3 cups cooked couscous
1/2 a basket of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 medium cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup cooked chickpeas
1 lemon, cut in half
1 lime, cut in half
about 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
fine grain sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup basil or cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Cook couscous according to package directions. Combine the couscous, tomatoes, cucumber, and chickpeas in a large bowl. Squeeze the lemon and lime juice directly into the bowl, add the olive oil, some salt, and some pepper. Toss well, taste, and adjust with more of the above if necessary. Add the basil and feta.  Toss gently until it is evenly combined.

Serves 4-6

2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 lb. thin green beans, cut in half
2 dried red chiles, roughly chopped
2 fresh green chiles, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons honey
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

Heat the oil in a preheated wok or large skillet.  Add the green beans and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.  Add the chiles and garlic and stir fry for another 30-60 seconds.

In a bowl, mix together the soy sauce, honey and sesame oil.  Stir the mixture into the wok and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Serve immediately.

Serves 4

2 ripe avocados
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
3 cups vegetable stock
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
salt & black pepper, to taste

Cut the avocados in half and remove the pit.  Scoop out the flesh and place into a blender.  Add in the onion, garlic, cilantro, mint, lime juice and 1 1/2 cups of the stock.  Process until smooth.

Add the rice vinegar, soy sauce and the remaining stock.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.  Process again to mix.

Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

 2 pints Brussels sprouts, cleaned and cut in quarters
1 gallon salted water boiling
1 gallon salted ice water
½ cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup graded parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Salt & black pepper to taste
Chopped parsley to taste

Place cleaned sprouts in boiling water for about 5 minutes or until tender, pull out and put directly in ice water, strain and set aside.

Pre heat medium sized sauté pan, add a drizzle of olive oil, add garlic and cook 15 seconds then add your sprouts and cook 3 minutes, then add heavy cream, butter and half of the cheese, and cook until thickens about 3minutes, season with salt and pepper.

Place in serving bowl and sprinkle with remaining cheese and Chopped parsley and serve.

Serves 4

2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoon Sriracha sauce
1 pound green beans, trimmed
10 oz white mushrooms, sliced
1 red bell pepper, chopped roughly
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons thinly sliced garlic

In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, and Sriracha sauce. Set aside.

Place 1/4 cup water in a large skillet and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans, cover the pan, and cook until the beans are crisp tender, 3 to 4 minutes. During the last minute of cooking, add in the red pepper. Uncover, and drain any water that remains in the pan.

Add the oil, mushrooms and garlic to the beans in the skillet and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the beans are lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Don’t let the garlic burn. Add the soy mixture to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes.

Serve over rice.

Know someone who doesn’t like carrots? Easy fix…just add bacon!

4 carrots
1 slice bacon, chopped
black pepper, to taste

Peel and slice the carrots. In a large saute pan over medium heat, add the bacon and saute for about 1 minute. Add the carrots and continue to saute for about 5 minutes or until tender. Season with black pepper, to taste.

Serves 4

2-3 red potatoes, cut in half, then quartered
1 zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, then sliced into 1/4 inch pieces.
1 head broccoli, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 onion, chopped
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
handful, chopped parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange all the vegetables in a large baking dish or sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil, season, to taste. Toss well to coat. Place on middle rack of oven. Roast for 15 minutes, then stir. Roast another 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Serves 4-6

My girlfriend and I drove out to some of the great farm stands on eastern Long Island last weekend and came back with a great selection of fresh local grown produce. I prepared this simple corn-cucumber salad that had such a nice flavor.

2 medium cucumbers
2 cups fresh corn, cooked and cooled
1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon dill weed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

Peel the cucumber and slice it in half lengthwise, then slice thinly. Place in a bowl along with the remaining ingredients. Toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4-8 hours before serving to allow the flavors to combine.

Serves 6-8

Check out this video that demonstrates how to julienne zucchini.

1 medium zucchini, julienne cut
1 medium carrot, peeled & julienne cut
1 clove garlic
salt, to taste
fresh cracked black pepper, to taste
1/2 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 tablespoon olive oil

Heat the olive oil in a saute pan. Add the garlic and saute for about 10 seconds. Next, add in the carrots and saute for about a minute before adding in the zucchini. Season with salt and black pepper. Saute until the vegetables are tender-crisp. Add the chopped parsley and toss to combine.

Serves 2-4

1 bunch fresh asparagus, trimmed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon bread crumbs
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1/2 cup feta cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large baking dish, add the asparagus, olive oil, bread crumbs, garlic, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the asparagus is slightly tender. Add the cherry tomatoes and return to the oven for another 5 minutes. Add the feta cheese and toss to combine.
Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6