The Simplest Sauce Ever

I grew up eating this sauce. My mom always made it from scratch, imagining it just a little differently each time. I’d watch while she threw in a bit of this and a bit of that, until it tasted just right. While pasta can provide a canvas of opportunity for creativity, there’s something to be said for taking it back to basics. To this day, the sauce always starts with a few things: whole peeled tomatoes crushed by hand (dangerously threatening any garment of clothes you’re wearing), garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes and capers. It really is the simplest sauce ever, and rarely disappoints. This is an anti-recipe recipe: there are no measurements, and few specifics. Have fun, trust your intuition and remember, you can make this pasta YOURS: add whatever calls to you.

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The Simplest Sauce Ever

Serves 3-4

• 1 can Italian whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand (or whole fresh tomatoes, if they are in season)

• Extra virgin olive oil

• Salt to taste

• Fresh chopped garlic

• Red pepper flakes to taste

• Capers and a splash of the liquid 

• OPTIONAL: fresh basil

Start by roughly chopping your garlic cloves. For a whole can of tomatoes, I’d use 2-3 cloves of garlic, but adjust to your own tastes and factor in the size of your garlic cloves.

Start a sauce pan or pot over med heat, adding olive oil once the pan is hot. Next, add your garlic and sauté until fragrant, a minute or so. Then add your crushed whole peeled tomatoes to the pot and stir. Add an extra splash of olive oil, and capers with some of the briny liquid.

Lower the heat and cook the sauce down 15 or so minutes, allowing flavor to deepen. Add salt and red pepper flakes to taste only after reducing. If you have fresh basil, chiffonade and add at the last minute before serving.

Serve over al dente pasta, or use for any dish that calls for a simple tomato sauce (i.e., Lasagna, Eggplant or Chicken Parmesan). If saving to use later, let cool to room temperature before packing up and storing in your fridge or freezer.

Seared Mushrooms w. Creamy Polenta & Miso Garlic Butter

This dish puts umami front and center.

Umami is the king of all flavor profiles. It’s deep and savory and rich. This appetizer, perfect for the holiday season around the corner, uses three umami ingredients in one dish: mushrooms, Parmigiano-Reggiano and miso. Oh, and did I mention butter and garlic? Finish this flavor bomb of a dish with something bright, like fig balsamic or herb oil. Serve alongside simple proteins and/or plants. Eat the whole cozy bowl yourself, or divvy it up with those whom you can safely gather with.

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Seared Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta and Miso Garlic Butter

For Polenta (serves 2 with leftovers)

• ½ cup white polenta (southern white grits)

• ¼ tsp coarse salt

• 1 cup milk

• 1 cup water

• ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Finish with salt to taste (plan to under salt this a little because the mushrooms and miso butter have lots of flavor)

For Mushrooms (serves 2)

• 1 portobello, 2 shiitake and 40g beech mushrooms per serving, or 1/2 cup

• Neutral oil, enough to coat the bottom of your pan

• Coarse salt

• Garlic powder

• 20g butter, or 1.5 Tbsps, melted

• 4 smashed garlic cloves

• ½ Tbsp miso

First, make your creamy polenta: to a pot, add the milk, water and salt. Bring to a boil, then add polenta and lower the heat, cooking until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently. When polenta is creamy, about 15 minutes, add black pepper, grated parmigiano reggiano and salt to taste. Make sure to under salt the polenta a bit because the miso butter is salty and the mushrooms should also be well seasoned. Remove from the heat off and set to the side, covered.

Clean and dry your mushrooms well. In a frying pan, heat enough neutral oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Drizzle just a little oil on the mushrooms, so your seasoning sticks, and sprinkle with coarse salt and garlic powder on both sides. When the neutral oil is shimmering and pan is hot, sear all the mushrooms on both sides, in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding. Set mushrooms aside. Safely remove the hot oil and liquid from the pan. Wipe clean and place back over a low heat.

At this point, give your polenta a stir and put back over a low heat, covered, to warm for serving.

In your clean pan, add melted butter, miso and garlic. Over a low-medium heat, whisk to combine butter with the miso. Once incorporated, add the mushrooms to the pan, spooning the miso butter over them.

After a minute or so turn the heat off on both the mushrooms and polenta. Add polenta to a shallow bowl. Using a slotted spoon, remove mushrooms from the pan and place on top. Spoon miso butter over the mushrooms. Serve immediately with a fork and knife. Finish with something bright, like a drizzle of herb oil or fruity balsamic vinegar (I love fig balsamic, personally).

Roasted Vegetable Goat Cheese Enchiladas

Sometimes the best ideas come from a place of necessity, and when we least expect them. 

Although I took a bit of a hiatus from writing recipes, that does not mean that the cooking has stopped, and certainly not the ideas.  I found that I was deep in a place of “working” on my personal work because I felt I ‘should’, because I ‘had to’.  So I decided to take a break and return when I was ready to create from a place of joy.  By allowing joy to fuel my work, I not only feel more fulfilled, but also create work that is completely genuine.

On this particular Saturday, I woke up with a desire to cook something that was both nourishing and delicious (and let’s be honest, I also just had a hankering for enchiladas).  I had recently thrown together a chilaquiles-like dish using goat cheese and corn, and I couldn’t get the flavor combination out of my mind.  So I decided to elaborate on it: spread corn tortillas with goat cheese, fill them with sweet & savory plant-based goodness, and bake with more cheese on top.  What could go wrong?  Well, in this case, nothing.

