Roasted Delicata Squash Kale Salad

It’s Monday, which for me often means: salad day! This past weekend was full of food, wine, friends, and fun – but I’m definitely a little tired today and ready for a healthy eating reset. Not that this is rabbit food by any stretch – it’s full of roasted vegetables, nutty farro, roasted chickpeas, diced apples, cranberries… basically everything I love about fall in one hearty bowl. This one starts by roasting delicata squash and red onion wedges (btw, how pretty is this color combination?). To get the most out of my oven’s heat, I roasted chickpeas as well. Roast them…

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Sweet Potato Pomegranate Crostini

Sweet Potato Pomegranate Crostini make a delicious holiday appetizer or snack! Topped with lemon sunflower spread or ricotta & herbs. Vegan, healthy & fun!

Hello, from holiday-break-land! This year, Jack and I had a quiet Christmas weekend at home. Which really means that we stayed in our pj’s until at least noon every day. We finished watching the new season of Fargo and we’re now onto Homeland (don’t tell me what happens!). We’ve made waffles and cocktails and all sorts of other soon-to-be recipes for this here blog. So far January is looking to be delicious, but before we get there here’s a little festive appetizer that would be perfect for a healthier New Years Eve get-together. This avocado pomegranate crostini is one of my favorites so I…

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Winter Farro & Kale Salad

This 6-ingredient winter kale salad is sweet & salty, crunchy & crisp, and it's doused in a delicious gingery dressing. Make it for an easy weekday lunch!

All you want for Christmas is a Christmas salad – right? Ok, maybe not, but in between all of the cookies and other sweet treats, doesn’t it just feel so good to eat something nourishing before your next cocktail? This salad is packed with so many things that I crave, like dark leafy kale and hearty farro; and to make it extra festive – hazelnuts and pomegranates. It’s the salad that looks like a Christmas tree. You can use either lacinato kale (pictured) or curly kale for this recipe. I usually find curly kale to be a little bit softer, but this pretty bouquet of local…

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Sweet & Spicy Popcorn

Easy 6-ingredient homemade Sweet & Spicy Popcorn is a great holiday gift! Vegan, gluten-free & healthier than classic kettle corn, but just as good.

Hello everyone, Jack here, pinch-hitting for Jeanine. She’s been busy making this very popcorn, so she asked me to write about it. Popcorn this time of year makes me think of something that has become a bit of an American tradition – gigantic multi-gallon tins of flavored popcorn. You know the kind – they’re the size of an oil drum, separated into three sections on the inside with a literal ton of popcorn inside. It seems like a good idea – popcorn is cheap, so why not preserve it in a sticky, sugary shell to enjoy over the entire month of December? Well,…

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Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells

Butternut squash stuffed shells are the ultimate fall comfort food! Filled with creamy spinach "ricotta," this recipe is an all-time fan favorite.

Creamy, tangy, and with a caramelized sweetness from roasted butternut squash, this stuffed shells recipe is one you’re sure to love. In lieu of any ricotta, Parmesan, or mozzarella cheese, I stuff them with a light, dairy-free “ricotta.” Made from cashew cream, crumbled tofu, herbs, and lemon zest, it’s rich and flavorful. If your family is squeamish about tofu, just don’t tell them. They’ll never suspect it here. My Favorite Stuffed Shells Recipe While I often use a marinara sauce with my stuffed shells, in the spirit of fall, I opted for a luscious, creamy cashew sauce. I also stuffed my shells…

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Apple Mimosas & Butternut Baked Eggs

Host a fun & easy-going brunch with these simple baked eggs. Butternut squash, eggs, leeks, and herbs are all you need. With apple mimosas, of course.

