes in France to ciabatta in Italy, biscuits in the United States, tortillas in Mexico, and teff flour injera in Ethiopia. In India, flatbreads are an especially integral part of meals, and these are made with a wide variety of techniques and ingredients — including cooked lentils or rice as well as wheat, rice and bean flours — and are frequently seasoned with the Indian herbs and spices for which the cuisine is so famous. From chapatis, rotis, dosas, naans, parathas and more, Indian flatbreads deserve their places on the table and the attention of any cook who wants to make an authentic Indian meal.

Cashew Chocolate Chunk Cookies {Vegan}

Though I am more of a savory girl, I do enjoy sweets from time to time, especially during the winter months. And when I desire something sweet, I usually make something in my own kitchen, as I find treats purchased from bakeries or the supermarket much too sweet for my taste.

Vegetable Vindaloo

Goan in origin, vindaloo is a hot and spicy preparation that typically features meat marinated in wine or vinegar and garlic. Typically vindaloo dishes are hot and spicy too, with a pleasing tangy element from the use of vinegar, tamarind or lemon juice, and usually tomatoes as well. But vindaloo dishes need not feature meat, and here vegetables are the star of the dish. Any variety of mixed vegetables may be used, though the ones I suggest add nice contrasts in texture and color, and also make for a filling side.

Chocolate-Covered Hemp Seed Protein Bars

Loaded with plenty of protein from nut butters, tahini, mighty hemp seeds and nuts, and sweetened only with dates, apricots and a wee bit of maple syrup, these raw protein bars are not only good for you, but positively delicious too. They make for a fine treat anytime of year, and are a good choice if you are in rush, but want something quick for breakfast, or whenever you need a snack to fuel the body and satisfy the urge for a sweet treat. They keep for at least a week in the fridge, and even longer in the freezer, and they are fancy enough to serve up on your holiday tables too.

Black Chana Masala

Chana masala — or spiced chickpeas — is one of the most famous of traditional Indian dishes and a favorite of vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. Some version of chana masala featuring yellow chickpeas can be found at almost any Indian restaurant in North America — it's a dish that I almost always sample when trying a new Indian restaurant to gauge the quality of the chef's spicing, and I've made many different versions of it myself over the years.

Sweet Potato Rounds with Goat Cheese and Harissa

These thin rounds of baked seasoned sweet potatoes are an appealing attractive fall appetizer or hors d'oeuvres, with their rich orange color and topped with a a dollop of soft unripened goat cheese mixed with spicy harissa. The heat from the harissa is tempered by the fresh creaminess of the goat cheese to make a perfect pairing with the sweet potatoes. If you're like me and enjoy "little bites" that can be prepared with little fuss, you'll appreciate these just on their own.

Urad Dal with Coconut, Shallots and Cilantro

This easy, earthy, creamy and spicy curry dish is one that is reminiscent of dal makhani, a classic Punjabi preparation featuring whole urad beans — also known as black gram or black lentils — and red kidney beans cooked in an aromatically spiced tomato gravy and finished with plenty of cream. Unlike traditional versions of dal makhani, urad beans are the star by themselves in this dish, complemented with a finish of coconut cream and fresh lime juice, and garnished with crispy fried shallots, coconut flakes and fresh cilantro.

Spicy Indian Smashed Potatoes with Fresh Mint

I don't make mashed potatoes nearly as often as my husband and friends might like, but now that cooler weather temperatures have descended, I don't mind indulging in starches once in a while myself. Ordinary mashed potatoes whipped with cream and butter may be fine, but I like to dress up almost any kind of food that I cook, and even classics are typically tweaked to suit my fancy. These mashed potatoes — not whipped or mashed too finely, mind you — are blended with fresh ginger, plenty of chilies, and an assortment of Indian spices, and then pan-fried until golden and served with fresh chopped mint. They didn't last long at all when I served them up to guests.

