This colorful recipe has been slowly taking shape in my kitchen over the past few months. I’ve seen “Buddha bowls” all over the internet and menus lately, so I set out to make one.

What are Buddha bowls, though? How did whole-grain-and-veggie-bowls-with-tasty-sauce all become abbreviated as “Buddha bowls”?

I found some guidance in this Epicurious article by Katherine Sacks. In summary, Buddha carried a bowl with him on his journeys and accepted food as donations, which he would eat at the end of the day. Katherine also mentioned that Buddha bowls are similar to macrobiotic (macro) bowls with whole grains and steamed or raw veggies.

I created this versatile bowl with those factors in mind. This Buddha bowl recipe includes the five essential components: whole grains (brown rice), plant-based protein (edamame), veggies and greens (you have options), healthy fats (avocado), and a flavorful sauce to bring it all together (carrot-ginger).

It’s easy for Buddha bowl recipes to become complicated with the preparation of many different components, but I was careful to keep this recipe manageable. It’s unbelievably tasty and nutritious, too! I love eating leftovers all week long.

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I tend to keep to myself, especially in yoga class. It’s not a very social form of exercise, you know? Last year, when I walked into my usual Tuesday evening yoga class and my instructor shouted, “COOKIE AND KATE,” I froze. Kim, a regular in the class, had learned about my blog through her co-worker, and she said, “I know her! I go to yoga with her!”

Then Kim told Kristina, the teacher, and then everyone found out. Including Amie, one of my favorite instructors, who is great friends with Kate Kasbee of Well Vegan. Kate lives in Chicago and was working on a cookbook called Frugal Vegan at the time.

Through the Amie-Kate connection, I got a sneak peek at Frugal Vegan and wrote a blurb for the back cover. “Frugal Vegan offers an incredible array of fresh and simple vegan recipes. Every single one of them manages to be easy to make, affordable and accessible, too.”

Kate came to town for Amie’s birthday party, so I met her for drinks, and a giant green bug landed in her herbed green cocktail. Are you still following? I can’t make this stuff up.

Kate and I bonded over the trials and tribulations of cookbook-making, our love for our funny-looking pups (meet Rex), and the green bug experience. We practiced our half-moon poses at Amie’s backyard birthday party the next day. Maybe I shouldn’t be so shy about my work, since it opens so many fun doors.

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I set out to create a more interesting take on greasy take-out vegetable fried rice. Here it is in full glory, and it’s as flavorful as it is colorful. Hooray!

I used brown rice, naturally, and even threw in a handful of greens, which offer even more health bonus points. (The greens are optional.)

I also played around with a variety of vegetables, and all of them worked well as long as they were cut into very small pieces.

This is exactly what you should make when you have leftover rice and some random raw vegetables in your fridge. You’re going to love it!

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Hello from sunny San Diego! I’ve been soaking up sunshine on the beach and clinking drinks with a good friend over the past few days. Maybe a little too much of each. For once, I’m looking forward to returning to my regular routine. Long walks with Cookie and big green salads like this one sound mighty appealing at the moment.

Before I skipped town, P.F. Chang’s challenged me to create an original recipe containing a few of their summer seasonal ingredients. Avocado, pineapple, quinoa, lime, red bell pepper, Thai basil? Challenge accepted! I really love creating recipes around special ingredients; constraints seem to inspire creativity. Please let me know if you have any recipe requests.

For this challenge, I ended up with an Asian-inspired kale salad tossed in a homemade tamari-ginger vinaigrette. It’s loaded with crisp carrots, bell pepper and snap peas, and balanced with creamy avocado and edamame. The kale salad recipes on this blog are among my favorites, but this one might just be tops.

I only wish I had one of these detoxifying kale salads waiting for me at home. Cookie and I walk past a P.F. Chang’s every evening, so we might sample their fresh summer menu while my fridge is empty.

The post Chopped Kale Salad with Edamame, Carrot and Avocado appeared first on Cookie and Kate.

This miso noodle soup is fresh, light, and filling all at once. It’s the perfect soup if you’re craving a warm, bright meal or feeling under the weather. Most soups need at least 30 minutes on the stove to develop full flavor, but not this one. This soup is ready in half the time.

This recipe is not traditional Japanese miso soup, which typically features kombu (dried kelp), wakame seaweed and silken tofu. If you’re looking for the delicious miso soup you enjoy at Japanese restaurants, try this one at Just One Cookbook.

This recipe is an abstract option that includes miso and tofu (extra-firm) but not seaweed. It features spaghetti noodles and fresh vegetables, including bell pepper, snow peas and carrots. It’s generously seasoned with ginger, green onion, toasted sesame oil and soy sauce.

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