Lilly’s Table

The Food

Week of February 12, 2012

There are so many ways to express your love for someone, but for me, I spread my love through food. Some foods say love more than others. There is something obvious about the aphrodisiac, antioxidant rich chocolate during this love week making it the perfect time to try the Vegan Cacao Almond Truffles, Chocolate Granola and Cocoa Dusted Almonds for breakfast, a snack or a gift to the ones you love. While chocolate is an obvious sweet treat, my favorite way to play with cocoa is in savory dishes such as the Cacao Nib Beet Slaw, Warm Cocoa, Apple, & Chard Salad or as a silky Cacao Cabernet Sauce to pour across an elegant Peppercorn Crusted Steak. Additional chard & broccoli are lovely sauteed into a egg scramble for breakfast.

It is tempting to want pink delicacies this week such as strawberries but we are still a few months away from their ripe beauty, so instead I go a bit crazy with ruby deep blood oranges. The juice simmers down into an elegant magenta sauce perfect for drizzling on steamed Broccolini or as a sassy Blood Orange Fish. The fish is lovely with sides of Rocket-Date Salad that uses oranges too and Lemon-Ginger Cauliflower. Quinoa also is more inspired tossed with blood orange segments and extra quinoa can be pressed into Quinoa Patties for a lovely vegetarian main dish that pairs with all of these dishes. A Sicilian way to enjoy blood oranges is in a simple, yet beautiful Fennel & Blood Orange Salad.

The aphrodisiac fennel softens beautifully into Braised Fennel, Turnip & White Beans. This mixture of beans & vegetables makes a gorgeous pate by simply blending it with walnuts & Parmesan for the White Bean, Fennel & Turnip Spread.

Now you are all set for a week of sharing your love… or at the very least filling your belly with a bit of culinary love from me to you.

Cook lovingly. Eat consciously. Live well,

Lilly