Announcement - The 30-Minute Vegetarian Cookbook

Over the 12 years since I started Lisa's Kitchen, I've had countless people asking me when I was going to write a cookbook. I've always deferred an answer, but now I can tell everyone who's asked that I have not only written a cookbook but that it's available now on Amazon.

I'm excited to announce "The 30-Minute Vegetarian Cookbook," not only because it's my first cookbook, but also because it's a handy compilation of easy vegetarian recipes distilled from my 12 years of experience as a vegetarian food blogger. Subtitled "100 Healthy, Delicious Meals for Busy People," I've designed this book to make everyday vegetarian an easy, rewarding and nourishing experience, from breakfast through to meals and desserts, with snacks and treats in between. I've also included plenty of information and tips to make simple vegetarian cooking as unintimidating as possible.

I'll be sharing excerpts and photos over the coming weeks to give you a taste of what's inside. Check out my Facebook page for more of these sneak peeks. I'll be looking forward to seeing your comments there.

For those of you who prefer their books on Kindle, a Kindle release is also available. For those of you living outside of the U.S., the book is available on Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com.au, and Amazon.in.

Black-Eyed Pea Pumpkin Curry

Fall comes all too quickly in this part of the world, but along with the cooler temperatures comes colorful fresh autumn vegetables like pumpkins. Every pumpkin season I buy a few pie pumpkins to roast and freeze so that I have pumpkin purée all year long. And it's always an excuse to make one of my favorite treats of the season though I adore them no matter the time of year, homemade roasted pumpkin seeds.

Pumpkin season always brings with it renewed inspiration for cooking ideas too, and the first sweet pie pumpkin of the year in my kitchen found its way into the oven for roasting and then combined with earthy black-eyed peas and Indian spices to make this colorful, filling and nourishing curry. This is an easy recipe to make too, with most of the prep time taken with cutting the pumpkin and scooping out the seeds.

Walnut Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta with Roasted Mushrooms

Pasta appears infrequently on the menu in Lisa's Kitchen, but when it does, it generally is turned into a special dish, even when it comes together in very little time. Such as this filling pasta coated with a rich and creamy pesto that one might think was laden with cheese, but if you don't tell your fellow diners, they might easily be fooled. Quite substantial when you add plenty of earthy and meaty roasted mushrooms and protein-rich walnuts into the pesto mix, with extra flair and vibrancy from sun-dried tomatoes, fresh lime juice, cilantro, and a hint of heat from some chilies, it is the mushrooms that really carry this dish.

Black Beans Simmered in an Aromatic Tomato Sauce

Rather like a rajma, a classic North Indian dish characterized by the presence of kidney beans simmered in a spiced and an oh-so-fragrant aromatic tomato gravy that stimulates the appetite before dinner is even ready to enjoy, this time sweet and creamy black beans take the shining legume role. I could have easily named this recipe black bean rajma except that kidney beans did not make an appearance, which is the distinguishing element of rajma, but this dish stands up in its own right. Though the method is the same, and the spicing and ingredients quite similar, each bean provides its own unique profile to a dish, and the pearl-like quality of the black beans are just as fragrant and earthy and filling as their kidney bean counterpart, with a hint of natural sweetness for a delightful twist on a classic. If you can't riff in the kitchen on a theme, the beauty of making good nourishment is unnecessarily diminished. Have fun with your ingredients, and nourish your soul in the process.

Farinata - Italian Chickpea Flatbread

Little more than chickpea flour, water and salt mixed into a loose batter and baked in a pan with olive oil, farinata — literally "made of flour" — is much more than the sum of its simple parts. Crispy, golden and browned on the outside and soft and custardy in the middle, farinata is as much a delight to eat on its own as it is easy to make. It's also delicious served with sautéed mushrooms or aged cheese. I opted to serve the bread as part of a tapas meal, accompanied with some Kalamata Olive Tapenade, with a Mediterranean-style salad and sweet potato rounds to complete the spread.

