Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 pounds of russet or Idaho potatoes
• Olive oil 
• Flaked sea salt to taste
• Ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 F and start scrubbing your potatoes very well with a potato scrubber or by hand. 
2. Using a fork or anything with many spikes, prick holes all over the potato so the steam can escape as you cook it. 
3. Then, dry them off slightly if necessary, and rub olive oil over the potatoes so the skin glistens. 
4. Generously season with salt and pepper to your taste, and then put them right on the oven rack without wrapping them in tin foil. You can put a sheet pan or a sheet of tin foil on the rack below to catch drippings if you’re worried. 
5. Bake for 60-75 minutes or longer until the skin is super crispy and the inside looks really creamy. 
6. Allow it to cool slightly and enjoy! 

The post You’ve Never Had a Baked Potato Taste Like This Before appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients

• 3 beets of any color
• 1 package of arugula
• 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup of olive oil plus 2 tablespoons
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• Goat cheese or feta cheese
• Walnuts or any other type of nut

Instructions

1. Begin by rinsing and peeling the beets. If you can, you probably want to use gloves while handling the beets because they can definitely stain your hands.
2. Then, cut the beets up into quarters, and depending on how big they are, into quarters again. If they’re relatively small, leave them as they are.
3. Spread the beets on a baking sheet and drizzle over about 2 tablespoons of
   olive oil as well as salt and black pepper.
4. Roast for 20 minutes at 425 F or until they’re fork-tender.
5. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the arugula, cheese, and nuts. Toss in the beets when they’re done
6. Add the balsamic, olive oil, dijon, and a pinch of salt and pepper to a bowl and mix.
7. Pour over the salad, toss, and enjoy!

The post You Can’t Get Better Than This Arugula Beet Salad appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of canola oil
• 1/4 head of cabbage
• 2 tablespoons of grated garlic
• 2 tablespoons of sweet soy sauce, or 1 1/2 teaspoons of soy sauce with the same amount of brown sugar or molasses
• 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons of oyster sauce
• 1 cup of water
• 12 oz of chow mein noodles or yakisoba noodles if you can’t find any

Instructions:

1. Boil water and cook the chow mein noodles for however long the package says to, except take off one minute because you don’t want them to be too soft when you pan fry them.
2. Chop up the cabbage while the noodles cook.
3. Over very high heat, heat up a large pan or wok for a few minutes before adding in the canola oil.
4. The pan should be hot enough that frying the cabbage for just 2-3 minutes softens it. Then, and add the garlic for just 20-30 seconds.
5. Put in both of the soy sauces, the oyster sauce, and the water and cook for another minute.
6. Lastly, drain and rinse the noodles, and add them to the wok. Cook them for 1-2 minutes so they crisp up and soak up that sauce, and then plate it up!

The post This Veggie Chow Mein Will Leave You Full and Happy appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients:

• Five tablespoons of ground allspice
• 3 1/2 tablespoons of black pepper
• 3 1/2 tablespoons of ground cinnamon 
• Five tablespoons of ground cloves 
• Four tablespoons of ground nutmeg
• Four tablespoons of ground fenugreek 
• Four tablespoons of ground ginger

Instructions:

1. Pour all the spices into a medium-sized bowl. 
2. Using a small whisk or a fork, mix all the spices together well. Use a funnel to transfer the spices into an air-tight container. 
3. Store in a dark, dry place and it will save up to 6 months!
4. To use the spice mix, just take 1/2-1 teaspoon of it and use it as you like! You can use a bit more for dry rubs for meat, or take a small amount and use it to flavor a tomato sauce to go over rice, meat, vegetables, and beyond. 

The post Lebanese Seven Spice is Spectacularly Full of Flavor appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Cut it Up

Though it may sound too simple to believe, but you are much more likely to eat something that is already prepared for you. This is especially true even with things that can be eaten without being cut, like apples, pears, and oranges; try it out. That apple at the bottom of your bag will become so much more appealing once you have a cleaner, easier way to eat besides getting your hand sticky with all the juices. 

Blend It

One amazing way to get both fruits and vegetables into your diet more than you already do is by making them disappear into smoothies, soups, and sauces! When vegetables and fruits are combined and blended, they become something totally new and definitely more exciting. If there are certain fruits you like more than others, put them together to create a gorgeous masterpiece. And if you ever make a blended soup or sauce, make sure you’re throwing in extra leafy greens to get your calcium and iron intake up!

The post Be the Master of Produce with These Fruit and Veggie Tips! appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Buttermilk

Some recipes call for regular milk or water for cornbread, but to get truly divine cornbread, you need to ditch them both and only use buttermilk. Buttermilk provides the liquid needed for the cornbread, but it also brings a really rich flavor and fat content necessary for a moist cornbread.