The beauty of this dish is you can totally make it your own.  After all, no recipe is written in stone (well, OK... except if you're baking, which doesn't happen to be my forte for obvious reasons).  Want to take this dish all the way vegan?  Make it without cheese or use dairy free cheese replacements.  Not in the mood for beans?  Leave ’em out.  Prefer brown rice to quinoa?  Swap it.  Feel like adding an animal protein?  Go for it!  The only thing you definitely don’t want to miss is, well, this dish... 

It’s a perfect balance of sweet and savory, with bursts of sweet potato and corn balancing out earthy mushrooms and beans, and a smokey chipotle sauce blankets the enchiladas before they are baked with sharp cheddar on top.  When I say this is what dreams are made of, I really mean it.  This is ACTUALLY what my dreams are made of.  If you find yourself dreaming about enchiladas too, then get cooking because I promise - this dish will make all of your enchilada dreams come true.  It's literally, the whole enchilada!

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Roasted Vegetable Goat Cheese Enchiladas

Serves 3-4

• 1 medium sweet potato

• 1/2 cup loosely packed cooked white quinoa

• 1/2 med-large zucchini

• 1/2 large yellow onion

• 1/2 cup frozen sweet corn

• 1/2 cup black beans, rinsed

• 4-5 Baby Bella mushrooms

• 1/4 tsp adobo seasoning

• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika

• 1/2 tsp chili powder

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• Sea salt to taste

• EVOO

• Flavorful salsa of your choice (I used Brad’s Organic Salsa but also like La Esquina’s Salsa Roja)

• 1 small can Goya Salsa Chipotle or similar Chipotle Marinade or Enchiladas Sauce (not to be confused with Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce)

• 1 small log herbed goat cheese (or vegan alternative like Kite Hill Chive Spread or Treeline French Style Herb-Garlic)

• 2-3 slices sharp cheddar (or vegan alternative like Daiya slices)

• 6-8 corn tortillas depending how many you’re serving

• Additional toppings optional: Fried egg, sliced radish, fresh cilantro, avocado, Pico de Gallo, crema

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  We’re going to start by prepping all of our vegetables.  Remove the skin from the sweet potato and cut down first into rounds, and then down further into fourths.  In a bowl, toss the sweet potato with a splash of extra virgin olive oil, roughly 1/4 tsp sea salt and 1/4 tsp adobo seasoning.  Lay your sweet potato pieces onto a baking sheet in one layer, which will allow them to cook evenly and get perfectly crispy.  Bake on the top rack of your oven for roughly 15 mins.  You want the sweet potato to be golden and crispy, so leave it in a little longer if it doesn’t look ready after 15 minutes.  I do recommend setting a timer though so you don’t forget to take your sweet potato out while you’re prepping your other ingredients!

In the meantime, you can get to work on dicing the onion, zucchini, and portobello mushrooms.  If your quinoa is not already cooked, this would also be a good time to throw it in a pot and cook according to box directions.  To keep my quinoa nice and tender, I like to add a splash of extra virgin olive oil to the water after it boils and before I let it simmer.

In a bowl combine your cooked quinoa, diced zucchini, and mushrooms.  Keep your onion, corn, and black beans to the side. 

Over medium heat, add a heaping tbsp of extra virgin olive oil to a deep sauté pan.  Once the olive oil starts to shimmer and heat up, add your onions and let them cook down.  They should start to soften and become transparent.  Next you can throw in your rinsed black beans, corn and the rest of your spices.  Here I encourage you to add salt to the eye - trust your gut - but if you’re really unsure, start with a 1/2 tsp.  You can always use a spoon to taste and add salt later if needed (just remember if you’re cooking for others, not to double dip).  After 5 or so minutes of letting the ingredients cook together, add the quinoa and vegetables.  Stir everything together thoroughly so that you combine all the flavors in the pan.  You can turn the heat down a bit here so as not to overcook any of your ingredients.  This is a good time to give your filling a taste and adjust the flavors as needed.  Add more garlic powder if you love garlic, more salt if it’s bland, or more cayenne if you like more heat.  Then turn the burner off and put the pan to the side.

Prep a baking dish by brushing or spraying with a little olive oil (you can also use coconut or avocado oil if you prefer).

Now we assemble!  Before you start, notice if your quinoa and vegetables have become overly dry in the pan.  If they have, you can always add a small glug of olive oil and mix, to loosen it up. 

To soften your tortillas, dampen a paper towel and wrap around the tortillas.  Place them on a microwave safe plate and hit them with 30 seconds.  When you pull them out, they should be steamy, soft and pliable.  Now, taking 1 tortilla out of the paper towel at a time, we quickly coat (or spray) one side of each tortilla with olive oil, or your cooking oil of choice.  Flip over and smear the other side with a little goat cheese.  Add a few pieces of your roasted sweet potato and a tablespoon of your filling, being careful not to overfill your tortillas. 

Carefully roll, and place into the baking pan, seam side down.  Continue until all your tortillas are filled and rolled.  Keep in mind that it's okay if a little of your filling spills out as you transfer them to the baking dish - they don't have to be totally perfect.  You can always nudge the filling back in using a spoon.

