Tag: recipes

Love Your Leftovers

Holiday meals are all about abundance, which means one thing: plenty of leftovers. If you ask me, that’s even better than the feast itself. The hard work is already done, and what’s left is a treasure trove of deeper, richer flavors that have had time to meld and develop. With just a bit of creativity, you can transform those original dishes into entirely new taste sensations.

Humble stuffing turns into grab-and-go savory breakfast muffins, filled with gooey vegan cheese. Spice up the standard green bean casserole into a quick curry, perfect for a weeknight dinner. Holiday roasts are easily slapped into sandwiches, but why not wrap them up into light, fresh spring rolls instead, in bold contrast to a heavier meal?

There’s no need to tempt flavor fatigue by eating the same meal for days on end; you’ll love your leftovers with a few simple tweaks.

I’m sharing all of these recipes, from the original dishes to their secondary transformations, in the latest Issue of Vegan Journal. You can view the entire issue online for free, but please consider subscribing to have it delivered straight to your door!

Hannah (BitterSweet)10 Comments

Grilling and Chilling

Grilling is the epitome of summer cooking: fiery, free-spirited, and fun for all. There’s something irresistible about vegetables, fruits, and proteins when kissed by the heat of an open flame. The sizzle, the char, and that smoky aroma forge new textures and flavors, and you can do it all while basking in the warmth of the season.

Whether you’re throwing a backyard cookout with the whole community or simply craving a fresh, seasonal meal in the great outdoors, these recipes will prove that the grill is the perfect partner for all kinds of plant-based creations.

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Hannah (BitterSweet)12 Comments

Lemon Law

How could something so ambrosial as a lemon get such a bad rap? “When life gives you lemons,” it’s implied that you have a whole lot of something unwanted. If you get a car that’s a lemon, you’ve just purchased a shiny new piece of junk. Tangy, sour, sharp, and bright, perhaps these early phrases come from eaters unprepared for such a blast of bold flavor. Lemons are the key to balancing out dishes both sweet and savory, adding contrast and depth with a floral softness that straight vinegar can’t match. If I could only have one citrus for the rest of my life, I would choose lemons, hands down.

Lemons have a way of making everything they touch simply taste better. They can play the sidekick or the hero with equal grace, playing well with just about any ingredient it meets. Though typically harvested during the cooler months, it’s a perennial staple, effortlessly bridging all seasons.

Lemons have a quiet power; think of how a splash of juice can wake up a dull sauce, how a pinch of zest can invigorate a salad, or how a sweet lemon syrup can turn a humble cake into something gourmet. It’s these little touches that remind us just how much these sunny citrus fruits can do.

With that in mind, I’ve pulled together a roundup of my lemon recipes, celebrating its full range, from zesty mains to crave-worthy desserts, and a few unexpected delights in between. Whether you’re a citrus enthusiast or just looking for something new to try, these ideas are sure to brighten your table.

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Hannah (BitterSweet)4 Comments

Level Nineteen, Unlocked

Time really does accelerate as we get older. At least, we experience it differently, as days blur into the next, one after another in a largely unremarkable stretch, until we find ourselves at another milestone, seemingly out of the blue. So here we are, entering the 19th year of BitterSweet, in some unfathomable twist of fate. It was never meant to endure through such trials and tribulations, becoming such a pivotal part of my career and the subsequent life built around it, but it’s truly taken on a life of its own. Now verging on adulthood in its final teenage year, I think it’s here to stay, for as long as I do.

For this anniversary, which seems like a forgettable one, just on the precipice of the big two-oh, I thought I would share recipes to follow suit. Instead of compiling the most popular options, I’d like to shine a light on 19 forgotten recipes. These are pieces that I personally loved, going through great lengths to create, capture, and preserve in digital form, but for whatever reason, never hit it big and became lost in time. It’s to be expected when you have 200 recipes housed on wholly separate pages of this antiquated, unintegrated online platform.

I’m honestly thrilled whenever someone pulls out a lost gem and leaves a comment so please, dig deep; laugh at my old, terrible photos; taunt me for my overwritten intros; and of course, tell me what you love and hate about the recipes! Even for my beloved regulars that dutifully carry this burden, I’d implore you to take a look back. Given that even I forget about some of my work, I bet there are some hidden treasures you’ve overlooked, too.

Cheers to another year… Long live BitterSweet!

