Bok Choy and Shitake Mushrooms

I picked this Mark Bittman recipe because I love Bok Choy and I had some oyster sauce to use up, which Bittman uses as the main sauce for this stir fry. The dried shitakes from the Eden Center were fragrant and woodsy, and in general very good, but they couldn't make up for the lack of fresh, crispy shitakes (the store didn't have any). Perhaps I ruined it, but there are tastier ways to make bok choy.

Cauliflower Flatbread

Yes, cauliflower bread. This is a very tasty "bread" where the flour is more of a binder for the cauliflower than the other way around. It's another of Mark Bittman's creations. It's acually vegan because it uses coconut milk instead of regular - and it cooks in a cast iron pan in the oven. Check out the recipe. I could eat this all day.

More Bittman Salads

I can't get enough of these 101 Simple Salads. This is number 14 on the left and 9 on the right. Simple. Grated carrots in a vinagrette with cumin. Mango and jicama with coconut milk and curry. Jicama is the easiest thing to slice up, good crunch with a touch of sweetness, and not that expensive.

California Roll Salad

This is another of Mark Bittman's 101 Simple Salads. Its got cucumber, avocado, and rice just like a California roll. We added some furikake to substitute for the nori, and did without the lump crabmeat because it's expensive (but would be really good.) The dressing is a bit of mirin, rice vinegar and soy sauce. If you like sushi, you will shovel this down!

Focaccia

One of Emily's staples is a focaccia variant of the NY Times No-Knead Bread recipe. Basically, it is a quick mix before you go to bed, and some time for a second rise and baking in the morning, which makes it perfect for weekends. Top it with whatever you want - in this case caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, goat cheese, and of course garlic and olive oil.

Simple Salads

101 Simple Salads for summertime is one of Mark Bittman's latest lists. I tried these two for the week. The twist on the tomatoes is that its a soy sauce-sesame oil dressing which is quite unexpected. The cabbage has an peanut-lime-cilantro dressing on it. Bittman doesn't do recipes, more like suggestions for combinations of ingredients. They are quick, tasty, and reading the whole list can be an overwhelming flood of ideas. Check him out on the NYTimes.