Of all the seasons, late Fall/Winter eating is by far my favorite. According to Ayurveda, our digestive fire (Agni) is strongest in the colder months, making heartier meals more appropriate for the season. I also love how the seasonal produce makes it easy to cook simple but satisfying meals. Crank up the oven, throw some root veggies in there and watch them turn into the most delicious, tender …

The past month has been a wonderful whirlwind in my home life. I got married at the end of October and left for Japan shortly after. We planned our honeymoon to be a mix of our interests: food, markets, tea culture and tea farming, traditional agricultural practices, and garden design. He’s a landscape architect, I’m a cook. We meet in the middle around the kitchen table and tea table to …

Over the past year, we’ve started clearing a little piece of land near my fiancé’s work to experiment with our first real garden. He’s become passionate about dry stone wall building, so naturally the first thing we did was clear all the rocks from the thick volcanic clay soils. He built the perimeters of the first stone wall, tilled the soil and then we built mounds in the first bed …

Pomegranate, Pear & Rose Porridge

3-4 cups water
1/2 cup steel cut oats
1 ripe pear, cubed
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cardamom 

Toppings:
2-3 tbsp pumpkin seeds
2-3 tbsp fresh pomegranate seeds
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp Maharishi Rose Petal Spread
1 tsp organic dried rose petals 

In a pressure cooker or instantpot, combine 3 cups of water, the oats, spices and pear. Cook for 18 minutes. If using the …

It’s that time again! Time to gather around the table, celebrate the fullness of life and share nourishing cozy food. Honoring the tradition, I’m sharing my annual Thanksgiving Guide here, along with a favorite new recipe for a pumpkin risotto with crispy sage. I first shared this in our Fall cooking class last month. Since then, I’ve made it a half a dozen times and each time I love it …

Happy Solstice & Happy Holidays! I’m writing you from a room filled with aromas of molasses, orange and almond paste. We’ve been baking all day, a variety of holiday cookies…and this orange black sesame cake! Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Vince Guaraldi Trio and the Vienna boys choir have been our soundtrack in the kitchen. Though it’s been a challenging year for all, these simple moments with loved ones remind me …

Thanksgiving snuck up on me this year. Between preparing for my big book launch (just four days away!!), and stocking up on food and supplies for another mandatory state-wide lockdown (sigh), I looked at the calendar today to realize this year’s feast and festivities were less than a week away! This year has been an emotional marathon of events, to say the least. And what normally feels like an …

Hello from my cozy cold weather kitchen! This is the first year I’ve had a real winter in a very long time, with snow and everything! I traveled to Whistler for New Years and went snowshoeing up to a glacial lake. Growing up in Alaska, I’d forgotten how much I missed seeing epic mountains and powder covered cedars and spruce trees. Then I flew east to the Berkshires for a different …

Today is my birthday and I’m officially into my 30’s. 31, to be exact. For years now, I’ve had this funny tradition of baking my own birthday cake, which some people laugh at but most end up loving when they get to eat the leftovers of my recipe testing efforts. This year, I made a carrot cake. This super-moist double-layer carrot cake is spiced with cardamom and covered in a homemade …