This cooking AMA is part of the 13 Days of A+. From December 13 through December 25, we’re celebrating the people who literally keep our lights on, who believed we could make it through 2020, who invest and participate in this community through challenges and growth and change — that’s YOU. It’s truly magical to have so many guardian gayngels looking out for this space, and we’re so delighted to be able to do something a little special for our queer fam to close out the year. Some of what we publish for the 13 Days will be cozy and familiar, like Into the A+ Advice Box and Some Answers to Some Questions You’ve Been Asking Us. Some of it will be a twist on regulars; we have Malic White as a guest editor for two installments of the erotica series S L I C K for one… and the rest? We’re going to keep those pieces all boxed up in scissoring-patterned wrapping paper until they publish. We’re looking forward to spending some time with you. 💙
Today, you’re invited to rummage through your cabinets and through the brains of a number of Autostraddle team members, all of whom have surprising hidden cooking talents. A cornbread contest winner, a food photographer, the creator of The Dyke Kitchen — and even a professional chef — will be here to answer your questions.
Members of the team will be on in two shifts: 7am-10am PST and 2pm-5pm PST. Feel free to leave questions between these two shifts, share photos of your cooking and baking adventures and jump in to help fellow members rescue their holigay meals!
Meet the chef, cooks, and bakers who are here to answer your burning cooking questions today:
Both AM and PM Shifts:
Chef Kenya Bovey
Chef Kenya Bovey has spent the last 11 years making their mark in some of the most dynamic restaurants of Los Angeles and New York for renowned chefs including Nancy Silverton and Chad Colby (Spacca, Los Angeles), Sawako Okochi (Shalom Japan, Brooklyn) and Suzanne Goin (AOC, Tavern, Los Angeles). Growing up in a bi-racial household, with parents who also love food, in LA’s vibrant Mar Vista/Venice neighborhood laid a foundation of three keys to culinary success: attention to detail, an appreciation of precision and a comfort with exploration. Kenya attended Cal Poly SLO, but left after sophomore year and headed east to explore life in the professional kitchens of New York. They had long enjoyed cooking at home but were unprepared to find themselves addicted to the adrenaline rush and the grind of being on the line.
In addition to broad-kitchen method and technique, Kenya has developed passion and skill in live-fire cooking and whole-animal butchery as well as a deep appreciation for maximizing the impact of local, seasonal produce and the often un-discussed skill of farmers’ market shopping. For the last year, they’ve been working as Chef de Cuisine with Jeff Strauss at Jeff’s Table, a modern Jewish deli startup that finds inspiration in the globally diverse food scene of Los Angeles. They are also available for private chef engagements and intimate cooking classes. Follow them on Instagram @featherweight24.
Vanessa Friedman
I am a self-identified kitchen top AND a Capricorn, so I was born to boss you around your kitchen! Just kidding (kind of) – but I do love feeding people and helping people feed themselves, so I am thrilled to hang out together and talk food! My specialties include challah (I bake it weekly), baked goods in general, traditional (and untraditional) Jewish meals, and anything with a runny egg yolk. I’m more a follow-the-recipe-EXACTLY rather than a make-it-up-as-you-go kinda dyke, so I’m excited to share recipes, troubleshoot, and generally pretend we’re all hanging out in a huge queer kitchen together. Also if anyone randomly wants to talk about canning and preserving, I’m your girl!
Renea Goddard
I’m gonna be honest: my only specialty here is an affinity for flavorful, homestyle food and years of cooking with my Korean mother and my Midwestern American father—both passionate cooks in their own ways, and both helped me get to know my way around a kitchen. And, not to brag, but I *did* win a cornbread contest once (deep in the southern U.S, no less!) with my dad’s recipe. Most holidays we shared a mix of American country classics and Korean staples. They have a lot more in common than you might think! I’m excited to help imagine some fusion dishes or create a less traditional holiday meal with more diverse flavors. Or just talk about my favorite Asian food :P
AM Shift: 7am-10am PST
Carmen Phillips
Carmen’s a supremely skilled stress baker (and since she’s an anxious person, she’s had plenty of opportunity to flex those skills!). She’s happy to help with any small-to-mega baking project concern! From “how do I make Christmas cookies for my sweetie and not burn them” to “could I really conquer making a decadent layer cake for the holigays from scratch” (you sure can!). She’s also very talented at scaling down large meals and ingredient lists for single person meals or otherwise small gatherings and definitely knows her way around a recipe, even of the savory variety.
Rachel Kincaid
I’ve been vegetarian for almost all my life and vegan for some of it, and love love decadent, delicious food situations – full-fat, fried, carby, stuffed and topped with cheese, whatever. I love a good salad and also feel like that definitely doesn’t have to be all we eat, even with allergies or dietary restrictions!
I truly love cooking and ALSO am super busy and often work til 8 pm or later, so I have a lot of recipes and ideas for making delicious vegetarian food with good leftovers or that’s easy and chill. I’d love to help you figure out a luxurious multi-food-group brunch, holiday foods, new go-tos for approachable daily meals you’ll actually want to eat throughout the week, a life-changing new sauce, etc. I have an Instant Pot, air fryer and would love to help you find stuff to make with any of them.
Meg Jones Wall
I’m a food photographer and food stylist with an MLA in Gastronomy, silverware tattoos, and far too many cookbooks. I’m more of a cook than a baker but I’m comfortable in both areas, and am particularly skilled at arranging cheeseboards, creating beautiful tables, finding cheap but rad dishes and props, and generally styling food to look pretty. I’m also pretty good at wine pairings. Want help taking pics of your meal for Instagram? Need the perfect serving dish for your veggie side? Stuck on how to organize a full menu that won’t leave you in the kitchen all day? Let me help with aesthetics and logistics.
Valerie Anne
I have a lot of experience with kitchen tools (I have written product copy for a kitchen tool company) and know about a lot of shortcuts, tips and tricks etc since I’m bad at following recipes to a T and am always doing things like “what if I just put this in my manual food processor instead of dicing it” and have learned through trial and error when that is or is not in fact okay. I’m fairly new to cooking but am pretty good at improvising/faking it til I make it, especially when it comes to things like realizing halfway through the process that I’m missing an ingredient, or needing to make a vegetarian version of something.
Malic White
I’m a former vegan and current omnivore who regularly bakes gluten-free goodies. I am excellent with substitutions, so if you have specific dietary needs, I’m your dough boy.
PM Shift: 2pm-5pm PST
Kamala Puligandla
Are you standing around your kitchen or sitting on your couch asking yourself, what do I make?? My years as a stoner snacker have made me aware of flavor combos that unexpectedly work and I am well-known for giving leftovers a new makeover, if you know you SHOULD be eating what you already have. I’m very familiar with being lazy and not wanting to have to go the store to get the “ideal” ingredients, so I can help you out with subbing things. I can also talk through recipes and help you figure out which extra steps are probably worth your time and which ones you can ignore and just add butter instead.
Nicole Hall
Growing vegetables and herbs has been a process of continual learning for me that doesn’t end when those things come out of the ground! Did you know you can candy thyme to top desserts?? I’ve been through a decade of holigay seasons without eating meat. Want to chat punching up “sides” until they’re a worthy main or taking a jumble of things from your garden or freezer and assembling them into an actual meal? I also bake! I’m not much for your chocolate desserts, but if you want to make something spicy or gingery, herbal or tart, let’s talk. Maybe I’ll even share my rosemary lemon shortbread recipe!
Casey Stepaniuk
I am a former vegetarian who loves to cook with and without meat. Baking cookies and cakes is a favourite of mine too! I’ve especially been experimenting lately by using my Instant pot, which has not been nearly as scary as I thought it would. I like to try all sorts of cuisines and have been cooking from a Korean cookbook lately. Recently I made Korean spicy pork and an autumnal punch / cocktail with whiskey. My partner is Mexican, so I’m always experimenting with Mexican food as well (especially with ingredients you can get at a small town Canadian grocery store). Also, being a librarian, information finding is my specialty, so I would love to find people answers on food and cooking if I don’t know them myself!
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VERY EXCITED TO BE HERE WHO WANTS TO SEE MY SPATULA THAT SAYS “CAPRICORN” ON IT
wow i’m gonna need a scorpio spatula that is INCREDIBLE
I do thank you!
I do.
i present, my capricorn spatula and also my face:
I’m going to start us off with a question that has been bothering me for a long time (please ignore that I’m supposed to be HELPING later this afternoon!). How on earth are people getting pie crust edges to look nice? Like, I get that you shape them, but pie crust is so hard to work with if you’re trying to keep it cold / get it flaky and it usually just breaks if I’m trying to make a nice edge. Any tips?
If you use a spray bottle filled with ice water, you get better distribution with less work so you decrease the chance of over working the dough/over developing the gluten structure. I also like to freeze my butter and then grate it and freeze again.
Thank you! <3 That is...a technique that seems advanced that I never would have thought of. I'm also probably going to be trying that sooner rather than later.
Good morning! I have a very specific question and a very general question; I’ll put them in separate comments for easier replying.
Here’s my specific question: I have two venison sausages that I got from a friend when they moved and cleaned out their freezer. I don’t usually cook with meat, though I eat it occasionally. What ideas do you have for them?
The big qualifier: for pandemic reasons, I’m pretty much down to pantry ingredients (but I have a pretty well-stocked pantry) and dairy; I also have some fresh kale, apples, carrots, and cranberries. I will not be going to the grocery store before I cook these!
My pitch (if you have the ingredients): biscuits and sausage gravy. Biscuits don’t require many ingredients (usually they’re just flour, sugar, salt, eggs, baking powder, butter and milk. And you can throw that kale and carrots in your venison gravy! Also, venison has a pretty unique taste, so if it turns out that it’s not your thing, you can cover it up a bit with your gravy seasoning.