Sour Cream

Even if your recipe doesn’t call for any sour cream, it’s a great addition to an existing recipe to amp up the creaminess by adding in some fat that won’t thin out the cornbread. Just add half a cup of sour cream to your wet ingredients and then stir into the dry and you’ll have delicious, rich cornbread.

Egg

Though eggs are crucial to any cornbread recipe if you want to get a really rich, creamy cornbread, add in another egg or just egg yolk to get your creamy factor up. This won’t change the bake much, perhaps by just 1-2 minutes, but it really does the trick in a pinch!

The post Say Goodbye to Dry Cornbread with These 3 Tips appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients 

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 2 tablespoons of  olive oil
• Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
• 6 sprigs of  thyme
• 4 slices of bacon
• 1/2 of a large onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup of white wine
• 6 cup of low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream

Instructions:

1. Chop up the heads of cauliflower into florets before putting them on two baking sheets. 
2. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil onto each tray, season them, and put 2 sprigs of thyme onto each sheet. Bake at 425 F for 20-25 minutes. 
3. In a Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium until crisp. Take out slices, chop, but save the fat.
4. Dice the onion and cook in bacon fat until translucent. Mince the garlic and cook with the onion for 30-60 seconds. Add in the wine and cook for 2 minutes. 
5. Pour the broth into the pot with the bay leaf, sprigs of thyme, and the roasted cauliflower.
6. Bring to a boil, then simmer for  20-30 minutes. 
7. Blend the soup, stir in the heavy cream, and serve with the bacon slices on top!

The post This Roasted Cauliflower Soup is Beyond Divine appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients 

• 2 skin-on fillets of trout 
• Kosher salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• All-purpose flour 
•  1 tablespoon of olive oil
•  3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
•  3-4 tablespoons of lemon juice
•  1/4 cup of finely chopped parsley
•  1 1/2  tablespoons of capers
•  1/4 cup of toasted sliced almonds

Instruction

1. Begin by seasoning the trout fillets with salt and pepper to your taste. Then, pour a thin layer of flour at the bottom of a shallow dish or bowl and lightly coat the fillets in flour, shaking off any excess. 
2. In a non-stick skillet, add in the olive oil and heat over medium until hot. Put the trout skin side down and cook for 2-3 minutes, pressing down on it so the skin has as much contact with the pan as possible. This will ensure a crispy skin. 
3. Flip it and cook for 1-2 minutes. 
4. Put the fillets to the side and wipe out any extra oil from the pan and melt the butter over medium for 2-3 minutes. 
5. Pour in lemon juice, add in parsley, capers, and almond, and turn off the heat. 
6. Mix everything, taste and season if necessary, then pour over the fish and enjoy!

The post You Won’t Believe How Easy This Trout Almondine Recipe Is! appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Adobo sauce is an ingredient that is originally from Mexico and is made up of ground ancho and guajillo chiles, along with some other spices. The consistency is similar to bbq sauce, so it’s nice and thick. Often you will find it in the same can as chipotle peppers because it keeps them hydrated and delicious. But, you can also just use the sauce in your cooking, and you really should. 

Because it has flavors like smokiness, aromaticity, spice, and more, adobo sauce is the perfect ingredient to give your bland food a lift. You can mix it into any kind of beans like pinto or black beans to make them much more flavorful without putting in any extra work. Or, you can mix it with mayo and lime juice to create a delicious chipotle dipping sauce. 

The best part of adobo sauce is that it generally doesn’t have a lot of salt, which is not the cause for most store-bought sauces. So buy a can or two, try it out, and see how much your food starts to change!

The post Why You Should Always Keep Adobo Sauce in Your Pantry appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons of vegan butter or olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic 
• 1/4 cup of diced onion
• 1 cup of mushrooms
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon of fresh or dried sage and thyme each 
• 1 1/2 tablespoon of flour
• 1/2 cup of broth 
• 3/4 – 1 cup of non-dairy milk 

Recipe

1. First, mince the garlic cloves and set them to the side. 
2. Chop up the mushrooms either into thin slices or into smaller bits if you want a smoother, more cohesive gravy. 
3. Heat up the olive oil or vegan butter over medium heat and sauté the onions until translucent. 
4. Add in the garlic for 30 seconds and season with salt and pepper. 
5. Add in the mushrooms and cook until they’re soft and then whisk in the flour. 
6. Cook for a few minutes so the raw flavor gets out, and then add in the broth and whisk. 
7. Slowly add in the non-dairy milk until it’s the consistency you want, then add in the herbs, cook a few minutes more, and enjoy! 

