Gazpacho of tomatoes and watermelon

As a good Bulgarian I eat tomatoes all summer long, and my husband makes fun of me for never getting tired of the Bulgarian tomato salad (with a twist).  This recipe mixes two of the favorite things that Bulgarians combines with feta cheese – tomatoes and watermelon.

Vernal family farms fava beans

My colleague Mike Vernal recently invited us to his house and we were sent off with a bag of fresh fava beans. Nothing says spring better than fresh fava beans and English peas. I have quite a few English peas recipes (Risotto with English Peas, Linguine with English peas, preserved lemons, and pancetta, Chilled English…

Romano bean and potato curry

This dish can pass for Indian cuisine although the inspiration behind it purely Bulgarian: I just substituted the sweet paprika in the original Bulgarian recipes for curry. This is the kind of vegetarian stew that I grew up on.  Beans, lentils, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, okra, Romano beans, were cooked in endless combinations and variations, commonly known as gyuvech (гювеч). 

Quince Jam

Quince fruit is inedible raw but it makes a great preserve, and jam, and of course, membrillo. My grandmother used to make quince jam. You probably assumed she was a great cook who inspired my cooking passion. In a way she did… because she hated cooking and was an atrocious cook, so someone in the…

Curried cauliflower

Cauliflower is one of the most under-appreciated vegetables.  It is great sautéed or roasted, and is a great vehicle for pungent spices and strong flavors – like curry. 

Caramelized fennel and grapefruit salad

This dish is a faster and easier variation of the braised endive and citrus salad. This salad still has the great color and freshness of the citrus, but the fennel has plenty of its own aroma, so doesn’t need the addition of spices.