This is an excellent call, as it is a veggie-er version of what I did last night with the first of the sausages after some unsuccessful googling! (There were originally three.) It was indeed delicious, with some room for improvement–I didn’t think of incorporating the vegetables right into that dish. Thanks!
honestly, i think this sounds like a delicious group of ingredients! i would dice or shred the carrot and apple, chop the kale, and throw it all into a cast iron pan to turn into a kind of hash. grill the sausages, slice them at an angle, and serve with the hash, maybe adding a fried egg on top if you have one.
gotta second the hash, my solution to any grouping of meat & veggies is usually “FRY THIS ALL UP TOGETHER AND SERVE WITH SOFT EGG ON TOP”
Oooh, I’m very into this–“make it into a hash” and “put an egg on top” are almost always a safe bet around here, and it’s helpful to see these ingredients through someone else’s eyes! Thanks!
I can see this going in two directions, well several actually….but let’s stick with what came first.
You could easily do a salad:
Unease the sausages and sautéed them on medium high Heat till crispy. Reserve the rendered fat
Sautée kale in said reserved fat and toss with crispy sausage bits and some ACV or sherry vinegar
Mince cranberries and apple and toss into your salad.
Finish with some black pepper and baller olive oil
The soup variation
Decase sausages. Brown the meat in olive oil, 1 t per # of meat
Throw the casings in some cold water with carrot peelings and kale stems and whatever spices you want the soup to taste and smell like, bring to a boil and drop to a simmer for 2-4 hrs
After frying the sausage, sautée apples and minced carrot in the venison fat
Once the veggies are tender GBD (golden brown delicious) add sausage and the strained stock you made (or opened) season till it tastes just slightly under what you what the finished product to be like. Boil then simmer for 1-2 hrs
Throw in the kale 30 minutes before finishing and cover to steam and wilt approx 15 minutes
Garnish with cranberries
woah this soup sounds so good my mouth is watering for dinner and it’s 7:42am here
Hello Autostraddle, my new dilemma is that I only have two sausages and too many good ideas. These both sound delicious, too! I appreciate your thoroughness in using ALL the produce for a true autumnal delight.
haha this is such a cute outcome, i feel like by the end of the day we’re gonna need to compile a cookbook from this post
…omg an autostraddle cookbook as a future A+ item, @nknhall am i a genius or?!?!
Um. Yes. Do this. Things from this page and Dyke Kitchen and Reneice’s stuff and, yeah, I would buy at least two or three copies of that, I am already thinking who I’d give the extras to, please do this important community service quickly, some of us are already drooling here. ;)
Here’s my general question: what’s your go-to “house meal” strategy (to use Jaya Saxena’s term), or a house meal you’ve been perfecting this year?
I am getting tired of repeating mine (which are mostly variations of “chickpeas and stuff” or “potatoes and stuff”) and need some new inspiration.
i love this question and i really love the term “house meal” – i had not heard it before and i just quickly devoured jaya’s article, thank you.
some staples for me:
– scrambled eggs with a million veggies & a lot of ketchup: i used to call this my “power breakfast” but it has evolved into my favorite comfort food and also a great excuse to use up old veggies that might otherwise go bad in the crisper. the main premise is chicken sausage, vegetables, and scrambled eggs (dumped directly into the pan with the veggies, NOT pre-scrambled in a bowl, we will not be cleaning an extra bowl here) but the part that makes it truly un-servable to others is the amount of ketchup i add. i like to put some on when everything comes off the pan still hot, mix it around in a bowl, and then add more. top with flaky salt. idk, it’s so good and makes me feel so full and happy.
– lazy version of the above: scrambled eggs & ketchup on buttered toast. i don’t usually like ketchup with my eggs but somehow ketchup with SCRAMBLED eggs is like, divine to me.
– love a “rice bowl” aka make rice in my rice cooker, drizzle a spicy sauce on top, add a soft egg or two (can be soft boiled or poached), lots of salt & pepper.
– this isn’t a full meal but my greatest pandemic trick is savory yogurt. i really don’t like sour cream but i do love the rich tangy creaminess that sour cream brings to a lot of dishes, and i also just like having something cold and exciting to pair with warm roasted vegetables or boring leftovers. i take full fat greek yogurt, add a bunch of lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and add it to everything.
i would say the main feedback i’ve gotten on my “house meals” is that they either look disgusting (all shoved together in a bowl and covered in sauce or ketchup) or they don’t have enough texture. i love them though!
I love making chili. I love it because it’s relatively easy but also not difficult to mix up so you don’t get bored of it too easily. Whether I add veggie crumbles, or butternut squash, or play around with spices and types of beans etc. It’s also VERY hard to mess up, in my experience.
During the pandemic, my new go to has been: stir fry some stuff!
I use this recipe for a basic sauce and preparation method, but I have found it works well with any roughly same amounts of: a protein (for me that’s usually chicken), veggies (usually green pepper and onion, but I’ve also had success with green beans and broccoli), and I personally like peanuts or cashews for crunch but they aren’t necessary. Same with fruit (though I usually have frozen mango in the house, so it’s less a deal breaker there. Pineapple also works if your craving sweet, but you can skip fruit altogether and the sauce works excellently with a more savory combination of just protein and veggies)
Ok all that said, here’s the recipe — which I generally make with chicken because shrimp is expensive: https://www.howsweeteats.com/2019/03/cashew-shrimp/
Oh and in the past, my go to was pizza!! Everything tastes good on a pizza, either dough or flatbread.
Leaves in a bowl as written by @Carolyn. Check out the article: https://develop.autostraddle.com/home-alone-for-the-holigays-watch-oceans-11-with-carolyn/
Roast chicken, capers, canned artichokes, and green olives with a butter sauce over fusilli or penne
Tacos of any sort
Roasted veg
Roasted leeks, refer to my comment below
Cheese and crackers
But sometimes it’s just a raw pasta from the bag till I figure out what to make kind of night
What winter veggies/dishes are good if I want to try something different for holiday meals? I don’t want to do the standard mashed potatoes, green beans, etc. for the whole meal.
Thanks!
I love roasted brussels sprouts with dried cranberries and walnuts! 1. It’s delicious, and 2. the cranberries make it look festive.
SQUASH! I love squash! Acorn squash are so cute and fun to make lil squash bowls, there are some really good ‘stuffed’ acorn squash recipes out there with things like quinoa and dried cranberries.
roasted delicata squash, sliced into medium-thick pieces and either made savory (olive oil, salt) or sweet (butter, maple syrup, salt) is one of the most delicious things on this whole planet. line a tray with tinfoil for quicker clean up, set your oven at 400 degrees, let squash caramelize, oh my actual goddess YUM.
Yes! I learned how to do this from an AS Friendsgiving recipe post one year and I love it. My partner and I call it “lesbian squash” and it’s one of our go-to winter starchy vegetables.
I always like persimmons and pomegranate this time of year. It’s also citrus season on the west coast so always a time to play more with things like tangerines and grapefruit which are great with chicken and fish. And pork. And lamb.
Can confirm that these pairings are delicious
i’m also a big fan of bitter greens. not sure where you’re located, but my local farm has been doing a “fall/wintery greens mix” and the mustard greens, chicories, and other more bitter greens are SO delicious for a simple flavorful salad (just dress with olive oil & a bit of vinegar or lemon juice and some flaky salt). they’re also beautiful!
I loooove bitter greens in a salad with caramelized pears.
Sweet potatoes have been really my vibe this winter!!! I also shared this recipe below, but it’s perfection: https://smittenkitchen.com/2018/02/slow-roasted-sweet-potatoes/
And I agree with everyone else about roasted delicata squash (delicata has a soft skin, so you can cut it / scoop out seeds/ dice and put in the oven with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic at 400 degrees for like 15 minutes-ish until fork tender and then you can eat it just like that! No peeling necessary, which is why I prefer it over butternut squash or acorn squash. (Though! I do love butternut, and it can be prepared the same way, the peeling is just extra work). DELISH
If I’m being fancy, once the squash is out of the oven — and if you like bacon — you can cook up a strip or two of bacon and crumble it on top.
But honestly, delicious either way!
omg carmen this bacon tip. how… how did i never think of this?
hello, dinner for the next 400000 nights.
Oooo, another question! Tips of I want to get started canning and preserving fruits and veggies? Which ones are more forgiving for beginners?
Anything with a good amount of sugar is pretty forgiving when starting to can. If you don’t mind waiting, preserved lemon is easy and you don’t have to do any of the heat up, you just gotta wait 6 weeks and then move em to the fridge
this book is my bible when it comes to canning: https://bookshop.org/books/canning-for-a-new-generation-a-seasonal-guide-to-filling-the-modern-pantry/9781584798644
it really broke things down for me when i was just starting out and helped me figure out what i should be nervous about, what i shouldn’t worry about so much, what was realistic for me to take on as a beginner, etc.
since it’s winter i think if you wanted to start with a marmalade that could be exciting – the lemon rose marmalade in the book i mention is life changing, truly.
i also would say that it pays to get some proper canning tools if you know you’re interested in it. this is controversial – sure, you *can* can in a regular large stock pot, and you could just use oven mits and a tong situation to fish your jars out of the hot water bath – but i find canning with proper tools goes so quickly and smoothly compared to when i’m trying my best to use equipment that isn’t actually meant for the task.
finally – this is challenging in pandemic times, but if there’s anyone in your life who already cans, see if you can sit in on a session or two with them. it was really a kind friend taking me under her preserving wing that allowed me to become obsessed with canning and preserving because watching someone do it up close and being able to ask all sorts of questions and text follow up questions to when you’re alone in your own kitchen and panicking is really helpful. in lieu of this, i’m happy to function as that friend – you can tweet me anytime (vanessapamela) you have canning questions and i will do my best to answer!
also also also – HAVE FUN! once you get into it canning is so soothing and satisfying. <3
Anything vinegar based for pickling is relatively safe since the vinegar and salt give you a great pH level to start off with.
Ooh I’ve also been wanting to start canning/preserving my garden veggies! As a beginner, I’ve been told to go with high-acid recipes that require only a 10-minute water bath (remember to use Mason jars, not regular glass!) instead of pressure canning. I was planning to pickle my jalapeños and make pepper jelly with them—but you can also try other simple acidic recipes like apple sauce, salsa, strawberry or grape jelly, and pickled cucumbers or beans! Most of those recipes only have 3 to 5 ingredients and can be put together quickly and don’t require anything fancier than mason jars and boiling water :) Have fun canning! So ~rustic~ !
i co-sign that you should def *not* start with pressure canning, water bath canning is the way to go for the 101 stuff! I FEEL SO EXCITED TALKING ABOUT CANNING!!!