The post You Won’t Miss Meat At All in This Vegan Gravy appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 pounds of russet or Idaho potatoes
• Olive oil 
• Flaked sea salt to taste
• Ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 F and start scrubbing your potatoes very well with a potato scrubber or by hand. 
2. Using a fork or anything with many spikes, prick holes all over the potato so the steam can escape as you cook it. 
3. Then, dry them off slightly if necessary, and rub olive oil over the potatoes so the skin glistens. 
4. Generously season with salt and pepper to your taste, and then put them right on the oven rack without wrapping them in tin foil. You can put a sheet pan or a sheet of tin foil on the rack below to catch drippings if you’re worried. 
5. Bake for 60-75 minutes or longer until the skin is super crispy and the inside looks really creamy. 
6. Allow it to cool slightly and enjoy! 

The post You’ve Never Had a Baked Potato Taste Like This Before appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients

• 3 beets of any color
• 1 package of arugula
• 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup of olive oil plus 2 tablespoons
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• Goat cheese or feta cheese
• Walnuts or any other type of nut

Instructions

1. Begin by rinsing and peeling the beets. If you can, you probably want to use gloves while handling the beets because they can definitely stain your hands.
2. Then, cut the beets up into quarters, and depending on how big they are, into quarters again. If they’re relatively small, leave them as they are.
3. Spread the beets on a baking sheet and drizzle over about 2 tablespoons of
   olive oil as well as salt and black pepper.
4. Roast for 20 minutes at 425 F or until they’re fork-tender.
5. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the arugula, cheese, and nuts. Toss in the beets when they’re done
6. Add the balsamic, olive oil, dijon, and a pinch of salt and pepper to a bowl and mix.
7. Pour over the salad, toss, and enjoy!

The post You Can’t Get Better Than This Arugula Beet Salad appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of canola oil
• 1/4 head of cabbage
• 2 tablespoons of grated garlic
• 2 tablespoons of sweet soy sauce, or 1 1/2 teaspoons of soy sauce with the same amount of brown sugar or molasses
• 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons of oyster sauce
• 1 cup of water
• 12 oz of chow mein noodles or yakisoba noodles if you can’t find any

Instructions:

1. Boil water and cook the chow mein noodles for however long the package says to, except take off one minute because you don’t want them to be too soft when you pan fry them.
2. Chop up the cabbage while the noodles cook.
3. Over very high heat, heat up a large pan or wok for a few minutes before adding in the canola oil.
4. The pan should be hot enough that frying the cabbage for just 2-3 minutes softens it. Then, and add the garlic for just 20-30 seconds.
5. Put in both of the soy sauces, the oyster sauce, and the water and cook for another minute.
6. Lastly, drain and rinse the noodles, and add them to the wok. Cook them for 1-2 minutes so they crisp up and soak up that sauce, and then plate it up!

The post This Veggie Chow Mein Will Leave You Full and Happy appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients:

• Five tablespoons of ground allspice
• 3 1/2 tablespoons of black pepper
• 3 1/2 tablespoons of ground cinnamon 
• Five tablespoons of ground cloves 
• Four tablespoons of ground nutmeg
• Four tablespoons of ground fenugreek 
• Four tablespoons of ground ginger

Instructions:

1. Pour all the spices into a medium-sized bowl. 
2. Using a small whisk or a fork, mix all the spices together well. Use a funnel to transfer the spices into an air-tight container. 
3. Store in a dark, dry place and it will save up to 6 months!
4. To use the spice mix, just take 1/2-1 teaspoon of it and use it as you like! You can use a bit more for dry rubs for meat, or take a small amount and use it to flavor a tomato sauce to go over rice, meat, vegetables, and beyond. 

The post Lebanese Seven Spice is Spectacularly Full of Flavor appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Cut it Up

Though it may sound too simple to believe, but you are much more likely to eat something that is already prepared for you. This is especially true even with things that can be eaten without being cut, like apples, pears, and oranges; try it out. That apple at the bottom of your bag will become so much more appealing once you have a cleaner, easier way to eat besides getting your hand sticky with all the juices. 

Blend It

One amazing way to get both fruits and vegetables into your diet more than you already do is by making them disappear into smoothies, soups, and sauces! When vegetables and fruits are combined and blended, they become something totally new and definitely more exciting. If there are certain fruits you like more than others, put them together to create a gorgeous masterpiece. And if you ever make a blended soup or sauce, make sure you’re throwing in extra leafy greens to get your calcium and iron intake up!

The post Be the Master of Produce with These Fruit and Veggie Tips! appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Buttermilk

Some recipes call for regular milk or water for cornbread, but to get truly divine cornbread, you need to ditch them both and only use buttermilk. Buttermilk provides the liquid needed for the cornbread, but it also brings a really rich flavor and fat content necessary for a moist cornbread.

