Welcome to Recipes for Disaster, a blog about nurturing body and soul through troubled times

butterfly painted on white brick wall with broken window
Photo by Kristel Hayes on Unsplash

This blog was born when I went through a difficult time in my life. Here I share the lessons I learned, in the hope that they may help you navigate your own storms and remind you that you’re not alone. Recipes for Disaster features two types of posts:

Recipes for when we’re exhausted or brokenhearted and tempted to drown our sorrows in pints of ice cream or bottles of wine. Never are comforting, simple, nourishing meals more important than when we’re going through difficult times.

Disasters happen to us all throughout life. This section includes musings on how to tame fear, regret, self-criticism, vindictiveness and other demons. How to ask for help. How to grow (it’s never too late!). Simplicity and abundance. Self-compassion and forgiveness (of self and others).

So go make a cup of tea, put on your reading glasses and stay a while—you’re among friends.

Not Your Grandma’s Thanksgiving TurkeyRecipes

Born and raised in Europe, I didn’t know about Thanksgiving until I married an American. Since we lived in Europe for much of our 23-year marriage we never celebrated the full-blown turkey-fest. Nonetheless, each year I’d try to mark this day with something at least slightly “Thanksgivey,” like turkey burgers with cranberry-salsa in homemade pumpkin buns, […]

Election CookiesRecipes

On the evening of November 8, 2016 my children and I were watching the U.S. presidential election results roll in. Like most of the country, we were expecting Hillary Clinton to win. However, as the night wore on and the growing likelihood of a Trump presidency dawned on us, I started to feel increasingly glum. […]

Diversity Salad (Asian-ish)Recipes

Variety is the spice of life — in cooking as in society. If you’ve ever attended one of my nutrition workshops, you’ll know I’m a tireless advocate of dietary diversity; that’s because research shows that eating a wide variety of different nutritious foods keeps us healthy, strong and resilient. Similarly, I believe that when a […]

Three Sisters green chili chickenRecipes

This is one of my favorite late-summer/early-fall dishes, with corn and hatch chiles evoking memories of warmer days whilst beans and pumpkin get me in the mood for cozy fall and winter stews. “Three Sisters” refers to the three main agricultural crops of various indigenous groups in North America: winter squash, maize (corn) and climbing […]

Pumpkin squaresRecipes

Just because I’m a nutritionist doesn’t mean I don’t love me a sweet treat every now and then — especially when the weather cools, the days get shorter and all I want to complete a perfectly cozy fireside dinner is a sweet indulgence just like this one. This deliciously moist and fragrant cake is the […]

Cold Cucumber SoupRecipes

On a hot summer’s day, the mere thought of this smooth, pale-green soup will a cooling wave rippling through you. What’s more, you won’t work up a sweat in the kitchen as this is ready in a matter of minutes – with minimal cooking! Although this dish looks light, generous amounts of protein (from yogurt, […]