Recipe ideas for the person who hates carrots and sweet potatoes, but keeps getting several pounds a week in her CSA? I like baking them into carrot breads or sweet potatoes pies, but I can’t live on dessert alone. I have also had luck hiding them in things like chili where they are just providing a little natural sweetness but not a terribly distinguished taste.
I like pairing both these things with smoky spicy bright sauces (romesco, harissa, mole, chermoula) and then something tangy and unctuous (like browned butter or creme fraiche
would you be into adding these to hash browns or would that still be too overwhelming with the flavor? i like to use sweet potatoes and regular potatoes together for hashes, latkes, etc and i think carrots could live in this space, too. then you can cover them in a soft egg (are y’all seeing a theme to my cooking life?) or dunk them in a yummy sauce and that could be good.
If you’ve been good with sweet potato pie, may I also recommend sweet potato bread? It’s you can substitute roasted and mashed sweet potatoes for pumpkin in any pumpkin recipe, actually. And I find the sweet potato versions to have the best texture!
The best roasted sweet potato recipe: https://smittenkitchen.com/2018/02/slow-roasted-sweet-potatoes/
Then let them cool, scoop out the flesh, and mash them real good until smooth and no huge lumps remain. Substitute them for pumpkin in this recipe: https://smittenkitchen.com/2016/10/pumpkin-bread/
And since I’m giving smitten kitchen recipes anyway, this one is amazing (I usually just use a basic cream cheese frosting because I’m too lazy for meringue. I’ve also skipped frosting all together and baked it in a loaf pan at 350 for one hour): https://smittenkitchen.com/2013/11/sweet-potato-cake-with-marshmallow-frosting/
I have a great soup recipe with those ingredients !
I put one diced onion, one big carrot and about 400g (that’s almost a pound for you americans) sweet potatoes to cook for 10 minutes in a big pan, with about 50g butter (almost half a stick).
Then add some broth to cover everything. Meanwhile, heat up 30cl (a bit over a cup) milk with vanilla (the recipe says one actual vanilla bean, I use aroma) and like, one inch ginger. Infuse for 10 minutes.
When everything’s soft you’re good. Blend the soup, strain the milk infusion and add to the soup.
It’s really nice, sweet-tasting but not sugary, and not too carroty/potatoey. Big recommend from me.
Grated carrots in pasta is delicious and very subtle, I think! It adds sweetness and a slight texture but is barely noticeable.
So excited to try this!
these all sound like great suggestions, thanks! And if it ends up too carrot-y or otherwise, I will foist it on my partner who does not loathe these things.
oh one more suggestion, possibly more for your partner than you but maybe you’ll be into it – i don’t love carrots if they’re sliced in a salad, but i somehow LOVE them when i peel them into ribbons? just take a veggie peeler and get the layer of outer skin off (normally i’d say skip this stem but for carrot ribbons you’re being kind of fancy and the skin takes away from the vibe) and then keep using the peeler to essentially peel long strips of the carrot. they become these really beautiful translucent ribbons and i find them so much yummier than carrot slices, i do not know why, it is just my truth!
Vanessa, maybe you’d like a salad my mom used to make when I was little: carrot ribbons like that with raisins. I can’t remember exactly what the dressing was, maybe a little honey and lemon juice with some dried mint? It’s certainly very tweakable if that doesn’t sound like quite the right thing to you.
Your favorite healthy-ish vegetarian recipes for winter that aren’t just salad or veg + tofu? I’m trying not to eat pasta with cheese for every meal (it’s hard tho)!
i’m a big advocate for soups and stews in the winter, especially three-bean chili, lentil soup, cream of anything, minestrone, or spicy pumpkin soup.
I LOVE SOUP
HAVE YOU TRIED SPIRALIZING?! I’m a huge fan. You can either replace spaghetti entirely or just do like half pasta half zucchini noodle, etc, and it’s a great way to veg out but still get to enjoy your fave pasta sauces. I know I already suggested this upthread but stuffed acorn squash! i also love me a good grain bowl. quinoa or cous cous + hella veggies. nice and filling but not as heavy as pasta.
OOOOO I love this idea!
Oh Valerie mentioned “grain bowl” and it reminded me that I love this: https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-tex-mex-quinoa-salad-244322
(I usually half the recipe for three servings, and make it with one of those boxes of five minute couscous instead of quinoa, because that’s what I have in my cabinets)
ALSO i don’t love tofu but i do love a lot of fake-meat proteins to beef up (pun intended) soups and stews and stir frys etc. like Upton brand has a bunch of different flavors of seitan crumbles, and Morningstar has some good stuff too.
Soups and stews for the win. Gimme all the legumes. You can even braise tofu in some kombu broth.
I also love a soft egg and sautéed greens on some creamy polenta
From Malic:
“ Veggie tacos! Load up some tortillas with any beans or veggies (mushrooms, carrots, kale, potatoes) that you like and top em with avocado. It’s super easy, and there are endless combinations. If you’re down with faux meat, Beyond Beef and Beyond Chicken work great in these, too.”
burrito bowl! I make seasoned black beans every week (these, but in the instant pot) and a bunch of rice, and then add a veg or two (I like roasted cubed sweet potato, this cauli rajas mixture, or white people esquites, but you can add whatever you want! sometimes I also just blacken like two pounds of bell peppers with onion and eat that all week. also I add a ton of cheese and salsa and crema, obvs
Sooo I’m not vegan or vegetarian—but I did grow up eating a lot of veggie-based Korean dishes that don’t require meat, and one of my favorite is bibimbap!
Bibimbap literally means mixed rice and is super easy to prep. You can easily make your own variations of it by just throwing in your favorite veggies, pickles, condiments, and proteins into a rice bowl. I use stir-fried zucchini, carrots, fresh cucumber, blanched spinach, red bell pepper, bean sprouts, some Korean fermented veggies and gochujang (fermented red pepper paste) and sesame oil. Highly recommend keeping sesame oil in your kitchen if you don’t already!
I also LOVE pancakes. I’m talking savory fried pancakes, not the sweet American kind! You can make delicious savory pancakes out of flour and kimchi (called kimchijeon) and you can even find premixed batter at Asian groceries.
I always recommend kimchi to vegans and vegetarians because it’s an extremely flavorful dish on its own AND you can use it as an ingredient in like a million dishes (just make sure it’s vegan kimchi, meaning no fish sauce or shrimp paste added)! There’s a whole world of vegan and vegetarian food to be found in Asian grocery stores.
i am the hugest fan of Roberto the soup! i make it every week and eat it for lunch 5 days in a row and i’m not sick of it yet (been doing this for 2 months, lol). you can make it without the sausage or with a veg substitute: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/kitchen-notes/the-many-lives-of-roberto-a-soup
Coconut curry (or any curry with veggies if you don’t like coconut) is such a delicious vegan option and super easy to make! I’m also a big fan of veggie-based soups and stews. One of my favorite stews to eat in the winter is miyeokguk, or seaweed soup. If you’re looking for a healthy option, seaweed soup has been praised a lot for its health benefits and is a super tasty, savory, meatless dish.
Veggie tacos! Load up some tortillas with any beans or veggies (mushrooms, carrots, kale, potatoes) that you like and top em with avocado. It’s super easy, and there are endless combinations. If you’re down with faux meat, Beyond Beef and Beyond Chicken work great in these, too.
I like tossing assorted veg together in oil and spices and tossing in them in an oven heated to 400 then making tacos
What are some of your laziest tasty (vegetarian) meals? I don’t really like to cook and end up being super lazy in the kitchen and making the same things over and over and I need some new ideas.
oh I love this – I do a lot of ramen-style noodles, where i’ll boil noodle cakes without seasoning and throw in some frozen veggies when I strain them or chop up some like cucumber and roasted peanuts while they cook, and then just eat them with whatever sauce sounds good – peanut sauce, ginger and soy, sometimes I just blend miso with butter, etc, put an egg on top if I want more protein. my go-to veg depression meal for when I really don’t have energy to cook is either tomato rice (put 2 cups of rice in a rice cooker with the appropriate amount of water, some oil, salt and pepper, and then core a ripe tomato and bury it in the rice and cook on the normal setting; after it’s done take a wooden spoon and stir the softened tomato into the steamed rice) or open-face melts (toast some bread, spread some mayo on it, take whatever veggies are in your fridge (tomatoes, onions, cooked broccoli, arugula) and put it on the bread, then layer a bunch of sliced cheese on top. put under the broiler in your oven until the cheese is bubbly, then eat!).
This is great!
oh also just want to add that to me, the most key lazy vegetarian cooking skill is sauces you really love – if you have 1-3 great sauces you make a lot, you can make anything lazy/healthy (I roast a bunch of whatever veg and cook a bunch of a carb, like rice, and just have them on hand) and combine them in a bowl then absolutely go to town w your fave sauce so it tastes great. here are some of my faves! I also very frequently just stir tahini & miso together with a fork and thin it out with water, maybe add some garlic if i’m feeling fancy, it’s so good, great on sweet potatoes.