For the sauce, if you cannot locate the Brad's Organic Salsa or Goya Home Style Chipotle Sauce (https://www.walmart.com/ip/Goya-Home-Style-Chipotle-Sauce-7-oz/199898824) that I used, you can also look in the International Aisle of your local grocery store for any red enchilada sauce and a salsa that appeals to you, and mix them to taste! You can also opt to make your own if you’re feeling really ambitious.

To mix, pour into a measuring cup 1/4 cup of Brad’s Organic salsa, and then fill the rest of the way to 3/4 cup with Goya Chipotle Sauce. Mix together, and then pour over tortillas as evenly as possible.  Place 1 slice of cheddar cheese on top of each rolled tortilla.  Place in the oven and bake on 400 for 20 mins, or until cheese is bubbling and golden.

You can serve with a fried egg to make this a delicious brunch, and top with any of your favorite toppings: radishes, crema, avocado, guacamole, pico de gallo, or fresh cilantro. The world is your oyster!

Pork Tostadas with Grilled Tomatillo Salsa & Grilled Peach Pico

I could eat tostadas every day.

And I wrote this recipe as a last-ditch effort to stop throwing so much money at chorizo tostadas from my favorite neighborhood spot. Combining pork breakfast sausage with smokey cumin seed, ginger, and miso creates a base of layered flavor profiles. Combine that with just-fried salty tortillas, sour cream and not one, but two, homemade salsas, and you’ll reach taste bud nirvana.

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Pork Tostadas with Grilled Tomatillo Salsa & Grilled Peach Pico

For Tostadas

• 6 x Corn Tortillas

• Neutral oil for frying, 8 - 16 oz depending on the size of your pot

• Coarse kosher salt

• Alternatively, packaged tostadas

For Pork

• 12 oz ground breakfast sausage (or buy whole breakfast sausages and remove casing)

• 1 tsp raw minced garlic

• 1 tsp raw minced ginger

• ½ tsp cumin seed

• 1 ½ white miso

• 1 Tbsp paprika

• 1 Tbsp lime juice

• Sour cream

• Grilled Tomatillo Salsa

• Grilled Peach Pico

Start by prepping your salsas. They come together quickly and will keep in your fridge for tostada leftovers, or for eating with other meals throughout the week.

In a medium/large pan, heat a little neutral or olive oil, just enough to lightly coat the bottom. Add minced ginger and garlic and cook until light golden brown, being sure not to burn. Then, add your ground pork, breaking up the meat with a spoon or spatula, and letting it brown all over. After a minute or two, add paprika and cumin seeds. Mix and continue to cook a few minutes, letting the pork get crispy in its own fat. Then, turn the heat down and stir in your miso. After a few minutes you can turn the heat way down, or completely off while we make the tostadas.

When it comes to frying at home without a deep frier there are a few things to keep in mind.

First, you’'ll need a decent amount of neutral oil. Neutral oils, like safflower, canola, and other vegetable oils have a high smoke point, meaning they can safely be heated to a temperature high enough to fry your food. Ideal temperature for frying is between 350-400F.

You’ll also need a large pot or a high walled sauce pan or cast iron pan. For our needs, your pot must at least be larger in diameter than your tortillas. A good rule of thumb is that you should use enough oil in your pot to fully submerge your food, but so it comes no more than half way up the sides of the pot. The reason for that is when you add ingredients, their inherent moisture causes the oil to bubble up and you do not want a spill over of hot oil.

Since we’re frying something flat (tortillas), you won’t need quite as much oil here. I used roughly 8 oz of oil in a 10 inch cast iron pan.

Another important rule of thumb for frying is to remember that dryness is key. You always want your ingredients as dry as possible and never want to get water in or near hot oil as it could cause it to splash or even dangerously boil over. In our case, tortillas are inherently dry already, so just make sure you keep water away from your pot and tools while frying.

Start your oil over a medium heat, bringing it up to 350F, using a frying or candy thermometer to carefully check. Once oil is hot enough, using stainless steel, high temperature safe tongs, carefully lower in your first tortilla. If the oil is hot enough, bubbles will form around it when added.

Keep an eye on the tortilla, flipping it after a minute or two to evenly fry on both sides. When the tortilla is light golden brown on both sides, carefully remove and place on a paper towel to drain grease. Take care that tortilla will be hot, but immediately sprinkle both sides with coarse salt.

It’s important not to add too much food to your frying oil at once, as this drops the temperature of the oil, and your food will come out soggy, so I recommend just frying tortillas one at a time.

Once all tortillas have been fried, reheat your ground pork over a medium heat. On each tortilla, spread a large spoonful of sour cream. Top with ground pork and peach pico. Finish with a few dollops of your grilled tomatillo salsa, and eat immediately.

SAFETY NOTES: “Never use water, flour, or sugar to put out a grease fire… and do not try to carry a flaming pot outdoors. To suffocate a fire, use baking soda, a damp towel, or a fire extinguisher specifically designed for grease fires.” - MORE ON DEEP FRYING AT HOME CAN BE READ HERE

Low & Slow Goat Cheese Eggs

I’m not sure what’s worse than dry scrambled eggs.

