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Closeup on a bowl of tofu and chard, the bright red of the chard stems standing out against the rich gold-brown of the fried tofu squares and the dark green of the chard leaves.

Nutty, spicy golden tofu and swiss chard

February 16, 2020by Mike Bierschenk Leave a comment

A hearty, saucy mix of tofu and greens, with plenty of bright aromatics, all over nutty brown rice. This one is terrifically satisfying without feeling overly heavy, exactly the thing I needed on a cold winter’s day when I desperately wanted vegetables, but also wanted to be happily full.

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Main Dishes, Stuff on Rice, Veg*n or veg*n-possible
A slice of zucchini bread lies next to the rest of the loaf, all resting on a checkerboard wooden cutting block, which itself contrasts with the blonde wood counter and a bright green painted wall.

Super-rich zucchini bread

September 2, 2018by Mike Bierschenk 5 Comments

This is, by far, the densest zucchini bread I’ve ever made: it’s chock-a-block with fruit and nuts, almost like a fruitcake in texture. It’s also delicious, and I’m super happy to have stumbled into it.

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Breakfast, Desserts/Sweet Things
A slice of pepper-ginger pound cake sits on a small plate, topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a light yellow cascade of pawpaw puree. Two pawpaw seeds sit on the plate as garnish.

Pepper-ginger pound cake with a pawpaw puree

September 28, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 3 Comments

A great example of flavors combining in exciting, unforeseen ways: spicy cake, delectably sweet pawpaw, and simple vanilla ice cream come together in a harmonious dessert.

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Desserts/Sweet Things
A bite of pilaf on a fork in close-up, bits of ground beef, onion, parsley, and tomato scattered among the grains of rice, and a bright yellow chunk of squash dead center.

Lemon-parsley rice pilaf with beef and summer vegetables

September 15, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 4 Comments

Like the convenience foods of my childhood, but gussied up: light and herbal, but still being deeply satisfying, with a garden’s worth of colorful vegetables

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Grains, Main Dishes, Veg*n or veg*n-possible
Three salt-crusted new potatoes sit in a tiny dish in the foreground; behind them a good-sized bowl of peach-basil dipping sauce. In the background, a large two-handled pan full of more potatoes.

Salt-crusted potatoes with peach-basil dipping sauce

August 25, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 4 Comments

Cooking new potatoes directly in heavily salted water leaves them creamy on the inside and crispily salty on the outside. Combine that with a sauce that balances sharp garlic and vinegar against sweet peaches, leavened with aromatic herbs, and I’m in summer heaven.

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Appetizers/Snacks, Side Dishes, Veg*n or veg*n-possible
A fork lies amidst a tangle of spaghetti, tines completely hidden. Ribbons of kale, small nubbins of sausage, and shards of Parmesan cheese punctuate the plate.

Spaghetti with sausage and kale

August 4, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 2 Comments

Just a simple weeknight meal that makes the best of midsummer vegetation and pantry staples.

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Main Dishes, Veg*n or veg*n-possible
Sweet potato tacos with marinated peppers and cabbage, three of them, nestled together on a plate, garnished with white shredded cheese and bright orange hot sauce.

Sweet potato tacos with marinated peppers and cabbage

April 21, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 2 Comments

Not any one taco style, these are a mashup of some of my favorite things: warm corn tortillas, lightly marinated cabbage, sweet juicy peppers, warm velvety sweet potatoes.

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Main Dishes, Veg*n or veg*n-possible
Closeup on a plate of fried potatoes, pale yellow discs of potato studded with brick-red rounds of sausage and soft shreds of meltingly soft jalapeño and onion. In the foreground, blurry, a bite potato and sausage speared on a fork, touched with mayonnaise from a thick dollop in the corner of the frame.

Mr. W’s campout potatoes

February 24, 2017by Mike Bierschenk Leave a comment

My homage to the fabulous potatoes one of my scout leaders cooked on most campouts. We had to beg for leftovers back then, but now I can make these spicy, salty fried potatoes any time I want.

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Main Dishes, Side Dishes, Veg*n or veg*n-possible
Close-up on a bowl of quick and lazy pozole, deep brick-red broth studded with brown chorizo, bright red tomatoes, yellow-green chiles, and pale yellow hominy. A small pile of cheese sits near a dollop of sour cream near the upper edge of the bowl.

Quick and lazy posole

February 10, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 1 Comment

Pozole is one of the classics of Mexican cookery, a rich and hearty hominy stew. It’s also a time commitment, so this weeknight version uses fresh, spicy chorizo to shortcut both time and spicing.

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Main Dishes, Soups
Rows of pale pink pussyhat cookies (blood orange glazed sugar cookies) line up on a white platter, specks of red and orange zest adorning each one.

Blood orange glazed cookies for the Women’s March

January 25, 2017by Mike Bierschenk 3 Comments

Inspired both by a friend’s recipe and by the Women’s March on Washington, these vegan cookies are the real deal; rich and sweet and toothsome, with a tart, sweet cap of simple citrus glaze.

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Desserts/Sweet Things, Veg*n or veg*n-possible

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Shredded chickenThose peppers are just so redBroccoli MountainAlarmingly giant spoon handleLet’s just pretend that’s a snowscape, not a blown-out car windshield
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All text and photos © Mike Bierschenk, 2014-2016
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