This is exactly what I needed for this winter!
sometimes i throw seitan crumbles and broccoli into kraft mac & cheese (or sometimes even fake chicken nuggets if i’m feeling extra lazy) to make it feel more like a “meal” and do not accept judgement on this matter
similarly am a fan of cooking rice in veggie stock instead of water and mixing it with beans and corn seasoned with cumin. sometimes i’ll even put it in a tortilla with a lil cheese for a lazy burrito.
and i know i’ve recommended this on basically every thread but my go-to move in winter (especially since i live alone) is to make a BIG ASS POT of chili and freeze half and refrigerate half so i just always have a quick meal to re-heat when cooking is just Too Much
@floralprintdress what are your challah tips? I know I just said I’m kinda lazy in the kitchen (above) but I feel like I should get into making challah because I do have a weekly shabbat routine
I AM SO HAPPY SOMEONE ASKED THIS
haha oops i got so excited i sent that comment before i actually said anything of substance!
i love making challah every week because it really reminds me IT IS SHABBAT. if you already have a shabbat routine i think adding challah won’t be too challenging and will be really nourishing and satisfying.
my BIGGEST challah tip is to kneed the dough for a long time! when i use a mixer i let it go for 10 minutes at least, and when i kneed by hand i do 15-25 minutes. i’ve noticed a very big difference in the quality of my dough and the crumb structure of the bread (just how it looks/feels on the inside) because of my intense kneeding practices. my mom has been making challah for decades and she said when she increased her kneeding time it changed the whole game!
i would also suggest experimenting with different braiding styles to see which ones you like best! i personally love a 4 strand round challah, but when i want to feel exceptionally fancy i do a 6 strand regular braid.
if you have any specific questions or queries about the process let me know, but those are my biggest HOT TIPS.
<3
Thank you!!! <3
you’re welcome! happy challah baking!! <3
This is maybe just me not wanting to decide for myself…
But I’m wondering what I should make for my traditions of having “special meals” for Solstice and NYE?? I love making something a lil more involved, something I don’t make often, or something I REALLY want. Always spend NYE alone but not always for solstice although I will be this year, so I have to decide for both and they are soon-ish.
Some typical past options: Challah French Toast (making my own challah), tomato soup and grilled cheese, pizza (homemade dough ofc), fried rice & egg foo yung, pasta with my marinara, oven fries with garlic and cheese.
Some thoughts of new options: Gingerbread Waffles, maybe just pairing a usual with a special drink (non-alcoholic), ????
I generally call this season Carbmas if that gives you any ideas
personally i’ve always been so inspired and intimidated by the stuffed/filled breads they do on GBBO, including the braided ones – a meat/cheese/veg filled pretty bread could be really satisfying and fancy!
OH! YES! I’m so glad I asked! That’s absolutely what I want to do!!!
wow rachel continues to be a genius
CARBMAS!! I’m your girl!
I’m going to start with Mac and Cheese, the fancy kind so that you have to heat the milk first for a smoother bechamel and then you make homemade oversized bread crumbs to go on top (homemade challah would go well here, but Martha Stewart recommends Italian bread): https://smittenkitchen.com/2008/05/marthas-macaroni-and-cheese/
And while we are talking bechamel, I’ve always dreamed of making this lasagna: https://smittenkitchen.com/2012/02/lasagna-bolognese/
And if the lasagna is too much, here’s a streamlined version of just the bolognese: https://smittenkitchen.com/2020/05/simple-essential-bolognese/
I love a carby breakfast, and saw “French toast” on your first menu, so may I also add:
Boozy French Toast Casserole (equally delicious without the booze, consider alcohol-free eggnog instead): https://smittenkitchen.com/2006/12/new-years-day-2001/
Sour Cream Coffee Cake (and can i recommend adding chocolate chips if you really want to go there): https://www.howsweeteats.com/2014/10/sour-cream-coffee-cake-with-brown-butter-glaze/
CARMEN I DID NOT KNOW YOUR SECRET SUPER POWER IS HAVING THE PERFECT RECIPE FOR EVERY SINGLE OCCASION AND YET
hell yes, absolutely second lasagna! i can make my own noodles but i usually don’t – but i DO make ricotta bechamel for it that takes any lasagna up to an 11. highly recommend.
CARBMAS – the reason for the season tbh! <3
Ooo these are also great options, I haven't attempted homemade mac and cheese for a long time, issues with not-smooth cheesiness kept me from it. but that was also pre-experience making bechamel as a prep cook for a while, so maybe I could do it now!!! Thank you!
Ooo even more good ideas!
Meg- If I hadn’t seriously injured my hip (3 months severe pain, 2.5 months PT, and still lingering issues) while making my own pasta back in May… I would absolutely be making my own pasta for one of these meals!
But I’m not allowed to use my pasta machine alone anymore, cause I need at least 2 more hands to make the set up safe LOL
Carmen- Love this sour cream coffee cake idea! Ofc chocolate chips!!! <3
JAY I AM SO EXCITED FOR YOU, I WONDER WHAT MEALS YOU WILL DECIDE ON THESE ARE ALL SUCH GOOD OPTIONS!!
Damn what a fine group of cooking humans!
Question 1:
Any special tips for onion slicing (other than a sharp knife)? I get 3/4 way through slicing a half onion and the last part always is a tricky slidy challenge. I’ve cut so many onions and still can’t figure this out!
Question 2:
Anyone have any hot tips on how to cook my nemesis: meringue? I’m talking about the kind that is crunchy but not overcooked on the outside and possibly slightly gooey inside, that you make pavolva with for instance.
Thank you!
Sorry…wrong spot!
I know this sounds dumb, but are you leaving the end (the root) of your onion on when you cut it? I always just cut off the tip of the bulb of my onion but leave the root intact, which helps hold the onion layers together and gives you something to grab onto when cutting.
Around the solstice in usually leaning towards seafood and feast of the seven fishes vibes. Oysters, chowder. Cioppino. Salted crusted whole fish baked lovingly.
NYE has always been a lighter eating night, as my family (normally) goes to a bunch of house on New Year’s Day (a Japanese custom), it’s usually soba noodles, fish, azuki beans, yams, gobo/lotus roo Lt and a lot of mizuna.
All this to say, eat whatever you feel brings you joy and wealth (however that looks) into your coming year
Damn what a fine group of cooking humans!
Question 1:
Any special tips for onion slicing (other than a sharp knife)? I get 3/4 way through slicing a half onion and the last part always is a tricky slidy challenge. I’ve cut so many onions and still can’t figure this out!
Question 2:
Anyone have any hot tips on how to cook my nemesis: meringue? I’m talking about the kind that is crunchy but not overcooked on the outside and possibly slightly gooey inside, that you make pavolva with for instance.
Thank you!
(posted in the wrong spot above on this juddery bus ride to work, so reposted here)
okay hot tips on onions:
sharp knife for sure, but also don’t be afraid to move the onion in the way it wants to go. if it’s slipping and sliding, shift it to a different angle so the flattest part is on the cutting board, even if it makes the finished slices/dices different shapes and sizes (wow we are RHYMING here). i find that with most vegetables if i’m having trouble cutting the final bit, flipping them onto a different side can make a difference.
hot tips on meringue (I LOVE PAVLOVAS):
i need to know more about why meringue is your nemesis. i would say my main hot tip is to pull it from the oven a little before you think it’s time so the center doesn’t overcook, but i want to be sure there’s not something standing in your way before you get to that step. if you have time/energy, more details plz!
Answer 1:
After grabbing a sharp knife. Remember That your hands are key and the onion can be flipped and used however you’d like. The first way I learned (that later got criticized by French taught chefs but always felt right) is to turn the onion so you aren’t tweaking your wrist into an uncomfortable position and cutting in a way you can’t see.
Remember that the heel of your knife is just important as the tip and for onion slicing, the heel was extra weight to make your job easier. What I’m saying is use your heel to do the brute force work and not the tip cause as a lever that parts the most unstable of the knife
Can and will send videos of what I’m talking about.
Answer 2:
Not a single idea. Savory all day.
i slice my onions with the straight blade on my spiralizer or (CAREFULLY) on a mandoline because i too cannot knife them to save my life
Okay…I hope this is a relevant question? I have various chronic health conditions (including some pretty bad mental health difficulties) and I also have dyspraxia which makes my motor skills very ropey. I find getting through life tiring – just getting to work, basic hygiene, etc can be hard work some days. Cooking is sometimes more than I can handle! To add to this, I’m also a picky eater. I live on my own but spend a lot of my time living with my best friend who also has a chronic health condition.
WHAT can I cook?! How do I make this situation mildly better? I struggle with standing for very long and cooking skills like chopping are possible but challenging. I end up eating beige food constantly and feel like I’m missing out on any vitamins and minerals. Anything you can suggest would be very welcome!
forgive me if this is patronizingly basic but I can’t recommend frozen veggies highly enough – they’re just as healthy and fresh as stuff from the produce aisle once they’re defrosted, they’re pre-chopped, they’re cheap, and you can buy them and keep them in the freezer for when you have the time and energy to cook them, so you don’t have to worry about buying fresh food that goes bad because you weren’t able to get to it in time. I buy huge bags of frozen broccoli and throw it in the hot oven straight from the freezer to roast and then eat it with pasta, noodles or rice; you can also do frozen cubed squash or sweet potatoes or cauliflower, all of which are also great roasted. if you can get a rice cooker (I have this one, it’s also really simple to get yourself a carb and cook a bunch at a time to reheat. I definitely recommend cooking a lot of roasted veg and making a grain when you have energy, and then portioning it out and even freezing portions to eat on days when you don’t have the energy to make something from scratch.
I love a food processor to make knife work for more of a breeze and whatever you don’t use can always be frozen.
Also sitting down to wash greens or remove stems from things is a very under valued/under advised way to reduce time spent on your feet.
Roasted squash of any kind is mostly passive and can be dressed up so many ways. Also any kind of brassica (think cauliflower and radish and turnips) are great for easy prep. Just clean em toss in olive oil, salt and whatever spices speak to your taste buds and throw into a 400 F oven for 15-20 and you have some colorful veg to fuck around and find out about
I hate chopping and dicing so I’ve found a lot of workarounds that I think maybe will help since they’re much quicker and most require much less grip-strength or at least finesse/skill, which i also lack (also I’m biased because my day job is writing copy for OXO, which was founded with arthritic hands in mind, and means I’ve been exposed to a lot more quick-fix products than I might have otherwise)
For ‘finely chopping’ i use this hand food processer but real ones work well too: https://www.oxo.com/one-stop-chop-manual-food-processor.html
for ‘thinly slicing’ i use the flat blade on a spiralizer: https://www.oxo.com/categories/cooking-and-baking/cut-slice-chop/tabletop-spiralizer.html
for ‘dicing’ i use this bad boi, which does require a bit of pushing strength but no gripping: https://www.oxo.com/categories/cooking-and-baking/cut-slice-chop/peelers-and-choppers/vegetable-chopper-with-easy-pour-opening.html
and no matter what a recipe asks me to do with garlic i use this (which involves some squeezing but not a controlled movement): https://www.oxo.com/garlic-press-505.html
OXO has a lot of tools meant to make very specific tasks easier, so while again you should definitely take it with a grain of salt because i do work for the company but also i do legit live and swear by a lot of these products because my patience is low and my accident-proneness is high and my knife skills are non-existent and i find these things help a lot in these respects
Hi and thank you so much for asking! I’m also joining the roasting party here!
