Food, Photography and Bons Mots

Author: Blue Cayenne

Garden Glories: Wax Beans With a Middle Eastern Vibe
September 28, 2025

Garden Glories: Wax Beans With a Middle Eastern Vibe

“The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but the soul.” —Alfred Austin This recipe is from Sami Tamimi’s new cookbook, Boustany. Boustany is an ode to…

Vegetables, Vegetarian
Oldies But Goodies: RIP Marian Burros and Long Live Her Plum Torte
September 22, 2025

Oldies But Goodies: RIP Marian Burros and Long Live Her Plum Torte

Marian Burros has died. She developed the famous Plum Torte recipe that ran for years in The New York Times Cooking Section. It is a wonderful recipe. It would be perfect to make right now as this year’s plum season winds down. Here is Burros’…

Cakes, Desserts, Fruit, Fruits, Uncategorized, Vegetarian
Loaded Sweet Potatoes With Black Eyed Peas
September 20, 2025

Loaded Sweet Potatoes With Black Eyed Peas

Sweet potatoes! They’re not just for thanksgiving. 

Sweet potatoes could/should be a healthy part of your diet any time of the year. They are nutrient dense, bringing vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese and other healthy vitamins and minerals to your plate but only about 180 calories (in a cup of sweet potatoes) to your waistline. That is, as they say, a win/win.  Scientists believe they help support our immune system and healthy vision, too.

The sweet potatoes is a South American native plant. Columbus wrote about them in his journals and carried the plant back to Spain in the 1500s. They became a part of the North Amerian colonists’ diet in the 1600s. 

This recipe is from Sami Tamimi’s wonderful new cookbook, Boustany: A Celebration Of Vegetables From My Palestine. Tamimi, by the way, co-authored two cookbooks with Yotam Ottolenghi (Jerusalem and Ottolenghi: The Cookbook) and a previous solo cookbook, Falastin. His cookbooks are all available through your local bookstore or on Amazon here.

Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen. This would be an interesting dish to offer on your Thanksgiving table. Pretty, too.

 

 

Loaded Sweet Potatoes With Black-Eyed Peas

September 20, 2025
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Ingredients
  • 2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes
  • 2 garlic cloves (crushed)
  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 1/4 t. ground cumin
  • 1/8 t. ground cinnamon
  • 14 ounce can black-eyed peas (drained and rinsed)
  • 7 T. water
  • Salt and black pepper
  • For the Toppings:
  • 3 1/2 ounces cherry tomatoes
  • 1 1/2 T. olive oil
  • 2 T. parsley (chopped)
  • 2 T. fresh mint leaves (sliced)
  • 1 T. lemon juice
  • Flaked sea salt
  • Parsley, Crumbled feta and Mint for garnish
  • Tahini Sauce
  • 1/2 C. tahini
  • 1/2 C. cold water
  • 3 T. lemon juice
  • 1 small garlic clove (crushed)
  • Salt
  • Green Lemon Sauce
  • 1/2 C. fresh parsley (chopped fine)
  • 1 green chile (chopped fine)
  • 5 T. lemon juice
  • 2 T. white wine vinegar
  • 2 garlic cloves (crushed)
  • Salt
Directions
  • Step 1 To prepare the Sweet Potatoes: Clean sweet potatoes and cut them in half. Arrange them on a parchment-lined tray (cut side down) and cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes in a 425 degree F. oven. Uncover, and bake or 30 to 40 minutes more. The sweet potatoes should be soft and they will have a pretty caramelization on the cut side. When the sweet potatoes are done, turn them flesh side up and sprinkle with some flaked sea salt like Maldon. Set aside.
  • Step 2 Heat oil in a saucepan and saute the garlic for about 2 minutes until it is soft but not browned. Add cumin and cinnamon and continue to cook for another minute. Add the black-eyed peas, water, 1/4 t. salt and a bit of ground black pepper to the saucepan and cook this mixture for approximately 20 more minutes. You want the liquid to be reduced. Mash a few of the peas at this point in the pan. Set aside.
  • Step 3 Prepare the Tahini Sauce and the Green Lemon Sauce. To prepare the Tahini Sauce, combine tahini, water, lemon juice, garlic and 1/4 t. salt in a small bowl. Using a wooden spoon, whisk the mixture until the sauce is thick and pourable. Adjust seasonings to your taste. To prepare the Green Lemon Sauce, combine the parsley, chile, lemon juice, vinegar, garlic and 1 t. salt in a small bowl. If you need to prepare this in advance, do not add the parsley until serving time. Set aside.
  • Step 4 Begin preparing the toppings.Chop tomatoes. In a small bowl, add the tomatoes, oil, chopped herbs, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Stir. Set aside.
  • Step 5 Arrange the sweet potatoes on a pretty platter. Spoon some of the black-eyed peas on top of the sweet potatoes. Spoon some of the tomatoes, green lemon sauce and the tahini sauce over the sweet potatoes. Sprinkle some freshly-torn mint and parsley leaves over the sweet potatoes. Finally, sprinkle with feta over the sweet potatoes, drizzle with some olive oil and sprinkle a few more flakes of sea salt over the sweet potatoes. 

