A Thing Or Two We’re Doing Besides Rounding Up Our Go-To 2020 Recipes
What a year for cooking. (How’s THAT for an understatement?) These are 38 things we’ve made to great effect—and often even with pleasure—since January. Pulling together recipes from past installments of this newsletter sparked some “Oh, should I have that this week?!” chatter from both of us, and here’s hoping it’ll do the same for you. Should you want something altogether different from us right now: our thoughts on the romance novel Reckless (by Selena Montgomery aka Stacey Abrams!) are available for your listening pleasure. And, if you’re still searching for a last-minute holiday gift, may we suggest a subscription to Secret Menu?
things we cooked
Frying eggs in cream and calling the result a revelation.
Adopting a new go-to comfort food that’s only slightly more work than a box of mac ‘n cheese.
Hearing the greatest compliment three-ingredient cookies could hope for: “They look like they could be in a magazine.” (And, hey, they taste great, too.)
Making double batches of this extremely pantry-friendly enchilada sauce—but still managing to devour it all in one sitting.
Saying “this really is so good” at least seven times while slurping up homemade, four-ingredient GF pasta. Bonus date-night vibes if you turn on the Louis Prima.
Digging deep into the ol’ recipe archives for stuff especially well-suited to the “wait, we have to eat again?” rhythms of these weeks. Stars include this yogurt-y pasta, a cabbage salad that’s good the next day, a hearty soup (works with fake-meat sausage!), a Vietnamese (frozen) shrimp sitch, and another pasta that mostly involves draining cans.
Throwing some polenta in the oven (and then slicing it up and pan-frying it the next day).
Praising ourselves—and, more appropriately, Samin Nosrat—for a successful first go at (pseudo) tahdig.
Boldly bucking the banana-bread trend by making banana-quinoa muffins instead—and positing that most muffins should have quinoa in them. A textural triumph!
Taking as much satisfaction in the outcome of a recipe as in the name, a true beacon: back-pocket canned salad.
Vowing to stop resisting recipe hype because the fact is that we could have been reveling in the splendor of Julia Turshen’s turkey and ricotta meatballs for months now.
Turning leftover grains, jarred stuff, and veggie bits ‘n bobs into a toasty, crispy dinner that didn’t taste half as half-assed as it was. Please note that we’ve taken great liberties with this recipe!
Dubbing this “shrimp-curry bolognese” and intending that as a huge compliment.
Adopting a signature tiki drink that doesn’t even call for blue curaçao—and is possibly even better without the simple syrup.
Getting our kicks where we can, this time from the at-home version of one of our favorite NYC salads: the shaved-fennel deliciousness from Café Altro Paradiso.
Co-opting the spiced yogurt from this (excellent!) recipe for whatever vegetables the CSA sends our way.
Letting Samin Nosrat’s kuku recipe be our guide to dumping whatever wilting greens and herbs we have into one pan.
Dusting off an old-favorite recipe that requires zero cooking and tastes like pure summer.
Conceding that there was no way we was not going to like something called Mostly Olive Salad, but it was so good and had a whole lot of heft for something that calls itself a salad.
Eating half of this parmy, oniony cauliflower recipe straight from the sheet pan.
Making late-night caramel sauce for ice cream in a real shrug-emoji move that we don’t regret for a second.
Taking cherries for a savory joyride.
Collecting methods of preserving tomatoes, and this one’s a keeper (other faves include this and this). Don’t toss the oil—put it on eggs, stir it into labne as a dip, mix it with an acid for salad dressing...you get it.
Spicing up car trips with Fun Dip for veggies. That’s right: Fun Dip for veggies!!!
Making mediocre peaches exceptional like THAT.
Finding any excuse to consume more fennel, and this easy, weeknight pasta (with plenty of anchovies to boot!) is a new go-to that’s even toddler-approved.
Putting a jar of curry paste to excellent use. Two recipe notes: 1) This really did take 15 minutes, and we are grateful for its honesty. 2) Did it up with frozen shrimp.
Slurping up the best soba noodles we’ve eaten outside of a restaurant...and doing so in the context of a super simple, hot-weather-friendly dish.
Mastering crab fried rice that’s as good as takeout—especially if you happen to be using leftover coconut rice.
Nailing that perfect transition-to-fall corn recipe.
Contemplating blending cashews into all of our salad dressings after having done it to great effect in this recipe.
Giving past-their-prime greens a new lease on life in, like, 10 minutes.
Finding our way out of an “guess we’re having salmon again?” rut thanks to an extremely quick and easy recipe, which, to be fair, would probably work with any old protein.
Hitting squash season hard. It’s about the pepita pesto on the pasta with the delicata, friends.
Trying out various methods for recreating that restaurant-quality crispy fish skin and deeming this the best guide. (Seafood courtesy of these pros.)
Using this recipe as a starting point for an addictive (vegan!) soup we’ve made twice in the last two weeks. Subbed fresh garlic, ginger, and onion for the spices and broth for the water, and we suspect it’s malleable in many more ways besides.
Throwing this together with frozen shrimp when everything else feels like too much. Great use for that bottle o’ hot honey.
Trusting you’ll forgive me for putting so many fennel recipes in this newsletter once you taste this truly decadent one.