Sour Cream

Even if your recipe doesn’t call for any sour cream, it’s a great addition to an existing recipe to amp up the creaminess by adding in some fat that won’t thin out the cornbread. Just add half a cup of sour cream to your wet ingredients and then stir into the dry and you’ll have delicious, rich cornbread.

Egg

Though eggs are crucial to any cornbread recipe if you want to get a really rich, creamy cornbread, add in another egg or just egg yolk to get your creamy factor up. This won’t change the bake much, perhaps by just 1-2 minutes, but it really does the trick in a pinch!

The post Say Goodbye to Dry Cornbread with These 3 Tips appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients 

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 2 tablespoons of  olive oil
• Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
• 6 sprigs of  thyme
• 4 slices of bacon
• 1/2 of a large onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup of white wine
• 6 cup of low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream

Instructions:

1. Chop up the heads of cauliflower into florets before putting them on two baking sheets. 
2. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil onto each tray, season them, and put 2 sprigs of thyme onto each sheet. Bake at 425 F for 20-25 minutes. 
3. In a Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium until crisp. Take out slices, chop, but save the fat.
4. Dice the onion and cook in bacon fat until translucent. Mince the garlic and cook with the onion for 30-60 seconds. Add in the wine and cook for 2 minutes. 
5. Pour the broth into the pot with the bay leaf, sprigs of thyme, and the roasted cauliflower.
6. Bring to a boil, then simmer for  20-30 minutes. 
7. Blend the soup, stir in the heavy cream, and serve with the bacon slices on top!

The post This Roasted Cauliflower Soup is Beyond Divine appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients 

• 2 skin-on fillets of trout 
• Kosher salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• All-purpose flour 
•  1 tablespoon of olive oil
•  3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
•  3-4 tablespoons of lemon juice
•  1/4 cup of finely chopped parsley
•  1 1/2  tablespoons of capers
•  1/4 cup of toasted sliced almonds

Instruction

1. Begin by seasoning the trout fillets with salt and pepper to your taste. Then, pour a thin layer of flour at the bottom of a shallow dish or bowl and lightly coat the fillets in flour, shaking off any excess. 
2. In a non-stick skillet, add in the olive oil and heat over medium until hot. Put the trout skin side down and cook for 2-3 minutes, pressing down on it so the skin has as much contact with the pan as possible. This will ensure a crispy skin. 
3. Flip it and cook for 1-2 minutes. 
4. Put the fillets to the side and wipe out any extra oil from the pan and melt the butter over medium for 2-3 minutes. 
5. Pour in lemon juice, add in parsley, capers, and almond, and turn off the heat. 
6. Mix everything, taste and season if necessary, then pour over the fish and enjoy!

The post You Won’t Believe How Easy This Trout Almondine Recipe Is! appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Adobo sauce is an ingredient that is originally from Mexico and is made up of ground ancho and guajillo chiles, along with some other spices. The consistency is similar to bbq sauce, so it’s nice and thick. Often you will find it in the same can as chipotle peppers because it keeps them hydrated and delicious. But, you can also just use the sauce in your cooking, and you really should. 

Because it has flavors like smokiness, aromaticity, spice, and more, adobo sauce is the perfect ingredient to give your bland food a lift. You can mix it into any kind of beans like pinto or black beans to make them much more flavorful without putting in any extra work. Or, you can mix it with mayo and lime juice to create a delicious chipotle dipping sauce. 

The best part of adobo sauce is that it generally doesn’t have a lot of salt, which is not the cause for most store-bought sauces. So buy a can or two, try it out, and see how much your food starts to change!

The post Why You Should Always Keep Adobo Sauce in Your Pantry appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons of vegan butter or olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic 
• 1/4 cup of diced onion
• 1 cup of mushrooms
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon of fresh or dried sage and thyme each 
• 1 1/2 tablespoon of flour
• 1/2 cup of broth 
• 3/4 – 1 cup of non-dairy milk 

Recipe

1. First, mince the garlic cloves and set them to the side. 
2. Chop up the mushrooms either into thin slices or into smaller bits if you want a smoother, more cohesive gravy. 
3. Heat up the olive oil or vegan butter over medium heat and sauté the onions until translucent. 
4. Add in the garlic for 30 seconds and season with salt and pepper. 
5. Add in the mushrooms and cook until they’re soft and then whisk in the flour. 
6. Cook for a few minutes so the raw flavor gets out, and then add in the broth and whisk. 
7. Slowly add in the non-dairy milk until it’s the consistency you want, then add in the herbs, cook a few minutes more, and enjoy! 

The post You Won’t Miss Meat At All in This Vegan Gravy appeared first on thedancingcucumber.com.