• Preheat the oven to 400° and lightly grease a small baking sheet or cast iron skillet. Set aside.
• Trim the base of the cauliflower to remove any green leaves and the stem.
• In a medium bowl, combine the yogurt with the lime zest and juice, mixing well.
• In a separate small bowl combine all the spices. Add to the yogurt and stir to completely combine.
• Dip the head of cauliflower into the bowl and use a brush or your hands to smear the yogurt paste evenly over its surface.
• Place the cauliflower on the baking sheet and roast until the surface is dry and lightly browned, 30 to 40 minutes. The yogurt paste will make a crust on the surface of the cauliflower.
• Remove from the oven and sprinkle with lime zest. Let the cauliflower rest for 5 - 8 minutes before cutting it into wedges and serving. Top with fresh chopped cilantro.

• Position rack in the center of the oven and heat to 375°F. Lightly grease a 10” springform or cake pan.
• In a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat wilt the spinach in a tablespoon of olive oil adding handfuls at a time. You may need to do this in more than one batch depending on the size of your skillet. Transfer to a large bowl to cool.
• Sautee the onions until translucent, adding the garlic for the last minute. Add to bowl of spinach to cool. Once cooled, add the fresh dill and turn out on to a cutting board and finely chop.
• Press as much liquid as you can from the cooked spinach and onions using a mesh strainer and the back of a large spoon. A ricer also works very well for this.
• Return the spinach to the mixing bowl and add the cheese. Mix well and taste adding salt and pepper as needed. Once seasoned add the eggs and mix well.
• Place a sheet of phyllo dough in the bottom of the baking pan and brush with olive oil, and a second sheet and brush again.
• Lay a sheet of phyllo dough on a cutting board, long edge towards you and brush with olive oil, and another sheet and brush, add a third and brush again.
• Pipe or spoon a row of filling along the bottom edge of the dough, roll the dough into a rope. Starting in the middle of the pan, form a coil with the rope of dough, keeping it as tight as you can. The dough may crack a bit as you work.
• Repeat with more sheets and filling until the coil completely fills the pan. Brush the top of the coil with olive oil. Cover coil with a sheet of dough and brush with oil, add a second sheet and brush again. Tuck the edges of the top sheets down around the sides of the coil and sprinkle the top with sea salt.
• Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Cool in the pan for five minutes before placing on a wire rack to cool.
• Spanakopita is served warm or at room temperature.

• Heat oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9 x 13 baking dish.
• Cut the peppers in half and remove seeds.
• In a mixing bowl, combine beans, corn, tomato, jalapeno, onion, farmers cheese, taco sauce, lime juice, and spices.
• Fill the pepper halves with the bean and corn mixture.
• Top with grated cheese and a drizzle of taco sauce.
• Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and return to oven for an additional 30 minutes or until peppers are tender and cheese is melted.

• Cut squash, peppers, and onion into similar sized pieces. Different shapes will make your dish more interesting. Cut garlic into thin slices
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil. When oil is shimmering add squash, peppers, onion, and garlic. Stir to coat all vegetables with oil.
• Add Italian spice. Lightly season pan with salt.
• Stir vegetable to cook evenly about 15 minutes or until tender.
• When vegetables are tender, remove pan from heat and add spinach. Toss to mix. The heat from the vegetable will wilt the spinach.
• Add red pepper flake and Parmesan cheese if desired.

• Soak the dried chilies in hot water for 30 – 45 minutes. Drain. Remove stems and seeds (I kept about half of the seeds to add heat).
• Place all ingredients in a food processor and puree.
• Store harissa in the refrigerator in a tightly closed jar.

• Add roasted eggplant and all ingredients in a food processor and let run for 2-¬3 minutes until you get a paste.

Serve

• Place Baba Ghanoush paste on to a serving plate or bowl. Garnish with olive oil, dusting of chili powder, and fresh parsley or cilantro.
• Serve cold as an appetizer, with a side of Pita bread or chips, and salted pickles and olives.

• Cut the eggplant in half and score the flesh pretty deeply with the tip of your knife in a cross-hatch pattern. Don’t cut all the way through to the skin, but do cut fairly close to it, and keep the cuts pretty large.
• Salt the eggplant to draw some of the excess liquid out. Press on the edges of the halves to open the cuts and sprinkle kosher salt over the surface and into the cuts.
• Let the eggplant sit cut side up for about 30 minutes while the salt draws out the water. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400 degrees.
• There won’t necessarily be a lot of water on the surface after a half an hour, so gently squeeze the eggplant with your hand to release the water.
• Pat the eggplant dry with paper towels.
• Brush the cut sides generously with olive oil and place face down on a parchment lined baking sheet
• Roast in a 400 degree oven for about 1 hour. The eggplant will collapse and the flesh on the bottom will turn a beautiful caramel color.
• After roasting, let the eggplants cool for at least 20 minutes before handling.
• Once cooled, scoop the roasted flesh out of the eggplant with a spoon.

Serve

• If preparing for a main course, roast eggplant face down over fresh thyme sprigs and serve hot with a drizzle of vinaigrette.