 

 

Main Dishes, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Chilled Cucumber Soup With Toast “Soldiers”
September 17, 2025

Chilled Cucumber Soup With Toast “Soldiers”

How can it possibly be the end of summer?  Need one last hurrah for that season? This Chilled Cucumber Soup With Toast “Soldiers” might be just what you need.  Toast “Soldiers” are toast that has been sliced into wide strips. The British use this term…

Appetizer, Soups, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Who To Thank? Spaghetti With Small Tomatoes, Basil, Garlic
September 13, 2025

Who To Thank? Spaghetti With Small Tomatoes, Basil, Garlic

Who doesn’t need a fast spaghetti recipe that uses the ever-available cherry tomatoe? This is that recipe. It makes a pretty presentation, too.  Who to thank, though, for the yearlong availability of cherry tomatoes. It is a contentious question. First, thanks go to the Incas…

Noodles, Pasta, Tomatoes, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Lemon-Strawberry Cake
August 29, 2025

Lemon-Strawberry Cake

OK. It’s another cake.

It’s been THAT kind of month.

This is a recipe from The New York Times Sunday Magazine. You will find the original recipe here.

The original recipe gave permission to use blackberries, blueberries, raspberries or  chopped strawberries in this recipe. You have a lot of freedom here. I used strawberries and blueberries.

This would be a very nice cake to enjoy with an al fresco meal on Labor Day (or any day!).

Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen.

 

 

Lemon-Strawberry Cake

August 29, 2025
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Ingredients
  • For the Cake:
  • 2 C. all-purpose flour
  • 2 t. baking powder
  • 1/2 t. kosher salt
  • 3 T. finely-grated lemon zest
  • 1 C. granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs (room temperature)
  • 1 C. olive oil
  • 1/4 C. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 t. vanilla paste or 2 t. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 C. whole milk (room temperature)
  • 1 C. strawberries (quartered)
  • 1/2 C. blueberries
  • For the Glaze:
  • 1 C. powdered sugar
  • 2 T. fresh lemon juice
Directions
  • Step 1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Step 2 Grease a 10-inch cast iron skillet or a 10-inch cake pan with olive oil. Line the bottom of the oiled pan with parchment.
  • Step 3 Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Set aside.
  • Step 4 Put the lemon zest in a large bowl with the sugar. Rub them together until the sugar is fragrant. Stir in the eggs and olive oil. Then, stir in the lemon juice and the vanilla.
  • Step 5 Add the milk and the dry ingredients (flour, etc.) to the sugar mixture. (Add these ingredients in three additions by adding 1/3 of dry ingredients then 1/3 of the milk, etc.) Fold the berries into the batter.
  • Step 6 Spoon the batter into the prepared skillet or cake pan. Smooth the top. Sprinkle the top with 3 T. granulated sugar. Bake for about 35 minutes. You want your cake to have slightly-browned edges and to be firm when pressed on the top of the cake.
  • Step 7 Remove the baked cake from the oven. Let it cool completely on the counter. Then, drizzle with the glaze. Alternatively, you can just sprinkle the top of the cake with powdered sugar.