I make very few exceptions in regards to my distaste for scrambled eggs and largely because they are often overcooked, becoming rubbery chunks I simply do not find appealing. Two notable exceptions however are 1) Australian Folded Eggs, gifted to my consciousness via The Kitchn and 2) Bobby Flay’s eggs at his now closed New York restaurant, Gato. Although these two dishes are made using differing techniques, what they share is the resulting soft, custardy deliciousness that can be scrambled eggs, when cooked the right way.

Borrowing from Gato’s addition of creme fraiche, goat cheese is mixed into these eggs before they’ve started to cook, and going slow allows you to make sure the eggs come off the heat just when they’ve transformed from raw to deliciously custardy.

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Low & Slow Goat Cheese Eggs

• 4 eggs

• 1.5- 2 Tbsps Soft Goat Cheese, preferably from a log and not precrumbled

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Butter or Extra virgin olive oil

• Sea Salt

• OPTIONAL: sprinkle eggs with your favorite finishers, I like chives and aleppo pepper

Take goat cheese out to bring to room temp.

Whisk 4 eggs together with a few cranks of freshly ground pepper and about ¼ tsp of sea salt.

Over low heat - start a non stick pan with a little pat of butter, or olive oil.

Once butter has melted or oil is warm, add eggs. The pan shouldn’t be so hot that the eggs start cooking when they hit the pan. Add about 1.5-2 Tsps softened, crumbled goat cheese.

With a spatula, start gently mixing the eggs in the pan. The idea is to create folds of softly cooked egg. Continue folding in a circular manner until the eggs are gently cooked with creamy layers in between. Put into a bowl and top with fresh chives and any of your other favorite toppings.

Harissa Tamari Roasted Chicken w. Crispy Potatoes & Cumin Yogurt

Food is emotional.

The success of a dish is as much about the way it tastes as the way it makes you feel. Like snuggling up under a warm blanket at the end of an extremity-numbing winter day, this Harissa Tamari roasted chicken is cozy and comforting. Umami tamari and savory harissa hug the edges of moist chicken, served with crispy shallot potatoes and finished with a tangy cumin kefir yogurt. This dish is perfectly timed for what can be a difficult time of the year: days are shorter and darker, and with the holiday season behind us, we begin the count down to the arrival of Spring here in the North East. It’s the time of the year when most of us cling to the hopes of a snow day, so we can stay under the covers just a little bit longer. Whether you’re someone who revels in the frosty temperatures of late January, or someone who despises it, this dish is guaranteed to warm you on even the coldest days.

Salt your chicken and soak your potatoes while you cuddle up (under those aforementioned blankets). This dish is incredibly versatile: play with plating and you can make it work for the most casual or most impressive dinner party. For the former, serve everything on parchment paper: cut the meat off the bones and place on top of the roasted potatoes. Put out with tongs, extra yogurt sauce, good olive oil, fresh arugula, lemon wedges and flaky salt, and your guests can make themselves a plate. For the latter, allow the stunning red harissa to make a statement on white serveware: drizzle with yogurt and serve similarly with a simple side salad. P.S. it’s also totally cool if you plan to eat this all by yourself! The luscious crispy potatoes in this recipe have been amended from my original writing, and are now credited to this original recipe from Christine Gallary, but with a slight change and the addition of shallots.

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Harissa Tamari Roasted Chicken with Crispy Potatoes and Cumin Yogurt

Serves 2

• 2 chicken legs, bone-in (you can also use either bone-in thigh or drumstick)

• 3/4 lb red potatoes

• 2 Tbsps New York Shuk Preserved Lemon Harissa (available for purchase in NY here and online here)

• 1 Tbsp Tamari

• 2 lemons

• 2 large shallots

• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds

• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika

• 1/4 tsp cumin powder

• 1/4 goat milk Kefir (I use Redwood Hill Farm available here, and you can always sub plain greek yogurt)

• Extra virgin olive oil

• Neutral oil, like avocado, canola, sunflower, safflower, etc

• Kosher salt

• Maldon salt, if available

• Cast iron or stainless steel oven-friendly pan, 8-10 inches

• Cast iron or stainless steel pan, 10-12 inches

Preheat your oven to 375F.

In a mixing bowl combine1/2 tbsp salt, 2 Tbsps New York Shuk Preserved Lemon Harissa, 1 Tbsp tamari, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, juice of 1/2 lemon, and just shy of 1/4 tsp both smoked paprika and cumin. Mix well. Then add chicken to the bowl and rub sauce into the meat, making sure to get it under the skin. Leave chicken in the marinade up to 1 hour but at least 15 minutes, either in your fridge if your kitchen is hot, or out in a cool place like near the window.

Clean and cut potatoes in half, cut across if the potato is more oblong, vs cutting from top to bottom. This is to keep pieces as evenly sized as possible. Place potatoes in a bowl with cold water while your chicken marinates. Red potatoes are a less starchy variety to begin with, but soaking will remove some of what starch there is, so they stay more firm.

In the meantime, cut 2 shallots across into rounds, making sure not to cut them too thin. You can save the ends and skin to use in stock! Set aside.

When you’re ready to cook, we’ll start by searing the chicken skin: heat 1-2 Tbsps neutral oil in your stainless steel pan over medium high heat (enough to cover the bottom of the pan). Please note that you must use an oven-safe stainless steel pan or other high-temp, oven safe pan like cast iron because we will finish cooking the chicken in the oven.

