I like to travel the world, both literally and figuratively with my cooking. One of the best cookbooks I have is ‘5 Spices, 50 Dishes‘ – an easy introduction to Indian cooking.

I have tried many recipes from it, my favorite is the Lamb Chops with Spicy Rub.

It’s super simple and delicious. I use whole seeds and grind them up in a mortar and pestle or coffee/spice grinder, but you can use store-bought ground spices.

I also use a microplane which makes grating ginger and garlic very easy. I use my microplane for a variety of things, including freshly grated Parmesan cheese or nutmeg.

I had a rack of lamb in my freezer and just cut it into individual chops for this recipe

Lamb Chops with Spicy Rub (click here to print recipe without pictures)

- 1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger (about 2-in piece)
– 1 tsp finely grated or pressed garlic (about 2 large cloves)
– 3/4 tsp salt
– 1/2 tsp cayenne
– 1/2 tsp ground cumin
– 1/2 tsp ground coriander
– 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
– 8 lamb chops
– 3 tbsp canola oil

1. In a large bowl, mix together ginger, garlic, salt, cayenne, cumin, coriander and turmeric to form a thick, slightly dry paste. 

2. Rub chops well with this mixture and set aside to marinate for 2-8 hours in the fridge.

3. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil. Sear the lamb chops to the desired doneness, 4-5 min/side for rare.

4. Let rest briefly before serving. Serve with Indian fragrant rice (see below for recipe)

Indian Fragrant Rice (click here to print recipe without pictures)

- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
– 2 tbsp vegetable oil
– 1 1/2 cups water
– 1 cup basmati or jasmine rice, rinsed
– 2-3 bay leaves

1. In a small saucepan, heat olive oil until hot. Add cumin seeds and toast for 30 seconds until fragrant. CAREFULLY add rice, water and bay leaves. The water will splatter when added, so be careful.

2. Bring to a boil. Wrap lid with kitchen towel. Cover, lower heat to low and cook for 18 min. Fluff with fork prior to serving.

I make a ton of Asian food. The flavor profiles always hits everything I’m looking for: sweet, salty, spicy and umami.

I came across this recipe when looking for sides for an Asian entree. This can be done with any veggie – eggplant, squash, zucchini, mushrooms – basically whatever you have in your veggie drawer

A few weeks ago I received a bunch of Asian eggplants in my CSA (Boston Organics) and decided to make this dish.

I was always interested in getting a CSA share but I never wanted to shell out $600 up front and end up with 10 lbs of beets or turnips. And then I found Boston Organics.

They deliver to your house (and are insured, so you can give them a key and they can drop the box inside). The deliveries are weekly or every other week and you can cancel anytime!! They also have a ‘no’ list, so they know what I don’t want in my share (for me it’s dill). Each box starts at $29 and we get 1/2 veggie-1/2 fruit every other week. It’s perfect for the 2 of us and I rarely go produce shopping!

Every once in a while, Boston Organics will throw in an ingredient I haven’t worked with and it gives me a chance to experiment. In the box below, I received garlic scapes – which were delicious grilled with a little bit of of olive oil, salt and pepper.

Ok, enough gushing about Boston Organics, here’s the eggplant recipe

Spicy Glazed Eggplant (click here to print recipe without pictures)

– 1 1/4 pounds Asian eggplants (about 4), trimmed, halved lengthwise, and cut diagonally into 1 1/2-inch pieces
– 2 tablespoons mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
– 2 tablespoons soy sauce
– 1/2 teaspoon finely grated peeled ginger (use a Microplane)
– 1/8 teaspoon Japanese seven-spice powder (sometimes labeled “shichimi togarashi”) or Chinese 5-spice powder
– 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
– 1 tablespoon finely chopped chives

1. Toss eggplant with 1 teaspoon salt and drain in a colander, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. Rinse eggplant under cold water and dry well, pressing out any excess moisture.

