super natural cooking

For this week's baking experiment, I wanted to make something out of Heidi Swanson's new book, Super Natural Cooking. There were a few really great sounding recipes, but I wanted to use one that I had most of the ingredients for so I ended up settling on the Raspberry Curd Swirl Cake - only I had strawberries, not raspberries, so I gave that a try instead.

My final cake was actually delicious, unfortunately it didn't really turn out like it was supposed to - quite a few things went wrong, but ultimately they were happy accidents. The butter was supposed to be at room temperature, but it was really hot out that day and mine was at butter-soup temp and wouldn't cream correctly (I shouldn't have even bothered), I took it out of the oven too soon (it was getting late and I was impatient), and I didn't grease the pan properly (should've used a parchment paper sling, like my gut told me to). While it was baking, it looked wonderful, but while it was cooling it completely collapsed. I was pretty devastated, and contemplated rushing out and buying all the ingredients to start over again, but then I tasted it, and it was delicious. It was insanely moist (like bread pudding), the whole-wheat resulted in a delicious loaf, and the smell was amazing. I want to try it again, but I'm almost afraid that it will turn out correctly this time. If you want to check out the recipe and hope for your own happy accidents, read more

One of my favorite websites is 101 Cookbooks by Heidi Swanson. So, when I found out that Heidi's cookbook, Super Natural Cooking was finally published, I had to get my hands on a copy. I had no idea that it would become one of my most favorite cookbooks - I have even taken to reading it before bedtime - especially since it's one that's "good for me." And yet, I can't stop myself from gushing about this book, I've told so many people about it, and plan on getting a copy of it for many others. It is handsdown one of the most gorgeous cookbooks I've ever seen (and I've seen a lot of cookbooks). The beautiful photography and layout really draw you into the book, and the recipes look so delectable, if it wasn't for some of the odd ingredients, I might not have realized it was "healthy."

Designed for people who want to easily incorporate healthier, natural, whole-foods into their cooking style, Super Natural Cooking is surprisingly modern and fresh. It manages to do it without coming across as stuffy, preachy or annoyingly hippy. There are general guidelines on how to begin thinking in these terms, tips on how to stock a whole-food pantry and great definitions too. Seriously, this book is fantastic (see, gushing about it again), the recipes are great, simple and there are even substitutions for some of the harder to find ingredients. If you've always thought that healthy food meant disgusting food, this book will make you think again.

Jimmy's one of those people who hate "healthy food", so it was difficult convincing him to try something from a book called Super Natural Cooking, but once I showed him the recipe for Muhammara-Slathered Kabobs (and promised that we could use chicken instead of tofu) he was sold on the idea. The muhammara had a nice rich flavor that really brought a nice complexity to the kabobs - I've been enjoying the leftovers on chips too. I tried to find a salad to pair with it, but in the end I really wanted to try the Clemenquat Salad and so opted to make it as a starter. The celery brought a fantastic crunch to the salad and the tang from the citrus really paired well with the parmesan - I believe I just found my new spring staple.

To check out the recipes for Muhammara-Slathered Kabobs and Clemenquat Salad, read more