When oil is shimmering, let excess marinade drip off chicken and place skin side down in the pan. It should sizzle upon contact. If it doesn’t, remove chicken and wait another minute or so. If the oil spits back at you, lower the heat a bit. Cook until the skin is golden and releases easily from the bottom of the pan - 5 minutes but not much longer so as to avoid burning spices and marinade. Move chicken out of the hot pan and carefully pour out the hot oil. Let the pan cool a minute before rinsing clean and drying. To the clean pan add a splash of neutral oil, just enough to cover the bottom, and place chicken back in, skin side up this time.

Place the pan in the preheated oven to finish cooking.  Depending on the size of the chicken leg (or thigh/drumstick), it will cook for roughly another 15-25 minutes total in the oven. You know the chicken is cooked when it reaches 165F internal temperature. You can check internal temperature for doneness after 15 minutes, as well as baste the chicken. Set a timer to remind yourself to do this.

While your chicken is getting started in the oven, make the crispy potatoes, credited to this original recipe from Christine Gallary but with the addition of shallots.

Remove potatoes from the water, dry and cut into similar sized quarters (or leave as halves for smaller potatoes). In another stainless or cast iron wide pan (10-12 inches to accommodate all of the potatoes), heat 2 Tbsps neutral oil over medium heat until shimmering. Place potatoes cut side down to the pan in a single layer and sprinkle with a bit of kosher salt. Cover the pan and cook 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender and golden brown on the bottom. In her recipe, Christine talks about why a tight-fitting lid is so important here: to allow steam inside the pan to soften the potatoes.

When the timer goes off to check your chicken, wearing an oven mitt or using a well folded, dry kitchen towel to grab the pan, spoon any rendered fat or juices from the bottom over the chicken. Check internal temperature to assess doneness (165F is cooked).

If the chicken is finished, remove from the hot pan and set aside to rest, and place the pan with rendered juices to the side to use for serving later on. If your chicken needs more time, continue cooking another 5-10 minutes, making sure to then rest and set aside pan with juices.

After 15 minutes, potatoes should be golden on the first side. Open the pan lid away from you to avoid any steam droplets interacting with the hot oil and popping back at you. Flip the potatoes to the other uncooked, cut side and sprinkle with a bit more kosher salt. Continue to cook the potatoes on this second side over medium heat uncovered. After about 5 minutes, when potatoes are becoming golden on this side, add shallots to the pan. Cook potatoes and shallots together, stirring frequently until the shallots are also nice and golden. If your shallots look like they’re darkening too quickly, turn the heat down.

Whip up cumin yogurt with about 1/4 cup cold goat milk kefir. In a hot dry pan toast 1/2 tsp cumin seeds - about 1 min or until fragrant. Immediately mix into yogurt. Before serving add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. You can also prepare your yogurt sauce before you start cooking and leave in the fridge until the rest of the dish is ready.

Before serving reheat the rendered schmaltz from the chicken over low heat on your stove top if it’s cooled, scraping all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Spoon over chicken and potatoes. Drizzle with yogurt. Finish with a pinch of Maldon salt and serve.

Grounding Lentil and Grain Salad

Is it a salad? A grain bowl? A soup?

It’s all three. Before I make a big batch of something, I try to ask myself: am I going to still want to eat this tomorrow, and the day after, and then maybe even the day after that? I find the best way to confront that is to start with a base that can be made into multiple unique dishes. Have this the first day as a warm grain bowl, all on it’s own. The next day, make it into a lunch bowl, topped with roasted chicken and/or tons of roasted vegetables, drizzled with your favorite dressing or a nice scoop of Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce. Then, just when you’re getting sick of it, submerge in a bowl of warm hearty broth with a tick of fresh squeezed lemon, turmeric and extra black pepper.

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Grounding Lentil and Grain Salad

• 1 cup Israeli cous cous, cooked in 1 ½ cups water - or grain of your choice

• 1 cup red lentils, cooked in 3 cups water - or lentils of your choice

• 7-8 mushrooms (use any variety from white to bella to shiitake)

• Finely chopped parsley

• 2 garlic cloves

• Sea salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Turmeric

• Garlic powder

• Extra virgin olive oil

• OPTIONAL: fresh rosemary, labne or plain thick yogurt, lemon juice

For this recipe, you can make do with whatever kinds of lentil and grains that you prefer, or have on hand in your pantry.  The key is flexibility. If that’s the case, start by cooking whichever of the two that takes longer to cook, and cook according to package directions.

If you’re using red lentils and Israeli cous cous, start with the red lentils:

Rinse in a fine mesh strainer and then put in a pot with the water, a sprinkle of sea salt, 2 whole peeled garlic cloves and roughly ½ teaspoon turmeric.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until tender and liquid is cooked off, 15-20 minutes.  Red lentils can get mushy, so make sure to monitor them and when they are tender, take off the heat. If your lentils are finished and there is still excess water in the pot, strain.  Make sure to remove whole garlic cloves.

In the meantime, cook your cous cous.  Bring water to a boil. Then add couscous and a pinch of salt.  When the water starts boiling again, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook until tender, about 10-15 minutes. Strain out any remaining liquid.

While your lentils and grains cook, cut mushrooms into thin slices.  Heat cooking fat in a small pan. Add mushrooms and season to taste with salt, black pepper, a little garlic powder, and a sprig of fresh rosemary if you have on hand.  Cook over medium heat until mushrooms are soft and flavorful. Remove the whole rosemary.