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Hannah (BitterSweet)15 Comments

Oat Yeah

Once an undistinguished pantry staple, oats have seen one of the greatest glow-ups of our time. As we navigate an era increasingly focused on sustainable, whole foods, oats are not just for breakfast anymore—they’ve become a versatile building block for culinary creativity, essential throughout all meals.

Historically, oats have been a mainstay in the diets of various cultures for centuries. However, originally cultivated in the cooler climates of Europe, they were often deemed fit only for livestock. It wasn’t until the 18th century that oats began to find their place in human cuisine, with recipes ranging from hearty porridge to oatcakes. Fast forward to today, and these grains are celebrated not only for their rich, nutty flavor, but also for their nutritional prowess. In a forbidding landscape of food allergies and dietary restrictions, oats offer a safe haven for all to partake.

In addition to their health benefits, oats have sparked a wave of food innovations. There’s nothing they can’t do, from creamy risottos to decadent frozen desserts, showcasing their adaptability at every turn. Beyond the kitchen, the rise of oat milk has revolutionized the beverage industry, providing a creamy, dairy-free alternative that’s both eco-friendly and delicious. The fact that it’s now the default milk of choice in many coffee shops, even offered before dairy milk, speaks volumes.

There’s no such thing as having too many oats. Should you find yourself with a sizable stockpile, I have just the recipe (or 25) for you.

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Upsetting The Balance

One of my favorite cookbooks is super upsetting. Prospective readers are warned of that fact right up front. A Super Upsetting Cookbook About Sandwiches by Chef Tyler Kord makes good on that threat right away, combining sweet and savory with such reckless creativity that it’s a marvel it all fits between two slices of bread. Though the book is hardly new, having been on shelves since its initial release in 2016, I still find myself thinking about it regularly, randomly, to this day. It’s the kind of cookbook that you actually want to read, cover to cover, before turning out the lights for bed, rather than doom scrolling through the darkness. It’s captivating, curious, confounding, infuriating, and shocking in all the right proportions. Oh yes, and from what I’ve tested and tasted, quite delicious.

I don’t subscribe to the idea of guilty pleasures, because all forms of joy should be embraced, but this is the closest I might come to that definition. I’ve kept this fixation to myself for years, despite it bubbling back up to the surface, demanding to be shared. The fact of the matter is, the recipes are almost besides the point. The stories are captivating, written in biting, self-aware, sarcastic and yet smart prose, like a stream of consciousness spontaneously composed at 2am after some regrettable decisions on the town. There is no fourth wall—there never has been—as you’re invited into the conversations between Mr. Kord and his editor, as if you’re there reviewing the raw manuscript with them.


Cookbook Photos by Noah Fecks

Sadly, No. 7 Sub, the sandwich shops in Midtown Manhattan and Brooklyn where it all started, is no more. Its memory lives on in these pages, left to home cooks to recreate, or further bend to their whims. Most famous perhaps is the Broccoli Classic, noteworthy for its inclusion of pickled lychees and crispy fried shallots. The Zucchini Parm is a bit more tame, making the obvious vegetable swap, but also adding BBQ potato chips, “just because I wanted them,” the author explains. Mr. Kord does marvelous things with meatless protein as well, as evidenced by the General Tso’s Tofu Sub, exemplifying fusion cuisine done right. Though not a vegan book or former restaurant by any means, it’s not hard to translate with the convenience of modern substitutions these days.

From my personal experience, The #2 Best New Sandwich In America In 2012 According To The Huffington Post, AKA Terrible and Unhealthy Cauliflower Sandwiches, are a brilliant combination, showcasing Mr. Kord’s understanding of flavor and textural contrasts, pushing the boundaries of classically accepted pairings into a new, wholly successful culinary realm. Roasted cauliflower is the centerpiece, supported by a raisin and scallion relish, smoked French dressing, and crushed potato chips. Because I’m a similar kind of crazy, I tweaked my assembly to use less oil in the dressing, turning it into more of a spread, and swapping the golden raisins for lightly sweetened cranberries. Sorry, not sorry for using store-bought chips; the merits of this combination still stand up to scrutiny.

If you want to be mildly disturbed by some authentically off-kilter, unconventionally intelligent ideas in food, you’ve come to the right place. I have yet to find a contemporary cookbook with nearly such reckless creativity, fearlessly self-aware of how marvelously upsetting it could be.

Hannah (BitterSweet)2 Comments