vegetables & salads Archives • Ant & Anise

Apple Cheddar Arugula Salad

I’ve been craving spa-like cuisine this week. We’re finally into spring, yes, but I think it has more to do with indulging a little too much lately with these little pieces of chocolate evil. I’m talking about Kirkland’s milk chocolate covered almonds, our preferred after-dinner nibble.

Sometimes I think the only reason I pay my Costco membership is to ensure I have a steady supply of these in the house.

But enough was enough. Time to take a break from chocolate almonds and focus on healthier eating, at least for a week or two. So my thoughts have turned to salad.

This is a refreshing salad, with crisp apple, tangy sharp cheddar and peppery arugula. Now, my favorite apple — hands down, no question — is the Cripps Pink, or Pink Lady® as it’s also known….

Chard and White Bean Ragout

Baby, it’s cold outside.

2014 has been a very cold winter, and I keep hearing we — the collective we in North America — can blame the polar vortex. That sounds nasty, doesn’t it? Like an evil force bent on world, or at least continental, domination.

Not even Vancouverites can escape the polar vortex, although its evilness here is tame compared to what it’s done on the East Coast. Still, this weekend it snowed for a few days straight, a wet, sticky snow blanket that paralyzed the city for, um…. a day or two….

Easy Sautéed Kale with Garlic, Lemon and Chili

It’s been a little quiet on Ant & Anise lately. Kind of like a post-holiday rest, only it came at the end of January instead of the beginning. Did you miss us, just a little bit? Awww, thanks.

With the holidays clearly over and done with, we’re back into regular routines, more or less. And I’ve been thinking about dinner. As in, how much I rely on a small repertoire of dishes on busy weeknights.

I love to experiment in the kitchen, really I do. And I try out new recipes regularly.

But when it’s 5 o’clock on a Wednesday night and I think what on earth am I going to make for dinner that’s quick, healthy and will taste good?……it’s those times when the tried-and-true recipes muscle their way to the top of my thoughts. …

Green Beans and Asparagus with Tangy Parsley Sauce

The holidays, for me, don’t officially end until we’ve eaten up the Christmas baking. We’re almost there: Just a few savory gruyere-pecan shortbread cookies, spiced with cayenne pepper, left to eat.

Now that we’re back into regular schedules and reasons for celebrating the season are dwindling, I’m craving vegetables — especially green ones — more. Maybe it’s to make up for all that shortbread I savored, err… inhaled, this past month.

This recipe for green beans and asparagus with a tangy parsley sauce hits the spot….

Wow, it is that time of year again. The calendar is running out on 2013, and fast.

I feel like I’ve eaten my weight in sugar in December, from recipe testing and tweaking. With the copious, rich food (savory and sweet) over the past few weeks, I’m happy to take a little time out of the kitchen.

So to close off 2013, here are a few of our favorite posts from this year:…

Sweet Potato Latkes

It was good timing for me to see a film called Happy this week. November has always been one of my least favorite months, mainly because of the soggy grey days in Vancouver. Between that and the darkness that descends on the late afternoon, every day a little earlier, November makes me mostly want to crawl back under the covers and sleep until spring.

So it was encouraging to learn from Sonja Lyubomirsky, a psychology professor featured in the film, that only 10% of our happiness is dependent on our life circumstances (like where we live or how much money we make). Turns out a full 40% can be changed by intentional activities….