Here you’ll find everything I’m preparing in my kitchen - from veggies, to leftovers and pasta. I eat simply, and I cook for one, but love cooking for others. And no matter what, I always pause to plate pretty.
Most of my meals are often times the result of freestyle recipe free ingredient riffing and a trip to the vegetable market. Produce is my passion, and I hope that you won’t simply come here for a recipe - but that you’ll read, cook and create a new story of your own.
I believe there’s power in a stocked pantry and freezer. From traditional Italian dishes to alternative sweets, vegan and vegetarian swaps - there’s something for everyone.
Let this serve as inspiration and let’s eat!
Tired of hummus? Same old, same old dip? Don’t just spice it up, triple spice it up!
Fresh out of chickpeas after last weeks bean filled bonanaza, I had a can of cannellini to spare. Instead of using them in their standard Italian preparation, I took them on a new flavor journey.
Lately I’m dropping beans into bowls like they’re hot …
1) ’Cause they’re easy to cook (hello, can opener!) and prepare well ahead of time.
2) They’re inexpensive, while also being filling. See more on #3
3) Finally, they add a meatless, high fiber protein pop to mealtime.
If you know my cooking and weight loss story, you know I love lentils. Lentil soup was the first meal I prepared in the summer of 2001 as I was forced to cook for myself while I was living on a small working farm in Ashford, CT. Recalling meals of my childhood, I remade my grandmas lentils until I got the pot of soup just right. Packed with fiber and protein they’re one of my favorite meal bases
Read MoreAre we really what we eat? Well, not only. We are what we say. What we do. The things we don’t do … and I’ve been exploring ways to shift my mindset outside of food. Do you think of your overall health as more than what you eat, or do you find yourself constantly hung up on the next meal or bite?
Read MoreI love eggs. I love my eggs scrambled, sunny side up and poached. Sure, I also love a fluffy filled to the max mega frittata and the popular omelette but, of late, my only true love is the open faced omelette. The open faced omelette, AKA the pizza omelette - made with a thin layer of egg and then piled high with ingredients such as veggies, meats and/or cheese
Read MoreWeeknights leave little room for making any sort of gourmet dinner, you and I both know that. But dinner also doesn’t have to be gourmet or recipe based. With work, busy schedules, the compounded effects of technology and the need to be “always on,” it’s getting harder and harder to find a work life balance … let alone get in the kitchen.
Read MorePeeling fava beans was a favorite childhood summertime cooking chore. Way better than mom asking me to get a new roll of paper towels or sending me to the corner store for bread. Splitting open a fava pod and peeling off the beans thick skin is a labor of mealtime love - it takes time, patience and must be done gingerly so as not to break apart your beans.
Read MoreInspired by an epic Friday night meal of branzino, eggplant, zucchini, salad and wine I planned to relive it at home. A kingdom for grilled branzino every day, deboning and picking pins like a professional - but it gets costly … sometimes a lady has to get her wild flounder on because the price is right at the fish market.
Read MoreMaking salsa is simple. It requires little prep, minimal tools and ingredients that are easy to come by in your grocery store. A certified crowd pleaser, great for vegetarians, vegans and even your meaty buddies (scoop this fruit salsa on a burger, shrimp or salmon) and delight everyone around your table.
Read MoreWhile everyone else is eating warm potato and macaroni salad (gulp) this July 4th, perhaps you can choose to make a side that can double as a salad or a salsa. With interchangeable ways to use these two salsa/sides, you’re guaranteed to please guests and yourself with nutrition, hydration and leftovers.
Read MoreAs a champion for grocery shopping, real food, cooking and caring for my home (mind, body, the actual space I live in) - when the weather gets beautiful and the weekend rolls around … The last thing I want to do is roll my food suitcase from store to store. Sure, I love Astoria, long walks, exploring, and saying hi to my local produce people … but …
Read MoreIt was with an open heart that I attended the District 30 Health Fair on Saturday May 4th.
There’s no better feeling in the world than giving to others, freely and happily. The turn out for the event was spectacular and I couldn’t have pulled it off without the help of my friends.
Read MoreAll I could muster up for dinner tonight was zucchini noodles with garlic, parsley and olive oil. I’ve nothing inspirational to write or say. Quite honestly, I opened my fridge, braless, half of my belly hanging out in my too short hand-cut sleeper sweatshirt and stared into the refrigerator light.
Read MoreIn the Healthy Habits gospel according to Tinamarie Theresa, there’s nothing like starting the day with fresh fruit. Before I left NY for Miami, the cold weather had me turnt. I work hard to channel my good mood through food as my belief is if we eat like a rainbow we will feel like a rainbow. I tried channeling the tropics
Read MoreLately, I feel like it’s a miracle I’m even cooking. My spirits have been struggling, my energy low, although I’m working to wear smiles on the outside. After a day of substitute teaching, I sometimes want to close my eyes and nap, but most days I confront the light, my kitchen and make peace with myself.
Read MoreI closed in on a quick granola for the yogurt, muffin, oatmeal and fruit topping win! And I baked some apples that were looking sad in my fridge! Most days in my kitchen, cooking is about using what I’ve got in order to survive hunger, mealtime and loneliness. Lemme not go down the emotion path and keep this on the quick cooking tip!
Read MoreMy grandmother used to make a sauce from Birds Eye frozen winter squash. Bright orange, garlicky, cheesy in flavor, silken in texture - I can still picture the way the thick sauce coated broken pieces of pasta in the bottomless bowls she served on a weeknight. The summer I went to live on the farm in Connecticut, I spent half the time recreating her lentils and the other half perfecting this sauce.
Read MoreThese banana almond cacao cookies came about from a few brown bananas, a quiet morning sipping tea and a need to go slow and recover from the week. They’re totally passable for breakfast, you know, being as they’re made with flax meal, bananas and almonds. A simple breakfast cookie that can be frozen and grabbed on the go
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