Saffron Rice with Nuts and Dried Fruit

Though this rice dish is easy to prepare, it is regal indeed, peppered as it is with small jewels in the form of dried fruits and nuts, which make every mouthful an experience with a myriad of textures and flavors. Graced with saffron, which is not only royal because of the precious price but also for the unique and unmatched slightly sweet, yet faintly bitter and refined subtle flavor its presence contributes, and with the addition of fine aromatic spices, this is dish you could serve for any occasion, including one that would highly complement a festive meal.

Deep and Smoky Vegetarian Chili

A decent vegetarian chili is really rather easy to do, and a good choice for not only seasoned vegetarians, but also for those cooks who are new to vegetarian cooking, and those faced with the prospect of cooking for a vegetarian but perhaps rather puzzled about what to prepare. And chili is an ideal meal solution anytime of year that is nearly guaranteed to please almost everyone at the table. Once the prep is done, it's basically just a matter of letting things simmer gently for a while and occasionally giving it a stir. It's pure comfort food on a cold winter day, and over the hot summer months, because you don't have to labor over the hot pot, it's great too, and a nice thick chili like this one can be served over tortilla chips along with other toppings for some loaded nachos.

Tamarind Paneer and Mango Salad with Ginger Lime Dressing

Salads are of course a must anytime of year, though during the summer months serving them up as a focal point of a meal is an ideal way to cut down on time spent hovering over a hot stove. Admittedly, there is some cooking time involved in this salad, as the paneer cheese cubes are browned up along with the shallots, but when you experience the fresh and vibrant flavors that feature in this salad, you'll find it was well worth the effort.

Hummus Dressed Quinoa Fusilli

Hummus never goes to waste in my kitchen because there are so many ways to enjoy it. Simply serving it with chopped vegetables and flatbreads and crackers is a treat in itself. But after enjoying a recent batch of homemade hummus for a few days, it occurred to me to incorporate the small quantity that remained into a main for dinner, and so this ridiculously easy pasta dish made with staples I had on hand in the kitchen ended up serving as a satisfying summer meal solution.

Though it hardly seems like much of a recipe, I assure you it's one worth remembering next time you have hummus on hand. Serve it hot, or cold as you would a salad. And the possibilities are endless really. Just consider the garnishes alone, such as fresh herbs, dry roasted nuts, slivered almonds, or walnut or cashew pieces, or some even some grated cheese or vegan Parmesan if you want something even more substantial.

Asparagus and Peas in a Creamy Mustard Sauce

Asparagus doesn't appear in traditional Indian dishes, but Indian cooking features such a variety of spices, flavors and techniques that any vegetable can find a delicious role to play in an Indian fusion-style recipe. This was certainly the case with an Indian-style asparagus with spiced tomato and crumbled paneer cheese that I've made on more than one occasion. And as summer is alas always too short in Canada, and hence the asparagus season, I once again approached this treasured vegetable with the flavors of India in mind.

And while asparagus and mustard sauce are not an uncommon pairing, this recipe enhances the flavor of the creamy mustard sauce with ginger, chilies, cumin seeds, turmeric, coconut milk and lemon juice to give it that extra Indian flair. Combined with tender pan-fried asparagus spears and plump green peas, this is another Indian-style summer dish that I'll be sure to make again too.

Vegetarian Samosa Wraps

The "samosa" that feature in these filling wraps are not the ever-popular savory Indian appetizers, but little patties inspired by the elements that commonly feature in the pastry version. The first time I made the samosa cakes, I made them larger, pan-fried them, and paired them with some tamarind chutney as part of Indian-themed meal.

Kalamata Olive Tapenade

I often enjoy making a meal out of an assortment of small bite-sized or finger foods, as though my kitchen had a miniature tapas menu. Depending on the theme of the meal, a homemade olive tapenade is almost an essential component, and it's perfect for spreading over crackers, crusty bread or flatbreads, and so simple to make that it leaves me time to put together any of the more complex features of the meal.

