Roasted Vegetables with Fennel Vinaigrette

As delicious as fennel is, I am always hoping to create recipes that will do its unique flavor full justice, like my Fennel Crusted Potatoes and Pasta with Fennel Pesto. This past week, trying to do something wonderful with a couple of beautiful bulbs of fennel, I put together this quick, very simple, but very flavorful side dish of Roasted Vegetables with Fennel Vinaigrette.

In India, fennel seeds are a common ingredient in the spice pantry, but fresh fennel is not. In fact, I had never cooked with the vegetable before I moved to the United States because it wasn't available at least in Bombay. It's easy to fall in love with this versatile vegetable with a crisp, sweet, licorice flavor. This is also a very nutritious vegetable, with anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties. But cooking with fennel can be both simple and tricky. Simple because it doesn't take much to make something delicious with fennel because you already have so much flavor to start out with. Tricky because adding it in with the wrong ingredients can lead to the fennel overwhelming the dish or being overwhelmed by stronger ingredients.

Gluten-Free Raspberry Chocolate Brownie Bars: Countdown to Valentine's Day

All I really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt!
--Charles M. Schulz

Which is why I have for you today the ultimate vegan Valentine: these scrumptious Chocolate Raspberry Brownie Bars. And they are gluten-free.

Now everyone knows that chocolate is pretty much the ultimate aphrodisiac-- not to mention the ultimate food. And the great thing about chocolate is that it's not just good, it's good for you. In fact, it's great for you. That's not a free pass to go and guzzle down a dozen candy bars because there are other things mixed in with candy-- like milk and fat and sugar-- that are not doing your body any favors. But pure dark chocolate, the kind you can bite a corner off and savor for hours, is packed with life-giving antioxidants that nurture your health and heart.

I made these brownie bars gluten-free and without any added fat because I wanted to keep these very healthy and as guilt-free as could be. A majority of the recipes I post at Holy Cow! are incidentally gluten-free, but when it comes to baking I must confess that I tend to rely a lot on wheat. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Gluten, a protein found in wheat that acts as a building block in baked goods, is not a friend to people with celiac disease, a disorder that afflicts around 1 percent of the U.S. population. The rest of us can eat it without worrying about getting sick, although using whole wheat instead of refined is always a healthier option.

Whole Wheat Focaccia

After making the best focaccia ever, I was a little obsessed with the idea of making a whole-wheat focaccia that was just as good, or even better. But with all that was going on, it took me until now to actually make it. Boy, was it worth the wait!

My Whole-Wheat Focaccia is not just soft as a pillowy cloud with a divinely chewy crust, it is also a good-for-you bread that you don’t have to feel guilty about cramming down your gullet. Slice it into half and slap on some vegan mozzarella, basil, and tomatoes and you will have a delicious meal you’ll never forget. You can even eat it as is, or with some extra virgin olive oil drizzled on.

To achieve the perfect wholegrain foccacia, I put all of my trust in that stinky old mess no serious bread baker should be without, especially if he or she loves wholegrain breads: sourdough.

Chickpea and Kale Stew with Indian Spices

In winter, the body simply craves comfort: sweaters and blankets, fuzzy slippers, a crackling fireplace, and a bowl of hot, delicious stew to warm the tummy.

My Chickpea and Kale Stew, simmered with Indian spices, does more than warm the tummy though. It delights your tastebuds with the eclectic flavors of toothy kale, succulent sweet potato, vibrant garlic, and tangy lime. And then it goes and turns your body into a lean, mean, fat-burning machine. How's that for perfection?

Almond Pancakes: Countdown to Valentine's Day

Breakfast on Valentine's Day should be as delicious as romance and as perfect as love.

My Multigrain Almond Pancakes are made with three different kinds of flours-- barley, spelt, and whole-wheat-- but you could easily substitute with other flours like oat flour or even a gluten-free baking mix. But here's what makes them really special: I add to them some almond paste, almond milk, and a few chopped almonds, ingredients that make them tender, nutty, extra-flavorful, and healthy, of course.

Although I meant to focus mainly on (Indian) dinner foods for this series as we countdown to Valentine's Day, I couldn't resist the idea of throwing in a hearty-- and heart-healthy-- breakfast with the added mojo of the very aphrodisiacal almond. Here's a nut that has been long considered a fertility symbol and is even heart-shaped (kinda). What's more, it is packed with energizing protein, is certified heart-healthy, and you really don't need an excuse to eat it, do you? All the wholegrain and multigrain flour in these pancakes is just more goodness for your heart.

Strawberry and Boondi Raita: Countdown to Valentine's Day

If all the love in the universe could be represented by a single fruit, which one would it be? An apple or a strawberry?

The apple may have the Biblical advantage, but my bet is on the strawberry. This brilliant-red berry with its intoxicating fragrance and divine taste has the love advantage hands-down. It is juicy, sweet with just the right hint of sassy sour as love should be, it makes a perfect pairing with that other lovers' favorite-- chocolate-- and it even looks like a tiny little heart.

Pink Lentils with Roasted Mushrooms: Countdown to Valentine's Day

Continuing with our Valentine's Day countdown, today I have for you a delicious -- and perfect-- accompaniment to the Asparagus and Saffron Biryani I last shared: Pink Lentils with Roasted Mushrooms.

Mushrooms are prized by vegetarians for their earthy, addictive flavor but also for their satisfying texture that makes them a great substitute for meat. Legend or lore has it that mushrooms have been, for centuries and by many cultures, considered a prized aphrodisiac. They are also low in calories, high in fiber and potassium, and packed with antioxidants, all of which makes them great for your heart too.