When your lentils and grains are finished, turn heat off and combine in one pan.  Gently fold in the mushrooms and adjust seasoning to taste. You can also opt to keep all of your ingredients separate - lentils, grains and mushrooms, and combine when serving to the ratio you prefer.

Serve warm and top with fresh parsley, a squeeze of lemon and plain yogurt.  After a few days, you can submerge all ingredients in broth for a fantastic soup.

Goat Cheese & Honey Breakfast Toast

One of my all time favorite breakfasts.

If you follow me over on my Instagram, you see me eat this constantly, in a million different ways. The ingredients you can’t do without out? The goat cheese & the honey.

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Goat Cheese & Honey Breakfast Toast

• 2 whole eggs

• 2 slices of good bread, I like a great sourdough

• 1 - 1.5 Tbsps Goat cheese

• 1 ripe avocado

• Maldon salt or kosher salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Aleppo pepper or red chili flakes

• Extra virgin olive oil

Take out your goat cheese to give it time to soften at room temperature. Toast the bread in a toaster or in a hot pan with a little bit of cooking fat, flipping after the first side is golden. In a non-stick pan, add olive oil and allow to get hot, waiting until it shimmers.

In the meantime, crack eggs carefully into a bowl, making sure no pieces of shell have fallen in. When your pan is hot add the eggs, being careful not to break the yolks. Sprinkle with a little sea salt and black pepper.

Spread your goat cheese on the warm toast and then place half of a sliced avocado down on each piece of bread.

When the white of your eggs has cooked through almost completely and isn’t looking wobbly, flip the eggs carefully, allowing it cook for just a moment more, and then immediately remove from the heat and place on your toast. If you like a more well done yolk, give it an extra minute over the heat.

Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with my favorite, aleppo pepper, or red chili flakes, and a bit of Maldon salt (kosher salt works here too). Eat promptly while warm and delicious.

Gazpacho

Gazpacho is a celebration of summer. 

If you're not yet familiar with the dish, here it is in a nut shell: gazpacho is a cold soup that originated in the Andalucía region of Spain, and is typically made by blending fresh, raw vegetables and stale bread.

While this version foregoes the bread, it retains all the incredible flavor, combining the freshest produce with garlic, heat, acidity and lots of good olive oil.  What you get is a dish that satisfies on the hottest of days when the thought of turning on your stove is out of the question.

From July until the time fresh tomatoes disappear from the farmer's market, I keep a batch of this soup in my fridge at all times.  Why?  Because it's creamy, tangy, requires 8 simple ingredients, takes 30 minutes or less to make, keeps in the fridge and travels well.  What more could you ask for out of one simple dish?

Serve gazpacho as a perfect summer appetizer, or make it a meal, topped with avocado, diced cherry tomatoes, scallions, and a dollop of crème fraîche, paired with warm, crispy bread.  This dish is proof that food does not require complexity to be great - it’s simply the sum of it's parts, so do not skimp on getting the best ingredients and I promise, you will not be disappointed.

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Gazpacho

• 4 large in-season tomatoes (this dish is really best in season)

• 1 extra large cucumber, or 2 small

• 1 large sweet red or orange pepper

• 1 large jalapeño

• 2 large fresh garlic cloves

• 2 tbsp's of red wine vinegar

• 1 tsp sea salt, then add salt to taste

• 3 generous tbsp's of good quality E.V.O.O.

• Optional: top with a dollop of sour cream, creme fraiche, or avocado

Start a pot on high heat and bring it up to boil. In the meantime, rinse your tomatoes. Using the tip of a knife, lightly cut an X into the flesh on the bottom of each tomato. Add tomatoes to the boiling water for 2-5 minutes, or just until the skin is peeling back. You don’t want to overcook them. Remove from the heat, drain and throw into an ice bath or simply run under very cold water.  When cool enough to touch, starting from the bottom where you cut the X, peel the skin off each tomato and then drop into the bowl of your blender. Next, peel the skin off of the cucumber. Then cut it in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds using a small spoon. Cut the cucumber into half rounds and add to the blender.

Next, you can use one of two methods to prepare your garlic: remove the garlic cloves from the skin and crush using a garlic press, or SAFELY lay your chef’s knife flat on top of the garlic clove and hit it with the heel of your hand until the skin comes loose and the garlic clove is slightly smashed. Add to the blender. 

Next cut your sweet pepper and jalapeño loosely into medium size pieces, removing the seeds from both. Add to the blender, and finally, add your salt and red wine vinegar. With all these ingredients added, start the blender and as they start to come together into a puree, begin pouring in your olive oil. Adding the olive oil while the blender is running lends to a more full, creamy soup. Once all the olive oil is added and the soup is a smooth consistency, taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.  I personally like a bit more salt, so add, blend and taste until it's where you want it. You can also add more vinegar for extra acidity and more olive oil for extra body. If you want to serve immediately you can blend in a few ice cubes to chill your soup.  Otherwise, chill for an hour and then serve, or put in an airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.

When serving, this soup comes alive with the texture of toppings. Crispy croutons, creamy additions, little sweet cherry tomatoes, a scoop of fresh guacamole. Or do it my way - with sliced avocado, chopped chives or scallions, freshly ground pepper, sea salt and another drizzle of that extra good olive oil.