Classic North Indian Mung Beans with Cumin, Onion and Ginger

With their distinctive sweet and earthy flavor, mung beans are for me especially comforting and wholesome. They're easy to digest in both the whole or split form, but whole mung beans don't take much longer to cook than split ones, and so long as they haven't been sadly neglected in the back of your pantry, require very little soaking time either. They may be combined with other dals though I often like to feature them as the shining legume in a dish, especially when they are gently enhanced with basic spices and flavors that serve to bring out the essential characteristics of the colorful mung bean.

Hummus Falafel Bowls

The idea of "bowls" has gained in popularity over the years, and the guiding principle is a balanced meal where all of your nutritional and taste requirements are met. The main components are a protein, grain, a healthy dose of vegetable goodness, whether they be raw or cooked, additional sources of protein such as nuts or seeds, and a dressing or spread to go along with the other parts. It's really no different than planning a dinner and plating up all of the different elements of the meal, only it's a bit more fun when they work together as well as everything does in this case.

Beet and Black Bean High-Protein Burgers

For years I've attempted to come up with the perfect vegetarian "burger", and though I've made numerous nourishing and delectable vegetarian patties over the years, I do think that these beet and black bean burgers are especially distinctive. I expect there might be some skepticism when it comes to the idea of a burger without the "meat", but I can assure you these have as much substance, and substantially more flavor and nourishment, than traditional beef burgers. Earthy black beans, grated fresh beetroot, nourishing quinoa, mushrooms and ground walnuts seasoned with good quality spices come together for an unforgettable vegetarian and vegan friendly burger alternative. In addition to the beans, quinoa and walnuts, I added hemp seeds for an additional boost of protein. In fact, these burgers are very substantial, and have ample balanced protein to serve as a meal by themselves.

3-Ingredient Chickpea Flour Tortillas

Wraps are always a treat and I always prefer to make my own tortillas or flatbreads whenever possible, and when they are this easy, devoting a maximum of 15 minutes making them is well worth the effort. I've seen this recipe for chickpea flour tortillas floating around the internet for quite some time now, and there's a good reason for that. Since I discovered it, I've made them on countless occasions, and they've featured as wraps for refried beans, falafels, hummus, and many more other delicious foods.

With only three ingredients, these soft and pliable tortillas come together in hardly any time at all. Simply whisk together the ingredients, heat a non-stick pan over medium heat brushed with a little bit of oil, and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes per side. They really are that easy. Gluten-free chickpea flour — sometimes called "besan" — is what binds the ingredients together without any need for oil, and it's what makes so delightfully spongy and pliable, making them perfect for wrapping just about anything you might want a wrap for. They are a bit thicker than grain flour tortillas, but that makes them a bit more filling. I do suggest doubling the batch, and if desired you can make them larger than I did here by pouring a slightly larger quantity of the batter into the pan. Where I used about 1/4 cup of the batter for each tortilla, you may want to use 1/3 cup.

Mixed Vegetables in a Spicy Tomato Ethiopian Kulet Sauce

Much like Indian cooking, the preparation of Ethiopian lentil and vegetable dishes depends on a blend of both hot and aromatic spices. And like Indian food, the dishes are best served in serving bowls where communal diners can each enjoy a helping of everything that is served.

Lemony Mixed Dal

One can never have enough quick and easy Indian dal dishes to turn to when there is little time to fuss in the kitchen. Apart from being highly nourishing, loaded with easily digestible protein, sometimes a simple and warming soupy dal curry is just what I crave, especially after heavier meals have been on the menu for a while before. They're also a great way to play around with your favorite spices too.

Quick and Easy Coconut Turmeric Spelt Cake {Vegan}

I don't make too many desserts in my kitchen, but that's not because I don't enjoy baking. Rather, my meals are usually satisfying and filling enough that there is no room for dessert. I usually opt instead to fill the gaps between meals when the desire for snacks hits by having protein treats around in the form of nut-based bars and nibbles that often contain seeds and dried fruits, and sometimes even chocolate.

