Roasted Bell Pepper and Cucumber Dill Salad Recipe

Sometimes the simplest things make the most delicious dish. My husband Lulu planted Persian cucumbers this year and lately he's been harvesting 2-3 cucumbers a day. I love the flavor of Persian cucumbers and have had a lot of fun coming up with simple recipes that showcase them.

Salads are a great way to enjoy cucumbers and this recipe is no exception. Since cucumbers have a high water content, I salted them to draw out moisture for a crisp result. I paired them with roasted red bell peppers and seasoned the salad with a simple lemon and extra-virgin olive oil vinaigrette. I also sprinkled a few toasted pine nuts for texture and added fresh dill because this herb marries superbly with the vegetable.

This salad will be a hit at any picnic, pool party or barbecue. It tastes like summer!

Mushroom Tofu Stir Fry Recipe

My husband Lulu's niece and nephew spent the afternoon with us. It was so nice having so many children in the house. Of course, our daughter Aria was the center of attention and she loved it! While they were playing with the baby, I prepared dinner. I cooked some brown rice (Lulu's request since the beginning of the new year) and made mushroom tofu stir fry.

The stir fry is composed of combined shiitake mushrooms, oyster mushrooms and enoki mushrooms, Japanese eggplant, sugar snap peas and tofu, of course!

Sweet Potato Risotto Recipe

With Valentine's Day coming up soon, I thought I'd share with you an easy gourmet potato dish. This recipe didn't make it to my "Haute Potato" cookbook, but it is one of my favorites, nonetheless.

Sweet potatoes are roasted then added to pre-cooked Arborio rice. The finishing touch fot his risotto is a dollop of truffle butter. I recently discovered Thierry Farges' Aux Délices des Bois brand of truffle butter at the Fancy Food Show, and it's amazingly flavorful. You should definitely give this a try! 

Sweet Potato and Brussels Sprout Soup Recipe

After my husband Lulu got sick (a nasty cold, then bronchitis), I got sick too. Now both of us are well again, but the rest of the family, not so much. They all spent the weekend in bed with watery eyes and a tissue box by their side. It was not a happy sight.

I find a nice hot bowl of soup to be one of the few comforts when I’m not feeling well, so I made a big pot with with Japanese white sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts and leftover chicken and flavored it with ginger, onions and turmeric. It got me thinking that this soup would be perfect as a starter on Thanksgiving, or the day after using Thanksgiving leftover yams, Brussels sprouts and turkey.  Enjoy! 

Homemade Vegetable Soup Recipe

My husband Lulu has been stuck in bed for the last 2 days because of a bad cough. I made a comforting vegetable soup to soothe his throat. The ingredients of the soup are pretty standard. I used leeks, carrots, turnips, oregano, green onions, green peas and potatoes. For added crunch, saltiness and as a reminder of the flavoring in the soup, I topped the soup with fried green peas.

When I became a mom, I told myself I wouldn't become the kind of annoying mother, oversharing baby photos. So with that in mind, here's a really cute picture of my daughter Aria in her first Halloween costume. Isn't she a cutie pie?