Fried Eggplant Parmesan Stacks (GF)

If you think eggplant parmesan is a difficult dish to make…

you’re wrong. The simplicity of this dish is, in my opinion, what makes it so great. Eggplant rounds are shallow fried, which brings out that luscious texture that a well-cooked eggplant unlocks. This recipe does not use bread crumbs, which makes it less involved than some other recipes (and gluten free if you’re into that sort of thing). Once fried, the eggplant is stacked (as the name precludes) with layers of mozzarella, placed under the broiler and left to get super melty. Finish with my Simplest Sauce Ever, which is the perfect red-sauce compliment to this rich dish. Serve it all with some perfectly cooked al dente pasta and you’re good to go. Now just imagine you’re dining al fresco nella piazze di Roma.

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Fried Eggplant Parmesan Stacks (GF)

Serves 2

• 1 med eggplant, 8+ inches in diameter, ¾ lb of rounds ¼ in thick (approx 12 rounds, 6 per serving)

• ½ cup neutral oil

• 4oz salted mozzarella, cut into thin rounds (not fresh that comes in water but this kind

• Coarse kosher salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

• ½ cup Simplest Sauce Ever, more if you’re serving with pasta

• Freshly grated parmigiano reggiano

• OPTIONAL: Fresh basil, any variety al dente pasta

Start making your Simplest Sauce Ever if you haven’t prepared it already. Once that’s on the stove and simmering, rinse your eggplant and cut into rounds, skin on. Lay the rounds out into a single layer on a paper towel or kitchen towel. Sprinkle one side with salt to pull out some of the bitterness and excess moisture. After 10-15 minutes, press down on the eggplant with a clean towel to thoroughly remove all the excess moisture. 

Cut your rounds of salted mozzarella and set aside on top of a clean kitchen towel or paper towel. We want to remove a bit of the excess moisture from the mozzarella. Place in a cool part of your kitchen, or back in the fridge.

To shallow fry the eggplant, start by heating ⅛ cup of neutral oil in a cast iron or stainless pan over med-high heat. When you see the oil shimmering, make sure your eggplant is thoroughly dry before adding to the pan. Shallow fry in batches, 2-3 pieces at a time making sure not to overcrowd the pan, until crispy and golden on both sides. Too much eggplant in the pan at once will cause the temperature of your oil to drop, and lead to soggy, oily eggplant, rather than crispy.

As you remove the fried pieces of eggplant from the pan, lay them on a paper towel to drain excess oil and sprinkle immediately with a little coarse salt while hot. If you want to serve this with pasta, start boiling some water and salt it generously.

When all the eggplant has been fried, turn your oven on to the low broil setting and grab your mozzarella slices.

In a baking dish with sides, stack 5-6 pieces of eggplant, largest pieces towards the bottom, alternating with rounds of mozzarella in between. For the higher tiers of eggplant, if whole rounds of mozzarella are too large, tear the mozzarella into smaller pieces and add just enough to cover the eggplant, letting the cheese stick out a bit at the sides to achieve that melt-down-the-sides greatness. Once you’ve used all your eggplant, cover the baking dish with a piece of foil, making sure to tent it up a bit so it doesn’t stick to the top layer of cheese, and put in the oven for 10 minutes.

At this point, add pasta to boiling water and cook until al dente. Start to warm your simple sauce on the stove top over a low-medium heat.

After 10 minutes, the mozzarella should have started to visibly melt. At that point, remove the tin foil, turn the oven on to high broil, and put back for another 3-5 minutes, or until the top layer of mozzarella is golden brown and other layers of mozzarella are super melty.

Carefully remove from oven and transfer to a plate. Top with a few spoonfuls of your simple sauce and finish with a grind of black pepper, freshly grated parmigiano reggiano and fresh basil, if you have! Serve alongside your al dente pasta tossed in simple sauce.

End of Summer Nachos

Crispy, creamy, and spicy...

What’s not to love about eating nachos?  By their very nature they allow for a layering of intense flavor that excites the palette, and this version does not disappoint.  Each bite combines sharp, gooey jack and cheddar cheeses, pico de gallo made with stunning heirloom tomatoes, the sweetest grilled summer corn, spicy chicken, pickled onions and creamy avocado poblano salsa.  And the best part about making your nachos at home is that you can be sure to layer the chips and toppings evenly to avoid the dreaded empty-chip bottom.  In my opinion there is no better way to celebrate the end of summer than outside with friends, sharing a plate of nachos and perhaps toasting with a watermelon margarita.

While the below recipe does outline a bit of advance prep work, you can also choose to skip those additional steps and save time by buying pre-made ingredients instead (no shame in that game!).  I opted to make my own chips (which are surprisingly easy), pico de gallo, crema, and pickled onions, all of which are outlined in the recipe below.  This dish can either be a fun afternoon of cooking and D.I.Y-ing it all, or more of a quick throw-together.  Choose your own adventure!

Making these nachos before the summer tomatoes and corn are gone from the farmer’s market makes this dish extra special, but of course they can be modified for any time of the year.  Off-season tomatoes aren’t the same but they’ll do, and good quality frozen corn charred in a cast iron pan is fine.  And for my fellow New Yorkers who do not have the luxury of a backyard or a grill, use a Lodge Cast Iron grill pan to make the best grilled food year round.

