My inspiration for this toast came from my month stay in Portugal. In the US, fancy toast on restaurants menus is often limited to the ubiquitous avocado toast. Not in Portugal! Many brunch restaurants and coffee shops had multiple fancy toasts on their menus: thick, flavorful bread piled high with veggies, spreads, and eggs with…
Tag: Southern Europe
How to Plan a Month-Long Stay in a Foreign City
Have you ever dreamed of living abroad for a month or more? About two years ago, my spouse and I came up with a life plan. He’s a teacher with 2 months off in July-August, while I work remote and can work from anywhere. We decided that we needed to take advantage of this by…
Mushroom & Lentil Vegan Lasagna
My mom is known for her lasagna. Family gatherings, parties, holidays, she always made lasagna. I have many memories of making lasagna together, trying to pull out the cooked noodles from the pot without breaking them in half (it always happened anyway) and setting it in layers. Mom recently shared her lasagna recipe with me….
One-Pot Vegan Zuppa Tuscana
If you’ve ever been to the Olive Garden, you know Zuppa Toscana soup: spicy Italian sausage, kale, and potato stewed together in a hearty broth. When I was growing up, The Olive Garden was my favorite restaurant. No lie, I loved it. And my favorite part was never the main courses, but their Zuppa Toscana…
Grilled Eggplant & Halloumi Salad
These days I go back and forth between eating super healthy and eating junk food. Sitting at home all day, stressing about the end of the world, it’s just an emotional eating disaster. But our bodies are at their best when we feed them nourishing, nutritious meals and while there’s no scientific proof that healthy…
Fresh Mozzarella Bruschetta
Do you have a recipe that you’ve been making for so long that you don’t even know where it came from, or when you started making it? Have you ever pulled a recipe out of the archives to find that it was so utterly delicious that you couldn’t believe you ever stopped making it? That’s…
How to Make Gelato
Gelato. Just saying the word makes your mouth water, eliciting memories of summer, Italian luxury, and a hint of naughtiness. I purchased a gelato making class at Mia Chef Gelateria for my boyfriend as a Valentine’s Day gift (with the ulterior motive of learning how to make it at home and eating ridiculous amounts of…
Marissa Makes Food 