2. In a small bowl, stir together mirin, soy sauce, ginger, and seven-spice powder. Set aside

3. Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then sauté eggplant until browned, about 8 minutes. Gently stir in mirin mixture and cook, turning frequently, until sauce becomes a glaze and eggplant is browned and tender, about 1 minute.

4. Serve hot or at room temperature, sprinkled with chives.

(adapted from Gourmet)

Every time I get a new Cook’s Illustrated there is at least one thing that I must make immediately. This month it was Chocolate Crinkle Cookies.

These cookies were amazing!!! A perfect balance between chocolate sugar cookies and brownies. I used Dutch-processed cocoa powder, so they came out dark, slightly bitter and perfectly chocolatey. They were soft and gooey in the middle with a nice cookie crust on the outside.

I usually bring cookies into work so that I don’t end up eating them all. These, however, barely made it out of the house.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (click here to print recipe without pictures)

– 1 cup all-purpose flour
– 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
– 1 tsp baking powder
– 1/4 tsp baking soda
– 1/2 tsp table salt
– 1/2 tsp kosher salt
– 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
– 3 large eggs
– 4 tsp instant espresso powder
– 1 tsp vanilla extract
– 4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
– 4 tbsp unsalted butter
– 1/2 cup granulated sugar
– 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salts together; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk brown sugar, eggs, espresso powder and vanilla; set aside.

3. In a small bowl, combine chocolate and butter and microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring often, until melted, about 2 min.

4. Whisk chocolate mixture into egg mixture until combined. Fold in flour mixture until no dry streaks remain. Let dough sit at room temp for 10 min.

5. Place granulated sugar and confectioners sugar in separate plates. Scoop 2 tbsp dough, roll into a ball and drop into granulated sugar and roll to coat. Then drop in confectioners’ sugar and roll to coat. Place on prepared sheet, repeat with remaining dough.

6. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until puffed, cracked and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, about 12 min, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Let cool completely on sheet.

(adapted from Cook’s Illustrated)

I like to entertain and to have something for my guests to snack on. My go-to is this super easy, very impressive recipe for cinnamon sugar almonds. They taste great and make the house smell amazing!!

I serve them alone or with cheese and crackers.

I always have them on hand at home (in an air-tight container) for an afterwork/before-dinner treat!

Cinnamon Sugar Almonds  (click here to print recipe without pictures)

– 1 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
– 1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
– 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
– 1/2 tsp kosher salt
– 1 egg white
– 2 cups almonds

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside. Mix sugars, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Set aside

2. In a medium bowl, whisk egg white with 1 tsp cold water until frothy. Add almonds and stir to coat.

3. Add sugar mixture to almonds and stir to combine. Place almonds in single layer on prepared baking sheet.

4. Bake for 1 hour, stirring to keep from sticking every 20 min. Remove from oven, cool to room temp and place in air tight container to store.

It is finally starting to feel like fall around here. The temperature has dropped to the 60s, the air is crisp and the leaves run the whole gamut from red to yellow. Thus, not only is it soup weather, it’s chili weather!!!

I like a meaty chili with simple flavors, a nice background of heat, topped with cheese and crumpled tortilla chips for texture.

Chilie con Carne   (click here to print recipe without pictures)

– 1 lb ground beef (85%lean)
– 1 lb ground turkey
– 1 onion, diced small
– 1/2 green bell pepper , chopped
– 1/2 small jalapeño pepper
– 1/2 red Fresno chili pepper
– 2 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
– 2 garlic cloves
– 1/2 can (28oz) fire-roasted diced tomatoes
– 1 can black beans with liquid
– 2 tsp smoked paprika
– 2 tsp cumin
– 1 tsp garlic powder
– 1 tbsp chili powder
– Salt and pepper

1. In a small food processor, process all peppers, garlic cloves and 1/4 onion until a paste forms.

2. Put all ingredients and paste into slow cooker, along with 1/2 cup of water, stir to combine. Cook on high 4 hours or low for 8 hours. Season to taste

3. Top with crushed tortilla chips, cheese, avocado, sour cream, cilantro, what ever else you want!

Enjoy!