If David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl at Green Kitchen Stories have a cookbook coming out, then I’m always here for it! From the beginning of my site, I started sharing my experiences with cooking and feeding my family because, there are no better conversations than the ones about cookbooks. Cookbooks feed us, sure, but they also tell stories and connect us to different people and places. When my daughter was small, I didn’t know any other vegetarian families and it was through cookbooks that I was able to see how other parents approached meal time. And the Green Kitchen cookbooks became an invaluable tool — through all the ups and downs of feeding a kid, I appreciate the positivity and joy with which Frenkiel and Vindahl share their experiences and recipes.
Green Kitchen Quick and Slow offers a variety of vegetarian recipes that follow the flow of a week — meals that can be made quickly on a busy weeknight, slower recipes for weekends when you have more time. Either way, the recipes Frenkiel and Vindahl offer are twofold: they offer nourishment and an opportunity to enjoy being in the kitchen. At the beginning of the book, they offer a guide to meal prep, advice on useful kitchen equipment, and essential pantry items. The recipes are organized into 6 chapters: 1) Super-charged Staples, 2) Morning Time, 3) Quick Meals, 4) Slow Moments, 5) Mix + Match, and 6) Sweet Treats. I can tell that after extensively cooking from 5 other GK cookbooks (click for reviews Green Kitchen Stories, Green Kitchen Smoothies, Green Kitchen at Home, Little Green Kitchen), that the best part about making their recipes is that they focus on fresh ingredients and common pantry staples. I never have to purchase anything new or expensive, and whatever I make is delicious!
So far, I’m a dozen recipes into the book (which I’ve only had for a little more than a week!!) and I think it might be their best book yet! I’ve spent the most time with their breakfast recipes — a favourite of my daughter’s is the Four Seasons Buckwheat Porridge. Here, buckwheat groats are cooked along with spices (cinnamon, cardamom, vanilla powder, nutmeg, ginger) and a good amount of chopped dried fruit (we went for apples, cherries, cranberries, prunes). In the cookbook they offer 4 different ways to top the porridge (each way reflecting a season), and since I had some frozen rhubarb, I made their rhubarb compote to go with their spring theme (compote, toasted hazelnuts, mascarpone, and frothed milk). I think it was the frothed milk that thrilled Katie but, I was glad it made enough porridge for us to enjoy for a few mornings.
Looking at the recipe for Coco Hot Puff Pancakes, Frenkiel says in the recipe notes: “I’ve made a lot of pancakes in my life — these are my all-time favourites.” and, making these, I can totally see why! The batter is made in the blender and, I think it’s the banana and little bit of almond flour that give them such a lovely puffiness. I opted to make the smaller sized pancakes and I served them with the blueberry chia jam and ricotta yogurt (which tastes very much like a blueberry cheesecake when mixed). The recipe also made a generous amount, so that I froze the extras.
The recipe that I’ve made a few times for myself is the Harissa Fried Eggs on Toast — using the New York Shuk Signature Harissa paste, the egg fries in the harissa-flavoured oil which then tastes amazing with the thin layer of yogurt that’s spread over the toast. The fresh dill finishes the dish off and, I found that it’s just as good as a snack as it is for breakfast. Easy, yet very luxurious feeling, this recipe is a forever fav for me.
Aside from all the glorious breakfasts we’ve been enjoying, there’s been many tasty things hitting the table at lunch and dinner too! A few nights ago, I made the recipe for Yogurt + Oat Flatbread. With just two main ingredients, making flatbread has never been easier, and it was the perfect way to use some of the beautiful summer tomatoes I picked up at the market. Once the flatbreads have been fried in a skillet, they’re topped with thick yogurt, sliced tomatoes, and a generous helping of The Green Sauce (this recipe is also in the book and, it’s very much like a chimichurri – tasty stuff!). This recipe made such a great summer supper — easy and full of bright seasonal flavours.
The Baked Feta + Lentils w/ Blackberry Vinaigrette was another smashing meal! Feta is nestled in a sea of black lentils, which is then baked in the oven for 8 minutes. Honey is drizzled over the feta before the dish is broiled, which leaves the feta golden and soft. Once out of the oven, the warm lentils and feta are served over a bed of baby spinach and a good dressing of blackberry vinaigrette (fresh blackberries are smashed then added to the rest of the ingredients). I like how the spinach softens as it melds with the heat of the lentils and feta, and the meal felt very comforting (it’s not often that a salad is considered to be comfort food).
I also made a jar of their Granola Butter (think: granola, coffee, and nut butter) which I used when making the Ginger + Raspberry-Stuffed Dates. I adore the caramelly texture of dates, and they’re made extra lush through the addition of the granola butter, fresh raspberries, and chopped dark chocolate. Frenkiel is correct when he says of the recipe, “This must be the epitome of a quick dessert — or more like a quick sweet treat.” So much flavour and texture from a recipe that takes minutes to pull together and, it’s nice to have a treat-y option on hand for whenever the mood strikes.
Cooking for my own vegetarian family, I really appreciate that Green Kitchen Quick + Slow gives home cooks delicious vegetarian options for all the meal moments in the week. And after 6 cookbooks (not even counting their website or apps), David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl keep offering original and modern recipes that are a joy to both cook and consume! Using this book, I’ll keep adding to our repertoire of GK family favourites.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Hardie Grant Books and Raincoast Books for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my post, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. https://www.nyshuk.com/harissa101New York Shuk for generously gifting me their Signature Harissa paste.
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