Lemon poppy seed cookies... And no poppy seeds in Brazil

After posting this cake, I received several emails and comments from people here in Brazil asking me where I had bought poppy seeds, because they couldn’t find the seeds anywhere. I had no idea there was something going on – I had purchased the package a while before that.I call the store I usually buy spices from and the employee told me that poppy seeds had been forbidden in Brazil for a while;

Kidney Bean Salad

Food, just like life, is best served up light and easy in the summertime. This colourful kidney bean salad is easy to make, packs plenty of vitamins, minerals and easy-to-digest proteins, and has a laid-back spicy zest that goes well with a glass of red wine or a cold beer.

Kidney bean salad

Salad:

1 1/4 cups dried red kidney beans
1 cucumber, diced
2 large tomatoes, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
2 large jalapeño peppers, finely diced
2 green onions, sliced

Dressing:

1/2 cup rice wine or apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder

Soak the beans overnight in a large pot of water and a teaspoon of yoghurt whey or lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover, cooking for 1 hour or until the beans are tender but still firm.

Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the salad and toss. Chill for 1 hour before serving.

I'm sending this along to Archana, who is hosting an event focusing on one dish meals that are high in protein. The theme this month is salads.

Cinnamon French toast

I love breakfast food. In a perfect world, people should be able to eat pancakes, waffles, muffins and bread all through the day. :)

This was the first time I tried french toast, though. We do eat something really similar here in Brazil, called rabanada, but it’s usually prepared around Christmas time and it’s not a daily breakfast meal for us. It’s equally delicious: the bread is soaked in a

No Croutons Required - Dressing

The winner for July's Herb Challenge is Jackie Vetter who made a hearty Peasant Soup with savory. Congratulations to Jackie who faced some tough competition this month.

It is my turn to host this month's edition of No Croutons Required, a monthly vegetarian event focusing on soups and salads.

Many thanks to Ricki for commenting on my Creamy Sesame Miso Salad Dressing, as she suggested dressings should be the theme for August and so it shall be. Make any dressing and post about it until the 20th of this month, including a description of what you dressed up. Submission guidelines can be found here.

Waiter, there's something in my... picnic! Olive, herb and parmesan sticks

I haven’t taken part in blog events lately – I never seem to keep the deadlines in mind – but picnics are something I hold very dear and they are the theme for this “Waiter, there’s something in my...”, hosted by Johanna, Jeanne and Andrew.

When I was little, my parents used to take me and my brother to parks on the weekends, and we had wonderful picnics there (I once wrote about it here). To

Korean-style Poached Eggs

These very simple and quick little eggs are elegant on the plate and taste just as wonderful. They would make a marvelous light lunch with a small green salad, but I must admit that I had them for breakfast the other day with toast and an orange.

This recipe is taken almost straight from my dependable copy of Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian but with the substitution of a little toasted sesame oil for added flavour (if you don't have toasted sesame oil, please do get some and give it a try). I can't ordinarily be bothered with poached eggs as it seems such a trial to make perfect ones, but this recipe pleasantly included an easy fail-safe method for poaching eggs that, even if they look rather a bit more like fried eggs than picture-perfect poached ones, hold together and are just as good in every way.

Korean-style poached eggs

1 green onion, thinly sliced, both white and green parts
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons tamari sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Place the sliced green onions in a bowl of ice water and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before making the poached eggs. Drain and place on a clean dish towel. Bring the ends of the cloth together and twist to wring out the extra moisture. This method gives the green onions a nice crunch.

Add 3/4-inch of water to a low simmer over medium heat in a 9- or 10-inch no-stick frying pan. Crack the eggs into small glasses or bowls. Slide the eggs into the pan when the water is at a simmer so that the eggs sit side by side. Simmer gently until the whites are just set. Turn off the heat and cover loosely with a lid. Allow the eggs to continue cooking until the yolks are set to your liking. Separate the eggs and remove from the pan onto a plate with a slotted spatula.

Meanwhile, whisk together the tamari sauce, sesame oil, toasted sesame oil and sugar. Remember to mix well again just before serving.

Arrange the poached eggs on plates and sprinkle with some of the sauce. Scatter green onions over top and serve.

Linguine with zucchini, capers, lemon, pine nuts and herbs and a tribute to Sher

As many of you in the food blog world I was shocked with the news that our dear Sher had suddenly passed away.A lovely woman who would brighten up everyone’s day with encouraging comments and kind words, Sher was a passionate foodie and shared many delicious recipes on her delightful blog. She was the queen of meatballs!I only knew her virtually, but she’ll be missed and my heart goes out to her