 

 

Cakes, Desserts, Vegetarian
Oldie But Goodie: Arabic Baked Beans
August 25, 2025

Oldie But Goodie: Arabic Baked Beans

Every month Blue Cayenne features recipes from our archive of more than four hundred recipes. These recipes are our “Oldies But Goodies.” Today’s Oldie But Goodie recipe is for Arabic Beans (Arabic Baked Beans). Want to dive deeper into our recipe archive? Just click one…

Uncategorized
Soft Chocolate and Fig Cake
August 21, 2025

Soft Chocolate and Fig Cake

My husband could talk incessantly about his love for home-grown figs. Seems there was a fig tree in the yard of the house he lived in in Berkeley while in college. So, for him, there were glorious memories of fresh figs galore—jams, pastries, au naturel.…

Cakes, Desserts, Vegetarian
Skewer Those Mushrooms: Crispy Oyster Mushroom Skewers With Crushed Chickpeas
August 15, 2025

Skewer Those Mushrooms: Crispy Oyster Mushroom Skewers With Crushed Chickpeas

Anyone out there love mushrooms?

I’ve recently rekindled my love affair with the Long Beach Sunday Farmers’ Market and there are two delightful mushroom vendors. I love their fresh mushrooms and enjoy the snappy conversation.

I’ve searched for recipes worthy of their beautiful mushrooms and am especially enjoying this one, Crispy Oyster Mushroom Skewers With Crushed Chickpeas. Does that title pique your interest? It is quite a departure from the regular preparation of these fungi. These would present beautifully on a buffet table!

Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen. This recipe is from Ixta Belfrage’s wonderful cookbook, Mezcla. You can buy the cookbook through your local bookstore or on Amazon here. 

Crispy Oyster Mushroom Skewers With Crushed Chickpeas

August 15, 2025
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Ingredients
  • For Mushrooms:
  • 14 oz. oyster mushrooms
  • Skewers
  • For Chile Oil:
  • 7 T. olive oil
  • 2 T. Harissa plus 2 T. olive oil
  • 3/4 t. Urfa Chile Flakes (or regular chile flakes)
  • 3/4 t. sugar
  • 1/4 t. fine salt
  • For Crushed Chickpeas:
  • 10 1/2 oz. drained canned chicipeas
  • 1 clove garlic (crushed)
  • 1/3 C. Greek yogurt plus 1 T. to finish the dish at the time of serving
  • 1 T. olive oil
  • Fine salt
  • For Salsa Verde:
  • 2 T. cilantro (chopped fine)
  • 1/4 C. chopped fresh chives
  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 2 T. lime juice
  • Flaky salt
Directions
  • Step 1 Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
  • Step 2 Prepare the chile oil by mixing all the ingredients in a large bowl. Add the mushrooms to the bowl of chile oil and (gently) stir them until they are well-covered in oil.
  • Step 3 Thread the mushrooms on the skewers. On a baking sheet lined with parchment, arrange the skewers with some space between them on the baking sheet and roast for about 18-20 minutes. Halfway through roasting, baste the mushrooms with chile oil. (You want some crispy edges on your finished mushrooms!)
  • Step 4 While the mushrooms are roasting, add all the chickpea ingredients to the bowl of your food processor and process briefly, adding salt to taste.
  • Step 5 Prepare the salsa verde by adding all the ingredients together with a generous pinch of flaky salt.
  • Step 6 To serve, spread the chickpea puree neatly on a serving platter. Using a spoon, swirl 1 T. of yogurt into the chickpea puree.Arrange the roasted mushroom skewers on top of the chickpea puree. Drizzle any remaining chile oil onto the skewers and puree. Spoon salsa verde on the platter. Enjoy.
Main Dishes, Mushrooms, Vegetables, Vegetarian
What to do with those strawberries at the back of your refrigerator? Roast them!
August 11, 2025

What to do with those strawberries at the back of your refrigerator? Roast them!

I lost my  admittedly limited self-control at the local farmers’ market the other day and bought a flat of strawberries. Whoa! That’s a lot of strawberries for one cook and a sweet pup who enjoys a fresh strawberry treat now and then.  What to make?…

Chocolate, Desserts, Strawberries, Vegetarian

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