Shaina Olmanson's Blog, page 2

Chana Aloo Gobi Masala: Chickpea, Potato, and Cauliflower Curry

A recipe for a wet-style curry with chana (chickpeas), aloo (potatoes), and gobi (cauliflower). It’s a warm and comforting vegetarian meal that’s easy to make vegan.

Consciousness starts just before I’m fully awake. It hovers beneath the eyelids. Before any alarms blare, I’m throwing off the warmth of the covers to contort my body and glare at the clock. Twenty minutes before intended.

This is not satisfying.

I’ve been feeling unbalanced, waking up a bit early, still tired from the previous d...

Cilantro-Lime Chicken Soup with Yogurt

A recipe for a cilantro-lime chicken soup inspired by a Peruvian classic with a spoonful of yogurt that allows this tangy potato, quinoa, and pea-laden soup a different dimension. Cilantro-Lime Chicken Soup with Yogurt   Print Ingredients 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 medium yellow onion, chopped 1 red bell pepper, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 teaspoon cumin teaspoon sea salt 1 bay leaf 1 pound cooked chicken (leftovers work great here) 4 small to medium golden potatoes, diced cup...

Beet and Root Vegetable Tian with Apple Cider Reduction

A seasonal side dish recipe for a beet and root vegetable tian with shallots and thyme, drizzled with an apple cider reduction.

My sister-in-law showed up to Thanksgiving with a Dutch oven full of root vegetables and a car seat containing a dark-haired beauty I would like to adopt as my own. Since I can’t steal my niece for more than a few stolen moments here and there, I instead picked her brain about beets.

On a buffet lined with vegetable dishes, the beets – pink and purple and dotted wit...

Quinoa Salad with Roasted Beets, Fennel and Fried Goat Cheese

A recipe for a market-inspired salad with baby arugula, fresh herbs, fennel, quinoa, roasted golden beets all topped with oozing balls of fried goat cheese.
We approach the market tentatively in the fall. The number of vendors dwindles each week, and it’s difficult to know when to expect them to disappear completely until spring. The sun shining, the air far warmer than is usual or expected for November, we wandered through the aisles, and we were not disappointed.

I happily show up long bef...

Chewy Ginger Molasses Spice Cookies: Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free

This recipe for chewy ginger molasses spice cookies uses almond flour and coconut flour for a gluten-free version of the classic. It also incorporates coconut milk for a dairy-free option.
Our house is currently an intricate series of piles. There are piles of homework not yet recycled, waiting in limbo, homework to do, resting in between the recyclables. There are boxes that need to be opened and unpacked, the contents finding a home in our small space. There is laundry to be folded and lau...

Pear and Fig Tarts with Goat Cheese and Honey

A recipe for a pear and fig tarts with a creamy honey and goat cheese cheesecake bed, topped with the last of summer’s rosemary.

Each weekend we pull up and pile out, four kids, two adults. There’s a gentle roar that accompanies the crowded space, people’s voices as they wander through the aisles, a harmonica sounds from one corner, bagpipes on the next. In the center of the market an acapella group sings between the rows of stalls as shoppers sit and break from collecting their groceries.

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Building a Yogurt Bowl

How we build a yogurt bowl. Do you have a yogurt story? For me, mine started young, and now I’ve passed it to my children. As a siggi’s partner, I am happy to share #mydailysiggis. Opinions and words are mine and mine alone.

I’m six. My sister and I are in the kitchen in our nightshirts, bare feet sticky against the brown linoleum. We open the fridge, pulling it open slowly so condiments don’t clink against one another in the door. There on the top shelf, the containers of yogurt smile back...

Chinese Napa Cabbage Salad with Almonds

A recipe for Chinese-style Napa cabbage slaw with two types of cabbage, plenty of green onions, cucumbers, and sliced almonds. I won’t judge if you choose to add crushed instant ramen noodles, either.

We stood at the back door, watching the sky go from blue to grey. The trees bowed towards the grass, green leaves bending to meet green blades. My neighbor’s tree succeeded, the trunk splitting and cracking, breaking apart as the heavy branches toppled toward the earth.

Rain fell in sheets, pu...

Rhubarb Almond Danishes

A recipe for rhubarb almond danishes from a laminated dough with a frangipane and rhubarb swirl, glazed with rhubarb syrup.

June has arrived, and my children count the days to summer vacation. The lilacs have gone from fragrant violet blooms to dried blossoms seemingly overnight. The irises and poppies are now full and colorful, each vying for attention. My vegetable garden whispers of promise (even as I try to troubleshoot plant issues).

I spent my morning in the dirt, replanting failed see...

2-Ingredient Banana Pancakes: Cinnamon Variation

The recipe for those 2-ingredient banana and egg pancakes you’re seeing everywhere, but with a few cinnamon and vanilla additions to spice things up a bit. This post is in partnership with Fair Trade USA, the kind where I tell you about things I believe in, and they provide some amazing products for you to try. Scroll down for a giveaway with plenty of chocolate and other food for your face.

I’m standing at the kitchen window with its white paint flaking from the wooden sash, the corroded wire...