Charred Cauliflower with Clementines

I have to admit, I've had a lot more experience cooking & eating broccoli than cauliflower. I like cauliflower  I just forget about it sometimes. I got a friendly reminder while flipping through the January 2013 edition of Whole Living Magazine. I saw the recipe for Charred Cauliflower with Clementines & Olives & needed to try it immediately.  I sadly didn't have any olives in the house so I made a Chris-friendly version sans olives. Next time I'll definitely have to throw some in my dish.

Ingredients:

• 1 head cauliflower, trimmed & cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slabs
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• coarse salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 2 clementines, zested & segmented
• (1/4 cup kalamata olives)
• 1 tsp white vinegar (I only had balsamic, so I used it & it worked great)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Make it!

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Arrange cauliflower in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet & brush both sides with 2 tablespoons olive oil.
3. Season with salt & pepper.
4. Roast, flipping once, until tender & golden, about 25 minutes.
5. Transfer to a serving patter with clementine segments (& olives).
6. Meanwhile, make vinaigrette: whisk remaining oil & vinegar & clementine zest. Season with salt.
7. Drizzle over cauliflower, clementines & olives. Sprinkle with parsley.

Broccoli & White Cheddar Soup

When winter is in the air I only want to eat warm cozy bowls of soup.  I found a recipe for broccoli cheese soup on the super tasty recipe-filled blog,  not without salt.  I adapted this recipe to make it my own yummy (less heavy) version for dinner. I think this would be a great warm-up dish for Turkey Day.

Click through to see how I kept this soup rich & creamy without using cream!

Root Vegetable Stuffing with Fall Fruit

I cannot believe Thanksgiving is next week already, that means time to start planning sides & desserts.  I watched Giada make a version of this stuffing that is both sweet & savory & thought I'd give it a test run before the big turkey day.  I'd say it was a hit, according Chris & me of course.

I love stuffing but I really do not like any type of meat in it - sausage, gizzard, no thanks.  I loved this recipe because it has hearty root veggies plus the sweetness of fall fruit. It's kind of like a dinner cobbler - too savory to be dessert but just sweet enough to make you want seconds.

This particular recipe calls for goat cheese for a tangy extra creamy zing but if you don't like goat cheese (Maggie I know what you're thinking) you can just leave it off, but if you love goat cheese like Chris & me, you're in for a real treat.

Click through for the full recipe (that serves 8-10 people) & photos.

Tangy Hot Chickpea Salad

Change up your salad routine with this hearty chickpea salad that's equal parts refreshing, healthy & hot! Simply combine all the ingredients in a large serving bowl.

Make it!
Mix the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.  Toss it all together. This salad is great served right away & only gets better the longer it sits in the dressing & chills in the fridge. 

Ingredients:

• 2-8oz cans of chickpeas (rinse & drain)
• 1 jalapeno pepper (seed & dice)
• 1 cup baby spinach (chiffonade)
• 1 cup arugula (rough chop)
• 2 tomatoes (seed & chop)

Dressing:

• 1 tablespoon agave (or honey)
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 limes (juice & zest)
• 1 tablespoon hot pepper flakes

Goat Cheese Flatbread

Ingredients:

• 2 large onions
• 3 shallots
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup fresh goat cheese
• 2 cups arugula
• 4 pieces trader joe's whole wheat tandori naan bread

Dressing:

• 1 lemon (juice + zest)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• salt & pepper

Jane is one of my favorite places in NYC to eat. They have killer bloody marys & excellent bites. I basically took this flatbread right off their menu. It's so simple but so so tasty & holds a special place in my memory book.

There are two distinct times in my life when I remember savoring this at Jane. The first time was with my mom, right after we had finalize THE fabric that my wedding dress would be made from. The second was the day before my rehearsal dinner for my wedding, with my sister. This flatbread makes my heart & belly warm & of course it helps that you-know-who (my hubby!) likes it too!

Make sure to click through to learn how you can serve it up at home yourself!

Bold Brows + Red Hot Lips

1. bronzer; 2. mineral foundation; 3. lip stain; 4. gel eyeliner;  5. mascara;
6. brow pencil; 7. eyeshadow base; 8. tinted moisturizer.

I can't help but have brows on the brain.  I work along side nyc's hair removal experts daily.  Known for our top brow shaping salons, Shobha is the only place that has touched my brows since 2004!

You can't go wrong with bold brows.  Brows really shape your face and draw attention to your eyes.  I like when my husband looks at my eyes. On our very first date I remember telling him it's here (pointing to my eyes) not here (pointing to my other "assets").

To make sure the attention is on the appropriate (ahem) assets I like to emphasize my eyes with a simple cat eye, bold brows and a red hot lip. (Try Tarte's Lip Surgence in "moody" - it's surprisingly red and wearable even in the daytime.)

Check out my tips on how to make your assets stand out after the jump.