Thanksgiving has become an odd holiday for us. During the first years that Jack and I were together, we traveled to visit family for every single holiday. It took us a while to realize that Thanksgiving weekend air travel is the worst of them all. So now we have a tradition of staying home with no real tradition. One year we stayed in and made risotto. The year after that we had a friends-giving (before they were called that). Last year, we stayed home and worked (we were just beginning the book). This year we’re going to gather with friends over a fun & easygoing…

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Butternut Squash Breakfast Hash

An easy veggie breakfast hash made leftover roasted zucchini and butternut squash topped with fried eggs. A perfect weekend or holiday brunch. Gluten-free.

I’m probably the last to know this – but have you heard that they’ve cancelled Saturday morning cartoons? I suppose on-demand or Netflixed cartoons are probably more convenient, but I am still sad to hear the news. Growing up (without cable), Saturday morning cartoons were what my sister and I looked forward to all week. Pancakes, cereal commercials, the whole bit. Jack and I still have a weekend ritual – although our “cartoon” is Shark Tank instead of Muppet Babies, and our breakfast is usually eggs instead of pancakes. This recipe is a great “use up what you have” kind of breakfast. Butternut squash is the base…

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Easy Vegan Apple Crisp

This easy vegan apple crisp will become your go-to fall dessert. It's simple to put together, and the nutty brown sugar topping is absolutely delectable.

Happy Saturday, friends! Fall is in the air, and although it’s not exactly crisp outside here, I’ve made crisp inside to make up for it. Apple crisp is hands down my favorite fall dessert. I love apple pie too, but I love it more when other people make it for me. This vegan apple crisp recipe is simple and straightforward – you can mix everything together and get these little guys into the oven in no time. (You can even mix the crumble part ahead of time). To make these vegan, I used coconut oil instead of butter and scooped vegan ice cream on top. These…

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Buttercup Squash Crumble Bars

The ultimate fall dessert - these crumbly, creamy butternut squash bars are topped with chocolate and coconut. (Plus a video!!)

I had this buttercup squash (perhaps the funkiest looking squash of them all), sitting on my countertop for the longest time. It likely would have become soup had it not been for the name itself –  “buttercup” which spoke to me and said: let’s make a crumbly & buttery dessert! I won’t go as far to say this is healthy, but hey, it’s the holidays and we’re making dessert, so let’s live a little. These bars are made with good quality organic ingredients (and remember: squash). This recipe is loosely based on my recipe for raspberry crumble bars. I switched out…

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Sweet Harvest Pumpkin Ice Cream

Made with just 4 ingredients, this vegan Pumpkin Black Tea Ice Cream recipe is a simple & healthy pumpkin spice treat! Perfect for fall and winter holidays.

Are you all pumpkin-ed out yet? Hopefully not – but even if you are, you just have to try this one. If you’ve been following for long you know I have just a slight love for ice creams made with coconut milk. But this one? This one not only takes the cake but probably the pumpkin and apple pies too. It’s a rich & creamy, yet healthier, take on holiday desserts. I’ve had tea ice cream on my mind ever since tasting a tea-infused sorbet while visiting Celestial Seasonings last month. Their Sweet Harvest Pumpkin Black Tea is warmly spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg…

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Forbidden Rice Pumpkin Salad

A delicious fall salad made with roasted pumpkin or butternut squash, pomegranate, pepitas, and blood orange vinaigrette. A great Thanksgiving side.

Are you sugared out yet? Since I already posted my one and only candy idea, I wasn’t quite sure what to make for today. I was going to skip this holiday post altogether until Jack came up with the genius thematic idea to make something with black forbidden rice. I had a pumpkin sitting on my countertop as well as some blood oranges… so naturally, I came up with the ultimate Halloween salad for this L&L Spook-tacular post. (That’s what Jack is calling it). I made a blood orange vinaigrette spiced with cumin, coriander, and a bit of cinnamon. I just love how the warm…

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A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Welcome to Love & Lemons!

I'm Jeanine Donofrio, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author and recipe developer. I share fresh, delicious vegetarian recipes that celebrate seasonal ingredients and flavors.

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