Baby Arugula and Tomato Salad with Pomegranate Seeds

As the blooms are bursting from the earth and the trees with color and life after a long winter and cold spring, it seems fitting to serve a colorful and vibrant salad that is bursting with fresh rich flavors. Zesty tomatoes and lemon contrast beautifully with sweet, tart and juicy pomegranate seeds and crisp slices of red onion in this salad. Homemade bread croutons help to soak up any excess dressing, and when added just before serving the salad, add a pleasant crunchy contrast to the other components of the salad. The arugula is silky and peppery, and the whole plate is an explosion of pure joy.

Rustic Herb and Olive Bread with Reishi {Gluten-Free}

There is really nothing quite like a slice of a fresh baked rustic bread slathered with butter, just by itself or as an accompaniment to so many different meals. And rustic breads usually have the added appeals of being easy to make and almost foolproof too.

This rustic bread is just as easy to make and needs very little hands-on time — hardly any kneading is required and certainly no need for a stand mixer — with just a short resting period in between mixing and baking. Added to this simplicity are herbs and olives for extra flavor. It's an all-purpose bread to which you can add any assortment of herbs that please your fancy instead of the ones I've suggested in the recipe below, or you could add chopped sun-dried tomatoes or nuts instead of or in addition to the olives. Whatever you add, the result is an attractive round loaf with a crusty browned exterior, a dense, pleasantly moist and delicious interior, and that unique aroma that only freshly baked bread can effuse that simultaneously stimulates the appetite and calms the mind. The reward is much more than worth the small effort needed to make it.

Indian-Style Egg-Free Masala French Toast

North Americans have become increasingly acquainted with the virtues of chickpea flour over the past several years, and with good reasons ranging from health to its extraordinary versatility. Made from finely milled dried chickpeas — or roasted black chickpeas in the case of Indian "besan" — the flour has fewer carbohydrates but more protein than regular wheat flour. Like wheat flour, chickpea flour can be used for baking, frying or thickening. It's also an option for those with gluten sensitivity or intolerance.

North African Chickpea Soup (Lablabi)

I've always been fascinated by the tantalizing and robust flavors that are so distinctive of Mediterranean cuisines. There is a vibrancy about so many of the dishes that are native to this considerable expanse of land with varying traditions and characteristics. As a vegetarian, I also find there is a wealth of dishes that are perfectly suited to a vegetarian diet, and ones that are easily adapted to suit such preferences.

This Tunisian chickpea soup, known as Lablabi, is one such example, and as I enjoy soups no matter the time of year — and certainly chickpeas, which are one of my favorite legumes — I thought that I would share this easy-to-prepare soup here. Lablabi is commonly served over small chunks of stale crusty bread, and always with plenty of toppings, notably harissa. Traditionally served for breakfast, in addition to other toppings, a poached or soft cooked egg is added to the hot soup so that the soft yolk bleeds into the the broth. The egg is not necessary at all, unless you so please, and it's enjoyable anytime of the day.

Staple Corner: Homemade Harissa Recipe

Harissa is a classic dried red chili based sauce in North African cooking, and it is often what gives the regional vegetable dishes, soups and stews their distinct fieriness. It's also used as a spicy hot condiment to dress eggs, couscous and flatbreads or to whisk into salad dressings. But harissa is more than just heat, despite the large number of chilies that go into it. Harissa has a unique flavor all of its own from garlic, cumin and caraway seeds, and sometimes tomatoes as well.

Asparagus with Spiced Tomato and Crumbled Paneer

Asparagus is not a vegetable that traditionally or commonly features in Indian dishes, but when you pair it with creamy and delectable paneer cheese and Indian spicing, you'd swear that asparagus was just meant to be part of Indian cuisine.

