Blog – Page 2 – The Empowered Kitchen

Meal Prep Recipes & Food Waste Tips

Gin & Cranberry Mash

By Katrina Brink | Drink, Holiday

Happy New Year’s Eve 2018! What a year it has been. For me it’s been a year of opening my heart further than it’s ever been open before. It experienced deep love, followed by heartbreak. This was definitely a year of discovering more about myself, understanding how I need to grow, and feeling stronger for…

Citrus & Fennel Salad with Toasted Almonds

By Katrina Brink | American, Fall/Winter, Gluten Free, Salad, Vegan, Vegetarian, Vinaigrette/Dressing

This is a WONDERFUL side dish for Thanksgiving or any holiday meal. It’s fresh, light and a huge crowd pleaser. This is a simple, gourmet salad that’s easy to throw together, and perfect to make ahead! Fennel is great for digestion and the citrus gives you a boost of vitamin C. An added benefit to…

Summer Squash, Tomato, Goat Cheese & Mustard Tart

By Katrina Brink | French, Main Dish, Spring/Summer, Vegetarian

This is a beautiful, French-inspired, summer tart. It’s a great way to use up all that extra zucchini and yellow squash laying around this time of year. 🙂 Make the most of it before it’s all gone for the season! What the final tart looks like. Yum! 🙂 (This was right before we took two…

Seared Tempeh with Cashews, Edamame on Greens with Asian Dressing

By Katrina Brink | Main Dish, Salad, Spring/Summer, Tempeh, Vegetarian, Vinaigrette/Dressing

Trying out tempeh for the first time, or just looking for a fresh take on it? Well, this is your recipe. It’s been a huge hit every time I’ve made it and gives tempeh so much great flavor, you’ll be sure to keep this recipe in your back pocket. Tempeh is a fermented cake of…

Pea, Cilantro, Lime Gazpacho

By Katrina Brink | American, Gluten Free, Soup, Spring/Summer, Vegetarian

It’s August and it’s been a hot one this summer! Keep your kitchen cool by experimenting with chilled soups this summer. Zero cooking needed. 🙂 If you have a blender or food processor, you can easily make this green gazpacho soup. Plus if you make it ahead, it only gets better after a few days…

Shakshuka

By Katrina Brink | Eggs, Food Waste, Gluten Free, Main Dish, Mediterranean, Spring/Summer, Vegetarian

Shakshuka is a wonderful, savory and filling dish to serve for brunch, lunch or dinner. It goes great with a side of bread, couscous or a Mediterranean-style salad. This dish originates from North Africa and the Middle East and is very common in Israel. It can be adapted to include what you have on hand,…

Chimichurri

By Katrina Brink | Argentina, Gluten Free, Sauce, Spring/Summer, Vegan, Vegetarian

This is a wonderfully flavorful sauce that seriously takes just a few minutes to put together. If you can operate a blender, you can make this sauce! 🙂 It’s also a great use for an abundance of parsley in a backyard garden and the parsley stems get blended in too, so less food waste! You’ll…

A New Old Way of Eating: Let’s Stop Dieting & Start Cooking

By Katrina Brink | Thoughts on Food

Healthy Relationship With Food How we relate to food matters. In the United States we have a notoriously fraught relationship with food. We’re afraid of it and susceptible to fear tactics waged by companies warning us to be afraid of certain ingredients and that suddenly a food that used to be healthy is now going…

Turnip Greens with Cherries & Walnuts

By Katrina Brink | American, Food Waste, Gluten Free, Salad, Spring/Summer, Vegan, Vegetarian

You may not have tried cooking with turnip greens, or turnips at all for that matter. I encourage you to head to your local farmer’s market and pick up a beautiful bundle of turnips. When fresh from the farm or garden, they’re tender and wonderful shaved into salads, roasted, and sliced thinly for salads or…

Honey Lemon Vinaigrette & How to Stock for Dressings

By Katrina Brink | Salad, Thoughts on Food, Vinaigrette/Dressing

Making a few homemade salad dressings ahead of time is a great way to make it WAY more likely you’ll eat more salads. This recipe is a lovely, fresh and nutrition-packed dressing that will liven up your greens and get you in the dressing-making habit. I’ve included a few tips for that below. I like…