I hope this also isn’t super basic. If it is, I’m sorry and please feel free to ignore! In terms of making it easier / tastier to eat vegetables, roasting also is an effective way to deal with foods that have outer skins like your squashes and your potatoes that are also difficult to chop when raw. The basic thing here is that these can for the most part be cooked whole, which softens their outer skins / shells, making it easier to remove them after they’re all cooked and it softens the food itself, making it easier to cut up post-roast. I especially love doing this with squashes because sometimes those are super hard and difficult to cut in half or otherwise and I would just rather not!
A thing you can do with squashes that are irritating to de-seed and have a strong / thick outer shell (like acorn, spaghetti, a small butternut or pumpkin) is to bake them in the oven whole and then let them cool and cut them up. Here’s an article about this. You can also microwave squashes whole.
For the spaghetti squash, an easy fav thing of mine to do is to microwave a spaghetti squash (Stab a few times with fork or knife or whatever sharp object works best, wrap in wet paper towels, put in microwave. This can take up to 20 minutes but also depends on how your microwave is. Be sure to rotate it. It’s done when it’s soft all around). You can cut it in half once you take it out of the microwave and leave it on the counter to cool or you can just let it cool as is. Once it’s handle-able, you can scrape the “spaghetti” strands out, and re-microwave in a bowl with your favorite pasta sauce. I love to top with pesto and cheese. Vitamins but also make it pasta!
Also with roasting, if you enjoy sweet potatoes, those can be roasted, skin on, in an oven safe dish (like a casserole dish) with the lid on and a little oil or butter spread on the bottom. Once cool, the skins slip right off sweet potatoes, eliminating a need to spend time peeling / handling a peeler. With sweet potatoes, roasting them in the skin allows the natural sugars to caramelize, making it tastier. Also here is another method that I have not tried but would try for removing regular potato skins.
I also cannot second Rachel’s love of pre-chopped frozen vegetables enough. They’re the best!
Any sweet recommendation for someone who misses making cookies and other sweet baked goods. But smaller then ideal kitchen and post work tiredness end up killing my motivation to make anything at?
I REALLY DO!!!!
First, I recommend baking on the weekend and then stock piling homemade cookie dough in the freezer. You can make any of your favorite cookie recipes and then after you shape the cookies/when you would normally put them in the oven — don’t. Lay them flat on some parchment paper a baking tray that fits in your freezer (or even, a plate) so that they aren’t overly touching. Then once they are frozen, throw them all in a ziplock bag.
All cookies can be baked from frozen without changing the cooking time (some may need an extra minute perhaps, but nothing overt).
This method also works with: unbaked scones and unbaked biscuits. Cut them, shape them, freeze them. Then you can bake them off one-by-one as the urge hits.
For: Brownies, Blondies, Pumpkin or Banana Bread, etc — basically any baked good without frosting — you can freeze your baked goods after they have cooled from the oven. You will want to wrap them individually in syran wrap to minimize freezer burn. Then throw them in a ziplock bag.
(Of course if you are a minimum plastic person, you can use eco-friendly alternatives to wherever I say “ziplock bag” etc)
This will help a great deal with the post-work fatigue “I’m too tired to bake but I miss sweets” phenomenon.
OK SO THAT OUT OF THE WAY — NOW FOR RECIPES FOR A SMALL KITCHEN:
The main thing you want here is to half all your cookie recipes. Most cookie recipes are for 48+ cookies, but if your kitchen is small that is entirely too many supplies to keep around, 5lb bags of flour etc, and too much time in a small space. BUT if you half the recipes you are usually looking at 15 – 24 cookies, and can do that with a significantly smaller 3lb bag of flour better sized for a small kitchen cabinet.
Same with brownies or blondies — anything made with an 8 inch baking pan is fine, but if its in a 9×13, you will want to halve it.
(Oh but Carmen — what about halving a single egg? Great news for you! You don’t have to! You can either, mix your egg in a bowl and use half of it in the recipe or you can just use one entire egg. I have never hit a wall when I should have used “half an egg” in a smaller recipe but just used the full egg instead and have it be a problem. It never is)
Here’s more guidance on how to halve measurements: https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/how-to-cut-down-recipes/
Next, you also want to use recipes that can either be made by hand or using a hand mixer, anything that requires a fancy stand mixer is just not worth the effort. IF you want to be fancy — they make mini food processors that fit in a really small Brooklyn kitchen, I speak from experience. But one basic hand mixer should cover your needs.
Here are recipes I consistently made in my very small kitchen (by halving them) while also writing my dissertation and very stressed with little time:
https://smittenkitchen.com/2009/02/thick-chewy-oatmeal-raisin-cookies/ (I subbed chocolate chips for raisins, because I’m me)
https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/peanut-butter-cookies/6aa18699-bad1-442a-97bf-388003acce2d
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/174864/original-nestle-toll-house-chocolate-chip-cookies/
https://smittenkitchen.com/2006/11/blondies/
https://smittenkitchen.com/2012/08/my-favorite-brownies/
https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/ultimate-magic-cookie-bars/
Thank you ❤️
So excited to read all these tips! My question: more vegetables how?
Do I have to pick only two from tasty/easy/healthy, or can I have all three? So far I just roast broccoli with salt + pepper or put kale in the hand blender with pineapple + blackberries.
I asked this before fully reading the comments and I already have so many fun new ideas!
i do think roasting pretty much any veg except delicate greens is the answer to tasty/easy/healthy! i also like experimenting with roasting certain things in butter or drizzling maple syrup all over them before they go in the oven – still pretty easy (especially if you put tinfoil down so you’re not scrubbing burnt maple syrup off your pan for 10 years after the meal is over), but adds some zest! speaking of – zesting a lemon or straight up roasting lemons or other citrus with richer tasting veggies can cut some of that richness and be delightful. i’m also a huge fan of sauces and dips. they don’t need to be elaborate or hard to make (hell, buy them if that’s the roadblock between you and some saucy goodness) but a delicious dressing or dipping sauce can really change the whole tune of a vegetable.
Any cooking ~project~ ideas, particularly savory? E.g. I made croissants last weekend and it started on Saturday and I didn’t get to eat a single one until Monday afternoon, and I’ve been making breads including babkas that take at least two days. I’m always finding lists online of like 5 easy 30-minute weeknight sheet pan meals, but I can never find lists of 5 very elaborate weekend meal projects for when you are stuck inside all the time because of quarantine and don’t want to stare at a screen anymore so you might as well cook something finicky and fancy. My partner is a vegetarian so that would be a plus, but is not required as long as it reheats well.
I mentioned this one earlier today, but it’s time for the fancy lasagna: https://smittenkitchen.com/2012/02/lasagna-bolognese/
that looks good! I just made pasta this weekend too, but turning it into a lasagna is next level.
I have not yet done this, but I like the idea of making a pizza where I’ve made every element of it: so mozzarella, dough, pickled peppers, sauce (I think that’s probably all the things that I can make!). I want to make this cheese recipe sometime: https://www.seriouseats.com/2015/10/how-to-make-fresh-mozzarella-from-scratch.html
I think something that feels elaborate to me is when you make a dough, like for a dumpling or a samosa, and also make a delicious filling, and then stuff them and cook them together: https://omnivorescookbook.com/steamed-char-siu-bao/ (I want to say you can do this without meat, but I really am not sure) or this sweet one: https://omnivorescookbook.com/pineapple-buns/
Have you heard of The Rebar Cookbook? It’s by the chefs of a vegetarian restaurant in Victoria, BC but I’m not sure how well known it is outside my province / Canada! But they have quite elaborate recipes in there, like veggie enchiladas where you make the red sauce from scratch, homemade yam perogies, savoury bread pudding (my go-to holiday stuffing substitute recipe). They have suggestions for which mains go with which sides to make a meal. I sometimes find their recipes annoyingly elaborate, so I think this is what you are looking for!
I can’t find the book on bookshop, but here it is on Amazon: https://www.amazon.ca/Rebar-Modern-Cookbook-Audrey-Alsterburg/dp/0968862306
Braised leeks are a great way to feel fancy and time consuming.
Ingredients:
Leeks
Shallots
Thyme
Trim leek greens down to to 3 inches above the white part. Soak everything in lukewarm warm water.
Use the greens and trimmed edges of the shallots and boil in cold water drop to a simmer for 1-2hrs
While that’s rolling, halve or quarter your leeks to a reasonably eating size
Sear the leeks in olive oil or preferred oil (ideally with a high smoke point) until gbd (golden brown delicious)
Transfer leeks to a baking pan preferably with 2 inch high walls
Once leeks are seared use the same pan to sautée sliced shallots and thyme until translucent and fragrant.
Deglaze with strained leek stock and pour over leeks
Bake at 350 for 15. Rotate And bake for another 15.
Remove from oven, and enjoy hot or cold…these are one of y favorite salad add one but also make a really nice garnish for any starch
Ugh, no specific question? But I’m really trying to level up as a baker and I want your advice on how to do that! I had to self-isolate for two weeks (I’m fine now!) and I used it to bake new and more challenging recipes, but I also want to perfect those smaller recipes. I’m much more of a baker than a chef, I had the literal worst meals three weeks ago and then got some of my parents’ home cooked meals to balance it out,
Ohhh I love leveling up baking skills!
If we are truly looking at “how do I work on my skills” — I recommend these cookies (make 4 dozen, half vanilla and half chocolate — and then before you add in the mix-ins — split the dough up into four parts and half the dough, one chocolate and one vanilla, with mix-ins as described some as in the recipe. Finish other parts, the rest of your chocolate and your vanilla base, without mix-ins. For your plain dough, after its final refrigerator rest — use the last steps of this recipe for thumbprints for some of them, and finish the last set with these steps for icing.)