Smoky Mixed Dal Tarka

If you've ever been to an Indian restaurant in North America, there's a very good chance that you've seen "tarka dal" on the menu. There's a good reason for this apart from the ease of preparation and cooking — a good tarka dal is probably the ultimate Indian comfort food for vegetarians. A good creamy tarka dal is one of my own favorites and a great meal solution when I am pressed for time.

Roasted Root Vegetables with Garlic, Mustard and Orange

When it comes to comfort foods, roasted vegetables are high on my list of favorites. They really need little adornment apparent from basic seasonings, but dress them up a bit and they can easily become the centerpiece of a meal. As is the case here. A selection of mixed root vegetables are roasted in a garlic, mustard and orange sauce. Quite substantial already, the array of mingling and contrasting mustard, herb and citrus flavors in which they're dressed means that they steal the show in any dinner, really demanding more attention and ending up becoming much more than a humble side. My suggestion would be to feature these with a light lentil soup and a side fresh green salad.

Creamy Polenta with Sautéed Mixed Mushrooms

In just 30 minutes, what I thought was to be a side dish ended up so satisfying and hard to stop eating that it ended up serving as the main dish for dinner. I was looking to fill out a meal of leftovers from the night before, but what remained ended up as dinner for the next night. You'll want to enjoy this polenta hot right from the pan, though if you are making it for only two, as I did, you will have leftovers. But the leftover polenta can then be pressed into small discs and pan-fried until golden and topped with any remaining mushrooms or some tomato sauce for another delightful meal.

Mushroom Spaghetti Bolognese {Vegan}

As a vegetarian who also likes to explore and create in the kitchen, I always find it intriguing to come up with vegetarian versions of classic dishes where meat is a signature element of the dish. Spaghetti bolognese is one such popular dish found in restaurants all over the world where it is usually served as a plate of spaghetti topped with a more-or-less thick tomato and meat sauce.

Despite its popularity worldwide, you may be hard pressed to find spaghetti bolognese in Italy however. What passes for a bolognese sauce here in North America should probably be more properly described as a ragu sauce from southern Italy where tomatoes grow in abundance. So while a bolognese sauce and a southern Italian ragu sauce both consist of minced meat (usually beef, but occasionally pork, chicken or even fish) cooked with onions and carrots and frequently celery, a bolognese sauce depends much less or not at all on the addition of tomatoes and is also made with white wine. Moreover, a bolognese sauce is never served with spaghetti and is mixed in with the pasta — usually tagliatelle but almost always a wider shaped pasta — rather than served over top.

Urad Bean and Quinoa Kofta with Coconut Fenugreek Sauce

Served all the way from the Middle East through India to central Asia, there are as many versions of koftas as there are tastes and preferences. Although originally made from ground meat, there are countless vegetarian versions of these little "meatballs" to be found too, many made with cooked beans, potatoes or paneer cheese instead of meat, but always with herbs and spices.

Tomato and Parsley Barley Salad with Marinated Feta

Wanting a light and refreshing salad to go along with a Middle Eastern meal featuring baked homemade falafel served up in wraps, the idea for this easy-to-prepare fresh salad is based on tabbouleh. As I had some freshly ground za'atar on hand, I decided to power up that idea to include spices, cherry tomatoes, mixed bell peppers, lightly roasted cashews, and za'atar marinated pieces of sheep's milk feta cheese.

Creamy Mattar Paneer Recipe

Since mattar paneer is one of my very favorite Punjabi dishes, I have made several different versions over the years. Some included a fair amount of yogurt for a rich and creamy element, while others were more classic in that the cubes of tender milky paneer cheese were simmered in a spiced tomato gravy with a swirl or two of yogurt or cream added into the dish near the end of the cooking time. Sometimes I have included mint, and other times, choose dried fenugreek leaves to compliment and enliven the spices. This version also focuses on a thick rich tomato base which takes precedence as the vehicle for the paneer cheese and peas and, of course, a range of aromatic and hot spices, but because I also wanted to add a creamy element to the dish, I prepared a cashew paste that is included for a pleasant balance of earthy and spicy.

