Caramelized Onion Tart With Olives

Holy Cow! is four -- a grand old lady in Internet years-- and to celebrate I have for you a savory, elegant treat: this golden Caramelized Onion Tart.

But first I want to say a big thank you to all of you-- my wonderful, intelligent, passionate readers -- who have stuck with Holy Cow! through the good food times and also through the slumps, pet illnesses, and cook's block (there is such a thing, trust me.)

Maple And Wheat Germ Waffles

Around here, the very word "waffles" brings a sparkle to Desi's eyes. Rivaled only by the word "pancakes." Which explains why I have so many pancake and waffle recipes plastered around this blog.

This waffle recipe I have for you today is perfect for the morning after Thanksgiving. You are beginning to get hungry again (and never mind last night when you swore you'd never eat another bite as long as you lived). You want to eat something that makes you feel great. Something healthy. Something delicious.

And what's more healthy than wheat germ, flax meal and whole-wheat flour? What's more delicious than maple syrup?

Khasta Paratha/Parotta

Khasta Paratha, which translates to a flaky flatbread, is a unique treat that just begs to be torn apart with your fingers, dunked into a spicy curry, then popped into your mouth.

I've seen as many versions of this dish as there are cooks. Some recipes are rather straightforward and not unlike those for other flatbreads like rotis. The problem is, they end up looking and tasting no different than rotis. Others, modeled along the south Indian parotta, require tons of technique -- enough to make you throw up your hands and call in for chow mein.

Strawberry Pie. Red. Delicious.

Because everyone deserves pie for Thanksgiving, I have for you today this gorgeous Strawberry Pie.

In our house, the berry is the king. Desi loves blueberries, I love raspberries, and we both adore strawberries. We blitz them into smoothies, add them to our breakfast oatmeal, and brown-bag them to work for a great after-lunch treat.

But despite our deep love for berries-- and for fruit pies-- I had never before baked up a berry pie (unless you count this Peach and Berry Cobbler). This weekend, with Thanksgiving just days away, I decided to remedy that.

All-Whole-Wheat Sourdough Bread

My sourdough starter has been bubbling and maturing for a few weeks now, just begging me to bake some bread. And because it is so darn special and smells so damn good, I've been working hard to come up with ideas that'll do it justice and more.

I first made this all-whole-wheat sourdough bread recipe a couple of weeks back by riffing off my whole-wheat sandwich bread recipe, but after the bread had baked up I realized I had made a mistake: I didn't score the bread. While there is no need to score my regular whole-wheat sandwich bread, sourdough is different because the bacteria in the starter produce tons of gases and alcohol. When the bread bakes in the oven the gases need an escape hatch. Ideally that should be a cut or score you make on the top of the loaf.

Spicy Mushroom Chettinad

Chettinad, a region in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu, brims over with opulent wealth, beautiful temples, and fiery cuisine that can make your eyes, nose, and mouth water simultaneously. And if you think that sounds like most Indian food, you've got another think coming

Chettinad cuisine and its unique fieriness come from a liberal use of black pepper. While black pepper is part of nearly every garam masala or spicy curry ever cooked up in India, its heat and flavor usually mingles and merges with the heat and flavors of other spices during the cooking process. But in Chettinad cuisine the black pepper is usually added to dishes at the tail end, separating out its fieriness from that of other spices.

Pear And Almond Tart

It's late Thanksgiving morning, those special someones are coming over for dinner, and you've been slaving over a delicious vegan meal from the moment you got home yesterday afternoon. Everything looks amazing, but you still want to kick yourself. Because you forgot dessert.

Well maybe you're different, but that often happens to me. I usually leave dessert for the very end in my meal planning because there's always the possibility of making it optional. Or serving up some fresh fruit. All well and good, except, honestly, you simply cannot do that on Thanksgiving.

Bolillos (Mexican Rolls)

Before I share today's recipe-- scrumptious, crusty Mexican rolls called Bolillos that are like little football-shaped baguettes-- let me reveal the winner of last week's giveaway of Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero's new book, Vegan Pie in the Sky. Thanks to all of you who participated and took the time to Facebook and Tweet the giveaway. You're all winners in my book, but alas I have just one copy to give away. And it goes to, hold your breaths: MikeC.

MikeC, congratulations and please send your mailing address to MyVeganWorld@gmail.com so the publisher can mail you a copy of the book and you can start making some vegan pie!

Maple Pecan Pie and Vegan Pie in the Sky Cookbook Giveaway

'Tis the season for gorgeous, luscious, delicious pie and just in time comes a book with every kind there is-- deep-dish, tarty, free-form, cobbled. And fruity, creamy, nutty, chocolatey. All of it vegan, of course.

Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero, the team that in previous seasons showed us with their fabulous cupcakes and cookies just how yesterday butter and eggs are in a modern baker's kitchen, are back with Vegan Pie in the Sky, a book that crams into the authors' signature square pages tons of pie-making wisdom.

This is a definitive guide for any pie baker-- seasoned, novice, vegan, or not-- on how to make one of America's most cherished desserts from scratch, with sections on:
--Buying the right kind of pie-making equipment, from pans to rolling pins for making the crust.
--Creating different kinds of crusts, from single to double to shortbread, puff pastry, and even chocolate (and you thought there was only one kind!)
--Step-by-step recipes for 75 pies, including vegan versions of those you grew up with like Pumpkin Pie and Apple Pie, to fun ones with clever names like She's My Cherry Pie and Pucker-Up Raspberry Pie, to elegant desserts like Blueberry Orange Cheesecake and Cappuccino Mousse Pie. There is even a Basil Peach Pie and a Curried Macaroon Pie that features curry powder in the filling. Honest.