And then I recommend these scones (hint: freeze butter, grate butter, then freeze again. Also freeze the grated cheese — do both the night before baking).
Both of these recipes challenged me and taught me skills I didn’t previously have and are widely applicable beyond each individual project. They are like “basics+” for when you already know what you’re doing but want to really get excellent at timing and ovens and measurements and letting butter rest, etc.
This is the most advanced cake project I’ve ever accomplished, and I still feel really proud of myself! If you’re looking more for a “mastering the basics” — here is my favorite white (sprinkles optional, of course), yellow (skipping the tumeric completely), and chocolate cakes for all your mix-and-match purposes. (Here’s the tips that first got me started on mastering layer cakes)
I’d love to work my way up to making this cake right here.
And last! The Kitchn ran an online baking school “challenge” a few years back, and it’s an excellent project to work through if you’re looking to go from “a mid-level home baker” to “whoa babyyy holy shit”
I’m so excited for this, thanks!
OMG CARMEN! That almond petit-four cake!
does anyone here do sourdough? i tried to get into the game but i’m stuck on the step where you shape the dough into a boule that’s supposed to… through surface tension or something??… somewhat hold its shape even after the second rise. how do you get that surface tension going?
i don’t do sourdough but i am really hoping someone else here does because i would love to hear the answer. if none of us can answer we may have to outsource this question to a sourdough expert! we will get to the bottom of this!
OH HELLO SOURDOUGH! I grew my own starter during quarantine and have been making about a loaf a week for the past few months. I do a sort of modified no-knead situation? It yields gorgeous, rounded loaves (at least every time I do it). Here’s a link to my recipe. If you have questions, I am so very happy to talk through the specifics.
meep! That link should be https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GDb-7JXeeDCPubV7MwyUs-3DkhXAekOw/view?usp=sharing.
ah thanks! okay your recipe says to do the pull-into-a-ball thing until the dough “begins to tighten”.
when i’ve tried, the dough will sort of start to tighten into a boule… and then a tiny corner will stick on the counter (even though i’ve floured it) and the whole thing will fall apart.
or, when i lift it to put it in a bowl, whatever surface tension i managed to create comes right undone because i lifted it.
tips??
How much water is in your dough? What you’re describing sounds like something that could happen with a wetter dough. The recipe I use is not super wet, so you can basically pick up the whole thing as a dough ball from the beginning. The pulling part is mostly to stretch the gluten strands or something, and also because it’s fun :) Possibly try a slightly smaller water-to-flour ratio?
Hi @floralprintdress or any mods! Since I can’t edit my comment, I wonder if someone could go in and replace the first link I posted with the (correct) second one? The first link to the spreadsheet is restricted access, but it does have some info that doesn’t want to be hanging out on the open internet. I pasted it by mistake! Thanks so much.
AHH! I forgot this was happening today! Yes yes yes! 😄✨
My bad if someone already asked this but: Do you know of a basic cookie recipe arranged in one of those grids where you can pick an ingredient from each column? (Like 2 cups of something from Column A, 1 tsp of something from Column B, etc.?) I’ve seen this for muffins, but not so much for cookies.
Basically, I love to cook but not follow recipes, and I want to get better at baking so I can have kind of a basic idea of what goes into a cookie dough and riff on that.
Any general, rule of thumb cookie tips are appreciated too! Thank you!!!
🍪🍪🍪
I love the idea of this!
My biggest tip based on your notes above is that any basic chocolate chip cookie recipe (you can pick your favorite, the Nestle recipe is a classic) will give you a sense of “basic cookie dough” and you can add in any mix-ins of your choice from there. Similarly, any basic peanut butter cookie can be adjusted for cookie butter, Nutella, etc.
So based on that, may I recommend: https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/chocolate-chip-less-cookies/ and https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/basic-drop-cookies-recipe — both of which are primed for “mix-and-match” cookie potential
THEN if you want to start getting into the “how do cookies work so I never have to think this deeply about it again,” check out this informative primer on cookies overall and “drop cookies” in particular (those are your basic chocolate chips, your oatmeal raisins, your peanut butters — basically most every day things that aren’t fancy sugar cookies): https://www.thekitchn.com/baking-school-day-17-cookies-222495
This is great! Thank you Carmen!! 🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪
I have a question for Casey specifically. As Autostraddle’s resident lesbrian, what cookbooks would you recommend to a beginning cook?
Oooh yes a lesbrarian question! Do you have any dietary restrictions or preferences? Let me know and I will get you some more recommendations.
I will start with the recommendation of Mollie Katzen’s Moosewood Cookbook 40th edition (here’s a link with an Autostraddle affiliate if you want:https://bookshop.org/a/3130/9781607747390). It is a classic for a reason and has been my vegetarian cookbook staple since I was 18! But it’s definitely not just for vegetarians. Katzen’s recipes are easy to follow, healthy, and very tasty! They don’t tend to have a lot of steps and are generally forgiving. I especially like her soups, casseroles, and desserts (her banana bread recipe is my all time favourite and I have tried a lot). If you’re just getting started on salads and sandwiches, thinking about what ingredients go together, she has that too!
What I love about this cookbook is it’s great for trying to come up with something for dinner using ingredients you’re likely to already have in the fridge and pantry. The recipes generally don’t have hard-to-find or expensive ingredients. She also gives a lot of suggestions for altering recipes if you need to, especially if you want to switch out veggies, lower or omit dairy, and other options. I am generally the kind of cook that gets annoyed with very specific or convoluted instructions or directions that say you have to have this type of whatever, and I feel Mollie Katzen’s cookbook is exactly the opposite of that!
I am back with some research even though I haven’t heard back from you yet (I can’t help myself, I’m a librarian). I have found some cookbooks with uniformly positive reviews specifically in their applicability for beginner cooks:
— Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking by Samin Nosrat, Wendy MacNaughton (Illustrations)
This has been referred to as a modern classic, a 21st century Joy of Cooking. It follows Nosrat’s four element approach and teaches that as the basis to make all food taste good! It delves into the hows and whys, which is supposed to help beginners learn how cooking works rather than following recipes without getting why you’re doing what you’re doing. It covers all manner of omnivore recipes, from salad dressing, pastry, braised meat, roasted veggies, and more. Nosrat is Persian American so you can look forward to yummy Persian / Persian influenced dishes in this one in particular.
–How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman (there is also a vegetarian version of this one if you’re interested)
Another one considered a modern Joy of Cooking that covers a wide variety of recipes for American-ish food and is a big basic cookbook that can double as a kind of reference. The audience is for specifically folks who are starting as beginners and it includes general instructions on cooking technique as well as tons of recipes, which as tasty but not complicated. The idea for the recipes is they’re good enough to be worth cooking from scratch and that you could serve to guests, but basic enough that they are achievable even for starter cooks.
Okay and one more:
–Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero
This one seems to be the vegan Joy of Cooking equivalent! My friend who is a vegan and nutritionist swears by it as very user-friendly. There are 250 recipes in the 10th anniversary edition. There are also soy free, fat free, and gluten free options. Mainstays in this cookbook are soups and muffins. The ingredients are in between very basic and specialty. You may have to go to a special store or two for a few recipes, while others should be available at your average grocery store. Definitely vegan recipes here that will also appeal to non-vegans.
Links to bookshop affiliate AS account if you’re interested:
Veganomicon:https://bookshop.org/a/3130/9780738218991
How to Cook Everything: https://bookshop.org/a/3130/9781328545435
Salt Fat Acid Heat: https://bookshop.org/a/3130/9781476753836
Sorry for the slow reply I was in a Zoom meeting. Thanks for the suggests, I’ll take a look!
Easy healthy snacks that actually taste good? I find cooking meals enough of a pain so just end up buying a load of chocolate
oh i love snacking! i guess it depends on how involved or elaborate of a snack you’re looking for. I like to roast thinly sliced eggplant (Japanese or Chinese ones work best!) with salt and olive oil and just eat them, like chips. I like making a yogurt dip with cucumber, mint, cumin, and eating it with carrots, broccoli or pita chips. I also eat a lot of chocolate, sometimes I just melt it in a bowl with a banana and add pecans. I also do a lot of toasts (I don’t think there are healthy, just maybe better than chips): with avocado, with smoked salmon and goat cheese, with ricotta and pomegranate seeds, with honey and butter and red chili flakes, with thin slices of apple and cheese.
“I like to roast thinly sliced eggplant (Japanese or Chinese ones work best!) with salt and olive oil and just eat them, like chips.” OMG KAMALA I WANT THIS AND I WANT IT RIGHT NOW!!!!
i highly recommend this, i can really put away a lot of eggplant like this!
i also loooove snacking! i wrote about it in response to another comment, but i like to make quick and easy “cheese boards” that are really just a variety of snack foods on a plate and call it lunch. it’s the only thing my tastebuds have been remotely excited about around 12:30pm these days, so i’ve been leaning into it. an ideal cheese plate lunch (or snack) for me is: 1 hard cheese, 1 meat, 1-3 veggies (very into radishes sliced thin, carrots peeled into ribbons, pickled anything but especially sweet pickled green tomatoes), apple slices, olives (dress in olive oil and flaky salt), nuts, maybe a dip if i’m feeling fancy.
also really love to make large quantities of roast or steamed veggies in advance, make or buy some creative dips, and either make fancy “toasts” (literally just assembling this stuff on a nice piece of bread) or simply dip the veg into the dips whenever the mood strikes!
but also i’m a big fan of chocolate.
I wrote this in response to another question, but it is very relevant for you too:
An easy healthy snack my partner makes that is kind of like a salad but not really? Anyway he cuts up cucumber in bite size pieces and squeezes lime juice and tajin on it and then mixes it around in a bowl. (Tajin is a Mexican spice mix that is salty, limey, and spicy–I’m pretty sure in the US it is easy to find at grocery stores). It also works on grated or chopped carrots.