Mushroom Strudel

• Sort through the mushrooms brushing off any dirt, remove all stems and set aside. Use a spoon to remove the gills from the caps of the Portobello. Slice the tops of the mushrooms into about 1/4″ slices. I like to vary the size a bit to add some visual texture. Large caps like the Portobello can be cubed. Remember mushroom drastically reduce in size when cooked. Finely dice the stems and place in a small bowl separate from the tops.
• Prepare the shallot by finely dicing. Strip the leaves from the fresh thyme, and finely chop.
• Add the butter and olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the mushrooms (cooking mushrooms is similar to cooking spinach, the pan may seem full, don’t worry it will dramatically reduce). Give the mushrooms a careful toss to coat with the oil.
• Add 2 tablespoons of the fresh thyme, salt, and pepper.
• Cook the mushroom, stirring occasionally. When the mushrooms have reduces by half, add the finely diced mushroom stems, and the Dijon to the skillet. Continue to cook until all of the liquid has escaped from the mushrooms, and has been reduced to a thick syrup (almost to the point of sticking). This process will probably take at least 30 minutes (Cooking time will vary depending on the type of mushrooms used at their water content).
• Add the creme sherry to the pan to deglaze the wonderful mushroom essence, and continue cooking until the liquor has reduced to a thick gravy (It is important that the filling not be “watery” or too wet or it will not work in the pastry).
• Add the remaining tablespoon of fresh thyme and stir to combine. Transfer the mushrooms from the skillet into a bowl and allow to cool. It is important that the filling be cooled to room temperature before working with the pastry dough.
• If nuts are desired, toast them in a dry skillet. Allow to cool, finely dice, and add to the filling. Nuts add another layer of flavor and texture, however they are not crucial to the outcome of this dish.
• Heat oven to 350° F, and position rack in the center of the oven.
• Once the filling is completely cooled, taste and adjust salt and pepper if desired (who am I kidding, by now you have most likely eaten two or three spoonfuls already).
• Melt the stick of butter in the microwave. Lay the sheets of phllyo dough on a piece of parchment paper. Working quickly, fold the phllyo in half like a book, but do not crease. Starting on one half, open each page of the book and brush with the melted butter. Unfold the next layer smooth out the dough with your hand, and butter (Using your hand to lightly smooth the sheet helps to make sure you have an even layer of butter between the sheets). Repeat until all the layers are buttered. Do not butter the top sheet. When you have reached the top sheet, fold over the other direction and repeat.
• The sheet of dough are slightly rectangular, so place the cooled filling down the center third of the long direction of the dough. Evenly spread the cubes of brie over the top of the filling. Using a sharp knife, cut strips about 1½ inches wide from the edge of the filling outwards in both directions. Keep the cuts in line from side to side. Begin at the bottom and fold the first strip on the right side over the dough at a slight angle upward, then repeat with the left. Continue until all the filling is covered. Brush the top with butter, evenly coating all surfaces. Be sure to do the sides as well.
• Use the parchment paper to lift the strudel onto a baking sheet. Place in the pre-heated oven and bake for 25 – 30 minutes, or until the top is golden.
• Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

Berry Coulis

• Place the berries, water, lemon juice, and thyme in a small sauce pan and cover. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Allow the mixture to reduce by half.
• Using a food mill or mesh strainer and the back of a spoon, press all of the liquid from the seeds and skins.
• Return the liquid to the small sauce pan and simmer, add the brandy and pepper. Reduce to a syrup.
• Place in fridge to cool and finish thickening.

Serve

• Strudel can be served warm, or at room temperature. Either way is delicious. Serve with a stove ground mustard or a berry coulis. Enjoy!!

Croquettes

• Place mashed potatoes and onions in a large mixing bowl. In a small bowl beat the egg yolks and add to the potatoes.
• Add the flour, milk, and salt and pepper. Mix until well combined and smooth. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
• Scoop out about a ¼ cup of the potato mixture and form into a ball, flatten ball into a patty and place on a parchment or wax paper lined baking sheet. Place baking sheet in the fridge for about 20 minutes to firm up for breading.

Breading

• Set up a breading station with three small bowls. Put about a ¼ cup of cornstarch in the first, the beaten egg in the second, and the bread crumbs in the third.
• Working with the chilled potatoes one at a time, dust a potato cake with the corn starch, dredge in the beaten egg, roll to coat with bread crumbs and then return to the baking sheet. Once all cakes are breaded, return to the fridge to firm up before frying.

Fry

• Pour about ½ inch of oil in the bottom of a large skillet. Heat oil to 170°F – 180°F or until it shimmers. You can also test the oil by flicking a bit of flour. If the flour sizzles the oil is ready.
• Carefully slide a few of the cakes at a time into the oil. Cook for about 3 – 4 minutes or until you see a golden color starting to form, carefully turn the cakes and fry for about the same amount of time.
• Remove from the oil and place on a wire rack over a sheet pan to drain.
• Delicious served with an Aioli as an appetizer.

• Heat grill on high. Brush to clean and reduce to low.
• Trim large leaves from the bok choy and cut in half lengthwise. Rinse well under cold water to remove any grit. Pat dry with a paper towel.
• In a small bowl whisk together vinegar, chili sauce, brown sugar, oil, and pepper.
• Place bok choy cut side up in a pan or on a plate. Pour the rice wine chili mixture over the bok choy.
• Place the bok choy cut side down on the grill, cover, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Place on a serving platter and drizzle with any remaining rice vinegar mixture and a little soy sauce.