The paneer cubes may be pan-fried in some oil until lightly browned on the sides, before adding them to the dish. This of course makes the paneer firmer in texture and the paneer will assert a more prominent showing in contrast to the other components in the dish. As a good paneer should be firm, I didn't think it really necessary and as it has a high melting point, the cubes still hold their shape and I thoroughly enjoyed the creamier texture achieved by skipping that step. Either way, a good mattar paneer is one you won't soon forget.

Quick and Easy Peanut Butter Cookies {Gluten-Free and Egg-Free}

This recipe is a small adaptation of one of my favorite peanut butter cookie recipes, one that happens to be flourless and egg-free and contains only four ingredients. I've made the original countless times, and although this adaptation is new, I've made it several times already too. No need for butter or oil when you use a natural peanut butter sans extras. One bowl, a measuring cup and a teaspoon, mix, shape into cookies, bake for just under 10 minutes and enjoy if you can be patient for another 10 minutes to let them cool and firm up a bit.

Still flourless and egg-free, I've made these cookies to be ever so slightly firmer than the original recipe but still focusing on preserving the essential peanut butter purity that makes these cookies so highly enjoyable. They may have six ingredients instead of four, but they are still incredibly easy to make and have just as much of the intense peanut butter flavor. These cookies are a peanut butter lover's delight.

Lentil Minestrone with Swiss Chard and Arborio Rice

Sometimes only lentils will do, and they shine in all their seemingly humble glory in soups. Puy lentils (also known as French lentils) are a favorite of mine because of their unique earthy flavor and also because, unlike many other lentils, they hold their shape well, so providing a chewy texture to that which they feature in.

Baby Potato, Red Kale and Cabbage Subji

As part of my menu planning, I am mindful of the need to have a vegetable component for the meal. This does not require much thought if there are plenty of vegetables in one of the main dishes I am making, but other times, a side seems a necessary and delightful solution.

Quick and Easy Tahini Ginger Cookies

My obsession with all things tahini in both supporting and starring roles in both sweet and savory creations continues. On the sweet side of the equation, I recently made ginger cookies where tahini takes the place of nut butters that are more commonly used in cookies.

Although these are definitely ginger cookies, the ginger taste — provided by using fresh grated ginger instead of powdered — is mellow allowing a perfect balance with the nutty sesame flavor of tahini. Slightly crunchy on the outside, with a soft and moist interior, this recipe only yields a small batch — 10 cookies to be precise. But the recipe could easily be doubled, and you may just want to consider doing just that. They are not overly sweet, and you'll have a batch of freshly baked cookies in hardly any time at all, for which store-bought versions quite frankly seem pale and pedestrian in comparison.

Roasted Eggplant Involtini {Vegan}

Involtini is an Italian word that refers to little "bundles" that feature some sort of filling wrapped in an outer layer. Sometimes referred to as rollatini in the U.S., it means essentially the same sort of food but it is not a term that would be used in Italy. Often served up as little bites in between meals or as an appetizer, the filling of an involtini may consist of meat, seafood, nuts, cheese or vegetables, while the outer layer is sometimes thin slices of meat, seafood or vegetables. Eggplant involtini is a vegetarian classic featuring eggplant as the outer layer, and the filling is often a cheese-based blend with herbs, simmered with tomato sauce. The possibilities are many indeed and fodder for eager cooks.

Though for years I have been especially smitten with trying new ways to feature the undeservedly spurned eggplant, until now I had not made eggplant involtini. The variation I offer up here is not only vegetarian but vegan-friendly too. The filling — wrapped up in slices of lightly fried eggplant — is a rich blend of roasted eggplant, tomato, onion and garlic, along with olives, sun-dried tomatoes and herbs. These involtini are quite hearty and substantial, and are meant to be served as part of a main meal rather than as hors d'oeuvres.