If you enjoy salty/spicy flavour on fruit, this combo is also delicious on apple, mango, or pineapple (even canned, which makes it real easy!).
Oooh I love tajin on mango 🥵💖💖💖 honestly just keeping tajin in your kitchen can revolutionize your snacking lol
I’m loving all these questions about healthy snacks bc I have an arsenal lol 💖 I think seasoned roasted seaweed sheets are delicious on their own, but they can also be combined with other ingredients to make really simple but tasty snacks. On that note, I like stocking up on things I can pair with crackers or toast, like avocado, hummus, cream cheese, pepper jelly, and—if you wanna get fancy—smoked salmon. This might not be conventional but crushed-up seasoned seaweed (I get the Korean kind that’s prepackaged) is sooo good on cream cheese and salmon. Another easy favorite of mine is triscuits and fresh beets. It’s all about finding your favorite flavor combos!
Kale chips are easy to make. It just requires some washing and drying of the kale…but toss those leaves in olive oil and salt and throw into an oven set to 400 and 25 minutes later you have yourself some crunchy chips on a baking sheet.
Sprouted nuts and seeds are great also!!
You can realistically spout any un-hulled item… brown rice? Hell yeah! Farro?? Fuck yeah! Lentils? Actually one of my favorite go-tos are sprouts… sprouting these hard-to-digest items is tight because the seed is tricked into germinating, it releases amino acids and proteins that are usually denatured during the high heat and time of cooking.
Anyway, more to the point. Soak your favorite un-hulled item (dry chickpeas, lentils farro, mung beans, etc etc) for 2-6 hours depending on the item. Drain them and let sit in a colander. Water them each day and rotate…refrigerate them once they pop and show their tails.
Does anyone have a good gluten-free baking recipe? I’ve been wanting to bake cookies, a sweet bread, anything, really, to get in the holiday mood, avoid my pile of grading, and distract myself from worrying about my grandparents who have COVID. The problem is that the rest of the family is on some sort of low-carb diet, so there is less that 1/8 cup of regular flour in the house. There is a lot of almond flour and a moderate amount of coconut flour, but I’ve never tried baking gluten-free things before. I’d like to use what we have and not go to the store due to COVID worries and the fact that we’re down one car after my dad slid on some ice and hit a curb a couple of days ago. (This all sounds like a series of unfortunate events, but I have truly been wanting to bake recently!)
I have had a few delicious almond cakes made with almond flour! I think it’s a really great gluten-free option because they’re often made to be baked with all almond flour, not something that’s supposed to be full of gluten that’s been adapted perhaps not very well. The recipes seem generally to be very simple, like 4 ingredient: almond flour, sugar, eggs, and lemon/other citrus fruit for flavour. This recipe is a good example I think: https://natashaskitchen.com/almond-cake-recipe/. Maybe someone who regularly does gluten-free baking has a tried and true recipe?
i’m gonna second casey that when i’m baking gluten-free i’d prefer to just skip the gluten altogether rather than substitute for it. for passover my mom always makes a flourless chocolate cake that is decadent and delicious, and if you’re open to working with meringue someone above was asking about pavlovas and i think those are the most delicious gluten-free festive desserts. you could also try a pudding…
i hope your grandparents and your dad are ok and i hope you get to bake something delicious soon. <3
Here to second that flourless chocolate cake is the best.
Yes, my dad is fine – he was going slowly due to the weather anyway. He’s just upset with himself for messing up the car than anything else. My grandfather seems to be on the mend, but my grandmother is still in the thick of it. Here’s hoping…
I hope everyone’s okay! Sending healing vibes your way.
I don’t have a “baking” recipe exactly, but I do often make pancakes that are mostly almond flour, and since you have a lot of that, this might be a thing!
The pancakes I make are a modification of this recipe which also is found in Isa Does It which is a vegan cookbook. My version is not vegan but you sort of mix and match and play around until things feel right for you with this.
To make the almond pancakes with this recipe:
1. Sub flour for almond flour. They will NOT get nearly as fluffy. They will not. The original fluffiness of the original recipe saves them from being flat little sand dollars, or at least that’s my thought process here, but the almond flour takes away from that. If not going for 100% gluten free and more low-carb, you can sub 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup white flour back in for the almond and that will create a slightly fluffier pancake.
2. Sub brown sugar for the white sugar. It adds to the nuttiness.
3. Pour out that almond (or whatever milk you choose to use) into a glass measuring cup. Then take whatever your preferred nut butter is (if you have almond butter, this is the best one! but any will do.) and take a big old spoonful out and put it into the milk. Microwave for 30-60 seconds, monitoring to make sure you don’t burn it. Once softened, whisk together until the nut butter is dissolved in the warm milk. Use the milk as recipe indicates.
4.I prefer to sub 1 egg for the flax seeds (which are the vegan way of doing an egg here), but if you’re vegan / cooking for a vegan or someone with an egg allergy, please feel free to leave as is.
5. I like to sub 3 TBSP melted butter for the canola oil and up the salt ratio.
A couple tips: Be sure to give the pancake batter its full 10 minute rest period! It needs it to get bubbly. Also, be sure to do a tiny test pancake and then taste it! You might find that you need to add liquid, add flour, add salt, add sugar — all according to your personal taste. This is probably really basic, but if you do a teeny tiny test first, then you can fix anything you don’t like before moving forward.
They won’t taste like traditional pancakes, but they’re kind of like sweet and salty morning umami bombs? I hope this is helpful!
I’d definitely start here, both for a list of recipe suggestions as well as a primer on how baking with almond flour works differently than all-purpose/what to expect/etc: https://www.thekitchn.com/7-ways-to-bake-with-almond-flour-and-almond-meal-243264
I also trust King Arthur about most things: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/strawberry-almond-flour-cake-recipe
Thank you all for these suggestions! I’m currently deciding between the almond cake and the chewy almond spice cookie recipe that is in the list.
I am looking for some new snack ideas! I love to eat salty and/or savory snacks and my only restriction is being lactose intolerant. Anyone have suggestions for snacks that are a little bit more fun than just eating chips straight out of the bag, but also not so complicated to make that I just give up and switch back to the chips?
i am rly into simple fancy “cheese plates” but contrary to the name, you don’t have to actually include cheese (i am also lactose intolerant but i’ve been eating a lot of cheese during quarantine anyway because the small joy of it is worth the stomach ache, usually). but ok, things i often put on my cheese plate:
sliced salami (get a fancy log and slice yourself or just buy store bought pre-sliced), olives, nuts, sliced radishes, spicy corn, crackers, fancy dip… basically anything you’d put on a cheese plate can be eaten without the actual cheese and to me is quite exciting!
Do you like popcorn? You could stock up on various, shake-a-ble toppings from nutritional yeast to seaweed flakes to garlic-powder based combos so that it’s not all samey. It’s still crunchy and satisfying though but ideally shouldn’t be more than 5 min start to finish if you’re popping the microwave kind.
I was also going to suggest popcorn — especially homemade from kernels if you’ve never tried that before. My favorite is to shake some nutritional yeast powder (you can find it in most baking aisles, they are yellow flakes) on top with garlic/salt/pepper/paprika.
I live in the southern U.S and here’s what my friend who grew up in Arkansas would say: take a sleeve of saltines (or your favorite crackers) and add canola oil, ranch seasoning, crushed red pepper flakes, and anything else you like in your spice cabinet (I like onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, chives and a little chicken bouillon powder). They’re called firecrackers in the south and are perfect if you want a salty, savory and versatile snack.
okay i’m just gonna put out there, that as a salty snack lover, nothing is ever REALLY better than chips, BUT:
-sometimes i just eat a bunch of nori, either from seaweed snack packs, or from the big plastic jars you can just get at the asian store
-popcorn: I’m often too lazy, but a little butter or olive oil with the trader joe’s everything bagel seasoning or their 21 seasonings salute is pretty tasty, or you could do a number of seasonings here
-vegetables: I will eat these raw with dips, the dips just need to be tasty and my friend does one with tahini, a bunch of herbs, lemon and salt and my mom has always done one with soy sauce, mayo, a tiny bit of garlic and a little lemon, which is so good for reasons, I don’t understand — you can also buy things like this: https://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/zhoug-sauce, like the wet chip seasoning
-do you do meat snacks? sometimes I just have salami with a slice of apple and a dab of mustard on top, I suppose one could add a cracker too
-pickles?
-frozen eggrolls or potstickers always do me a solid
-also do you do south asian snacks? frozen paratha is so good and yummy, and this is a favorite of mine, it’s like cereal but savory: https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/bhel-puri-mumbai-bhel-puri/
i do have to say that kamala is right, at the end of the day, nothing beats chips (but the other stuff we all suggested is a good second place ;))
Okay this is an easy healthy snack my partner makes that is kind of like a salad but not really? Anyway he cuts up cucumber in bite size pieces and squeezes lime juice and tajin on it and then mixes it around in a bowl. (Tajin is a Mexican spice mix that is salty, limey, and spicy–I’m pretty sure in the US it is easy to find at grocery stores). It also works on grated or chopped carrots.
If you enjoy salty/spicy flavour on fruit, this combo is also delicious on apple, mango, or pineapple (even canned, which makes it real easy!).
Casey yes I totally forgot how good Tajin is!! And I love the carrots idea – I’ve only ever had it on cucumber, pineapple, mango, and melon.
Thank y’all for these suggestions!! This is exactly what I’m looking for and I’m so excited to try these out.
Nicole, Carmen, and Kamala: DEFINITELY yes to the popcorn. Popcorn with nutritional yeast is already a favorite, but now I want to also try it with the seaweed flakes and the everything bagel seasoning.
Vanessa, I recently bought some cute ramekins and I think they would be perfect for a cheese plate! Putting things from a jar into a cute dish is the ideal ratio of effort to excitement.
Renea, I also live in the south and I’ve had crackers like that but never thought to make my own! Thanks for the recipe, I will definitely be trying that.
Kamala, I love all these ideas. I can’t believe I’ve never thought to combine salami, apple, and mustard! The dip recipes and frozen suggestions also sound delicious.
