My Zucchini Affair

Zucchini Tart

When I was in college, I remember telling my stepmom that I wanted to go study abroad. I remember her cheekily telling me, "But you are already studying abroad." Eventually, she and my dad agreed to let me spend a summer at Sussex University in England. England was always the dream. It was the place people talked about in posh tones. When people talked about traveling when I was growing up in Lagos, London was synonymous with foreign travels. I always wanted to see London. When I finally started traveling, I ended up in America so London was still a dream.When I finally landed in the Queen's own country, I knew not a  soul there. I followed instructions sent by the university and made my way to Brighton from Gatwick airport.

Chipotle Potato Salad

Chipotle Potato Salad

The problem with cooking for one person is the leftovers. Especially for someone who loves cooking, leftovers are the things that keep me eating the same thing over and over again. Leftovers are the blocks that stop me from creatively expressing myself in the kitchen.

As anticipated, on the night I made the lovely fried chicken sandwich, I had leftovers for some of my key items like the cabbage, homemade mayonnaise and the chipotle sauce. It was very important for me to use up the mayonnaise quickly because it had raw egg in it and therefore would not stay edible for a long time.

Flowering Basil

Fresh Pesto

Something amazing happened at the beginning of the weekend. I got about 2 pounds of basil unexpectedly. The basil was so fragrant. It surprised and inspired me. There are a bunch of recipes coming up soon that highlights the fragrant nature of really fresh and seasonal basil. Until then, enjoy some of the fun that I had making pesto.

The Single Woman's Leftover Dilemma

Stuffed Zucchini

One of the things that always happens to me is leftovers. This is no surprise because cooking for one is a delicate walk between not wanting to cook at all and eating out or cooking and having to eat the same thing over and over again. The thing with me is that I don't mind eating the same thing over and over again. The repetitive eating is actually one of my coping mechanisms for singledom. I make one pot of food and I eat it for lunch over the week. Sometimes, I do that for dinner as well.

However since Ramadan started and I am only eating twice a day, I really feel like I ought savor the food I am eating. So I have taken to cooking every night. My Suhoor meal is pretty much the same thing each time because I treat is as a functional meal. For Suhoor or the pre-dawn meal, I eat overnight soaked oats. By the time Ramadan is done, I will be glad to go back to my smoothies and breakfast pizzas.

Raspberry Pomegranate Salad

Raspberry Pomegranate Salad With Herbed Goat Cheese

This recipe is what I am having for dinner tonight. Actually, I am eating forkfuls of this as I type in the recipe. It is not really a recipe, more like a guiding light to help you enjoy the taste I am currently savoring. The big flavor in this salad is the pomegranate molasses. I feel like I just made a new friend just by trying this molasses tonight. I had heard of it but never tried. So a couple of weeks back, I bought in the hopes that I would use it soon. I am so glad my lazy self finally decided that it was too hot to cook because the pomegranate molasses packs a punch.

Baked Eggs In Collard Green Cups

Eggs In Collard Green Cups

I have been meaning to put up this recipe since ages ago...okay, maybe it has just been for the past couple of weeks really. I feel like I have been so busy lately trying to keep up with work commitment. Plus, maybe there was a bit of procrastination involved. Anyway, I am here now and I can talk about the experimentation of a couple of weeks ago. It involved leftover blanched collard greens, eggs and some veggies.

Basic Tomato Sauce

One of the things that has formed the basis of my cooking for many years is tomatoes. It is the Yoruba girl in me. Tomato represents obe (stew) that is a staple of Yoruba cuisine. I am constantly experimenting with the best way to capture the flavor of the tomato.

As I become more exposed to other foods outside of Yoruba cuisine, I have become more comfortable playing around with the concept of the stew. The normal base of a Yoruba tomato stew/sauce consists of tomato, onions and red peppers all blended together. I have become okay with making my stew with just tomatoes and onions.

Mixed Berries Ricotta Pancake with Quick Berry Syrup

Ricotta, Frozen Berries, Milk and Oats

I have developed a craving for pancakes lately. Yesterday, while I was grocery shopping, I decided to get the things I needed for a ricotta blueberry pancake. When I grabbed the bag of frozen berries out the freezer though, I reached for the mixed berries so my direction changed just a little bit.

Spring Beans Salad

Beans Galore!

As a child, I notoriously hated eating beans. Once my mom forced me to eat beans and I threw it up. This incident meant that I was not fed beans again in my childhood by force. In my adulthood though, it has become one of those foods that I find myself reaching for when I want something healthy and filling. My affection for beans has gotten stronger as I have discovered different types of beans, both fresh and dried. This week's lunch celebrated my love of beans by highlighting different kinds of both dried and fresh beans.