And yes it’s hard to beat the deliciousness of chips but all of these other snacks will be very satisfying to prepare which will make my snack experience even better.
cute ramekins are THE MOVE!!! excited for you!
I’m curious if folks have a go-to favorite cookie recipe for quarantine? Bonus points if it freezes well so I can eat fresh cookies all the time.
this is my favorite go-to cookie recipe of all the time: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/brown-butter-sea-salt-chocolate-chip-cookies/
and if you want to make it really fancy and elaborate you can stuff the cookies with nutella!: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/nutella-stuffed-brown-butter-sea-salt-chocolate-chip-cookies-my-favorite-cookie-ever/
(but the regular not-stuffed recipe is very rich and delightful all on its own!)
hello i’m just here to second both of these recipes jfc they are so good
So I don’t go in for very sweet things, so I modify this, which I’ll get to, but shortbread can be made with a variety of flavor combos! Keys are not to overwork the dough and not to overcook it. I use this NYTimes basic recipe but half the sugar, sub brown sugar and with salted butter, extra salt to taste. I love to add tons of fresh rosemary as well as lemon zest. Another variation I’ve been meaning to do would be to stir in some tahini and lemon zest. 🍋 I have successfully frozen and re-thawed this. You could also probably freeze the dough!
wow! that sounds so good!
This chocolate chip, walnut, and dried apricot cookie recipe: https://ameliaandaleon.wordpress.com/tag/chocolate-chip-cookie-recipe-from-the-rebar-modern-food-cookbook/.
I keep wanting to try other cookie recipes and my partner begs me not to and to just make this recipe again.
Oh and yes I have successfully frozen the dough!
My all time favorite cookie recipe: https://smittenkitchen.com/2018/02/chocolate-peanut-butter-cup-cookies/ (can be made with cookie butter or Nutella if you don’t like peanut butter, but I would take out a tablespoon of either and replace it with coconut oil to make sure the fat content evens out)
Obviously you can freeze the dough your classic chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, oatmeal raisin etc. BUT! Here’s one that’s a little more unexpected: https://smittenkitchen.com/2016/05/confetti-cookies/ (get all the way to the step where you flatten the cookies into discs, and then freeze)
These recipes all look so great! I’m super pumped to try them. I’m especially into making chocolate chip cookies fancier
lol we were all like… REALLY all over the cookie question
We really were.
okay hi, i have a question, I made a really delicious kimchi macaroni and cheese over the weekend, and I was like, I should try this with with turmeric and garam masala next — so do you have any favorite makeovers or mash-ups of dishes that you think have turned out well?
ok this does NOT answer your question but i WOULD like that recipe plz!!!
haha okay okay: https://food52.com/recipes/69269-caroline-choe-s-kimchi-mac-cheese
I added sriracha (like 3 big squeezes) to the sauce when it was still cooking down, an extra half cup of grated parm, and some charred scallions and sesame seeds, everything else I did the same as in the recipe and it was very delicious! I was worried it tasted too much like hot cabbage at first, but it sort of dissipated after the sauce cooked down
this sounds delish!!
THANK YOU also forever impressed at your skill for improvising, i am such a dork and can never get myself to stray from the recipe AT ALL so i very much appreciate your tips!!
I have an edible question!! Two, actually: What are some tips to keep the taste of weed from overpowering the snack when making edibles? And what’s your favorite easy-to-make edible or favorite edible you’ve tried? Mine is firecrackers with nutella instead of peanut butter 😋 And my favorite edible that I’ve tried was (and I swear this tasted amazing) hot cheeto rice crispies!
ohhhhh, tell me more about this hot cheeto thing, is it like a rice krispie treat but with cheetos?!!
I think it’s hard to make the weed not overpower the snack, so I think it’s either you embrace it or you try to match it with other flavors! I love your nutella move, because that’s such a strong mask, like what on earth isn’t going to be swallowed in deliciousness from that? I like a savory weed snack so I have made a frozen pizza with drizzles of oregano, cilantro and canna oil on top and it kinda just goes, like with mushrooms and cheese, it’s less intrusive. I also just like making a buttered toast w jam. But I think one tip is using less of the cannabutter, more regular butter or oil, and then just eating more of it!
oh and i love these: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17871707332677502/?hl=en
renea, i also just discovered this tip for less weed flavor: For less weed taste, soak your buds overnight in water, and dry before grinding. This removes much of the chlorophyll that is responsible for most of the herbal taste.
Okay no one is asking for this but I wanted to share I have been really enjoying making recipes from this comic book form Korean cookbook called Cook Korean by Robin Ha(https://bookshop.org/books/cook-korean-a-comic-book-with-recipes-a-cookbook/9781607748878.
There’s this wintery / autumnal punch recipe called Sujeonggwa that is really tasty and easy, and makes a great cocktail if you add whisky or bourbon. Very holidays appropriate!
Ingredients:
1 inch piece of ginger (let’s be real I love ginger so I put in like three times that)
8 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
6 sticks cinnamon
10 dried red dates
4 dried persimmons (I could only find fresh, which worked just fine! Also the friendly guy at my Asian grocery store said apples would work in a pinch too)
Throw it all in a pot and boil for an hourish. You can drink it hot or cold. I tried both and preferred cold, but you do you!
oh yuuuumm, will def try this!
omg this was a childhood favorite for me 🥺 never thought to make it into a cocktail but now I definitely want to try!! also the dried persimmons are a little hard to find but are so worth it—they taste like jelly candy 😋😋😋
That’s so cool! I think I would have loved it as a kid too.
Yum jelly candy! I hope I can find the dried persimmons next time at the Asian grocery store. They said they usually come in later in the fall / winter after the fresh ones so I have to check back.
I’m looking for some fun vegetarian (or easily modified to be vegetarian) pasta dishes to make with my new KitchenAid and pasta attachments. I usually make an asparagus and sun-dried tomato lasagna for Christmas, but this year I want to try something new, though currently lacking the creativity…
damn, that sounds like a really good lasagna! I bet you could do some fun filled pastas, something like these https://res.cloudinary.com/hksqkdlah/raw/upload/v1492635258/hal/WildMushroomFilling_BrownButterSauce_7x10.pdf or I also like making these: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/sweet-corn-and-ricotta-raviolo
Yes mushroom everything! I haven’t had the patience for filled pasta in a looong time but I think I will have to give that another try.
I have been LOVING adding cannellini beans to my pasta as with this Vegetarian Times recipe (though if you want to go the extra mile, start by cooking dried, not using canned). The starch from the beans winds up thickening the sauce and it’s added protein for us vegetarians. You could make the pasta yourself, too, though I don’t know much about making pasta from scratch beside gnocchi and am really interested in how your adventures with the Kitchenaid go!
I dig beans in pasta too and this recipe sounds fantastic.
This is not specifically for a KitchenAid, but I love this lasagna recipe from my favourite fancy vegetarian cookbook Rebar Modern Food. (Not available on bookshop, but it is on Amazon here:https://www.amazon.ca/Rebar-Modern-Cookbook-Audrey-Alsterburg/dp/0968862306/)
I found this online version here: https://judithstred.wixsite.com/ninelivesofalemon/single-post/2015/03/31/Lasagna-Rio-Grande-with-cilantro-pesto-and-smoky-tomato-sauce
It has an awesome South Western US / Mexican vibe and is made with homemade cilantro pesto, so yummy! I assume you could use your lasagna pasta recipe to go along with this recipe.
This sounds incredible! I love cilantro!
I’m a big fan of Jenn Louis’s takes on gnocchi verde. Some of her recipes are available online but her book Pasta by Hand is a staple.
Marc Vetri, Mastering Pasta, or even il Viaggio, are great for their basic pasta content
SPQR has some great veg pastas in the narrative section of the cookbook
Other ideas to try:
A classic one is a ceci with arrabiatta sauce with fried chickpeas as the garnish
Mushroom and broccoli rabe is a fantastic twist on a sausage based pasta
Corn agnolotti in a corn chowder type sauce is a summer flavor bomb
Stinging nettle and chard gnocchi verde in Parmesan or Kombu brodo.
All of these options sound great! I love arrabbiata but hadn’t thought of adding chickpeas.
I had this in a blue apron box once and really liked it: https://www.blueapron.com/recipes/creamy-fusilli-bucati-pasta-with-fried-rosemary-walnuts I think it would even better with a little sweet potato or squash! or maybe with sweet potato gnocchi or ravioli?
What’s your favorite thing to do with sourdough discard?
Thanks!
I’m not an avid sourdougher, but i have received some discard and I’ve made waffles and pancakes, which are both pretty great, but I think this is one of the more interesting things to make: https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2020/07/sourdough-discard-scallion-pancakes.html
Thank you for asking this question which prompted me to google sourdough discard as I did not know what it was!
I see online lots of recipes for pancake recipes with sourdough discard which I have not tried but sounds really delish! Have you tried that?
Waffles. Always. But also cinnamon rolls
Second the cinnamon rolls. Also king arthur has a cracker recipe that’s easy and delicious
King Arthur has a pizza crust recipe that calls for ONE WHOLE CUP of “unfed starter” which is basically discard, right? I did it last week and it was amazing!
Hope it’s okay if ask a second question but I impulsively bought sumac a while back. Any recommendations on what I can use it for?
I used to work at a syrian/lebanese café and we used so much sumac! I love it as a seasoning for roasted cauliflower, a topping for homemade hummus or baba ganoush, white bean dip, or on flatbreads – it’s earthy but also lemony, you could make some pita flatbreads with caramelized onion/feta/sumac? if you’re into cookbooks spice and soframiz, from said café, would be good places to start!
@nknhall have you talked about your rosemary lemon shortbread recipe?? It sounded delicious.
I did!! It’s in the cookie thread. https://develop.autostraddle.com/can-you-make-stuffing-into-an-edible-a-holigay-cooking-ama/#comment-1029107
Hmmm not sure that link is helpful. But it is up there!
yes! thank you, trying this soon (:
Let me know how it gooooes!
Thank you all for this amazing thread! I used it as inspiration to make my own version of “Roberto” today (cannot find the comment where it was suggested) and it was delicious!