The other thing I love about nachos is that they are fully customizable: is your vegetarian cousin coming to the party?  Make grilled portobellos in place of chicken.  Want to make sure your vegan friend can partake?  Sub in your favorite dairy-free cheese alternatives and swap sour cream for a dollop of Kite Hill spread. 

And speaking of dairy free, the avocado poblano salsa these nachos are served with is vegan friendly and worth the extra 10 minutes it takes to whip up.  Even if you opt for store-bought chips, pico and sour cream, this salsa is not to be missed.  Put a scoop on top and serve the extra on the side for dipping.  It's seriously addictive. I won't tell if you eat the whole bowl yourself, I promise.

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End of Summer Nachos

• 18 small corn tortillas (or 1 large bag of corn tortilla chips if you aren't making chips - I like Xochitl brand)

• 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, or 2/3 large portobello mushrooms for vegetarian/vegan

• 1 block sharp yellow cheddar cheese (for vegan, replace with Daiya or Siete Foods)

• 1 block pepper jack cheese (for vegan, see above)

• 2 fresh corn cobs (ideally when in season)

• 2 jalapeños (or 1 jalapeño if you aren't making pico de gallo or pickled onions)

• 2 medium heirloom tomatoes to make your own pico de gallo (or 1 container pre-made pico de gallo)

• 6 limes (or 4 limes if you aren't making pico de gallo and chips)

• 1 bunch fresh cilantro

• 1 poblano pepper

• 1 long red pepper

• 1 ripe avocado

• 1 medium red onion (2 if you are making pickled onions)

• 8 oz. container Sour Cream (for vegan, use Kite Hill spread)

• 1 can black beans (I prefer Brad's Organic but any will do)

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• Sea Salt

• Cayenne powder

• Garlic powder

• Smoked Paprika

• Adobo Seasoning

• Chili Powder

• OPTIONAL: Cotija or queso fresco for shaving on finished nachos, red radishes, and any other nacho toppings you love

** If you are feeling ambitious, make the home-made versions of the chips, crema, pickled onions and heirloom pico de gallo in advance.  Recipes for all four are at the bottom of the page, and should be prepared in advance of the following steps.  If you are short on time, buy them pre-made and start here: 

First thing to do is make the poblano salsa.  If you are grilling, you can put your poblano on the grill and allow the pepper to blister evenly all over.  If not, use your oven and put it on a high broil setting.  Place the clean poblano pepper on a baking sheet on the top shelf.  You will need to monitor the pepper, leaving it up to 8 minutes or until it starts to blister and the skin starts to char.  Then turn to the other side, and again watch for blistering, 5-8 minutes.  Once the pepper is blistered evenly on all sides, remove from the oven. 

Do not touch the pepper as there will be very hot steam underneath the blistered skin, so remove carefully.  Set aside and let cool to room temperature.  Once cool to the touch, cut off the top, cut down one side lengthwise and remove the seeds inside.  Place the entire pepper into the bowl of your food processor.  Then add juice of 1 whole lime, 1 avocado, ¼ tsp salt, ½ jalapeno, and 3 tbsps olive oil and run the food processor until all ingredients are broken down and the consistency is creamy.  Adjust salt to taste.  Put in a small jar with a tight top and put in the fridge.

Next shred roughly 1 cup of cheddar and 1 cup of pepper jack cheese and combine in one bowl.  Stick in the fridge to use later.  If you like your nachos extra cheesy, you should shred extra.  To make these nachos vegan, you can add your favorite melty vegan cheese alternative (I personally prefer Daiya, but Whole Foods carries other alternatives like Chao, or "queso" sauce alternatives like Heidi Ho and Siete Foods).  Dollop Kite Hill's vegan chive spread on top when serving. 

Next let's grill our chicken and corn.  Remove husks from corn and rinse.  In a small dish, pour out a little olive oil and using a pastry brush, brush olive oil all over the corn.  If you don't have a pastry brush, you can use your hands.  Squeeze juice of 1/2 a lime over the corn and sprinkle with sea salt.  Put on the grill, turning until slightly charred on all sides.  Then set aside.  If you do not have access to a grill, use my favorite Lodge Cast Iron grill.

Marinate your chicken breasts in a large bowl with 2 tbsps EVOO, juice of ½ lime, ⅛ tsp cayenne, ¼ tsp garlic powder, ¼ tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp adobo seasoning, ¾ tsp chili powder, and ½ tsp sea salt.  Mix until breasts are covered equally all over with the spice mix.  Let marinade for 30 minutes if you have the time, or throw right on the grill, cooking approximately 8 minutes on the first side, then flipping and allowing the chicken to cook another 8 minutes, or until chicken is completely cooked through and no longer pink inside.  If you have a meat thermometer, chicken should have an internal temperature of 165 degrees fahrenheit.  Once chicken is done, set aside to rest. 

Want to make this dish vegetarian?  Try marinating and grilling portobello mushrooms the same way, letting them marinate a bit longer to soak up all the flavor. 

Next add a can of black beans to a pan along with some of the juice from the can so that the beans stay moist.  Add sea salt to taste, a sprinkle of garlic powder and juice of half a lime.  Let the beans cook on medium-low heat, using the back side of a large spoon to crush the beans a little bit.  Once the flavors have all combined, about 8-10 minutes, turn the heat off and set aside.

Let's cut our corn off the cob.  Stand one of your grilled cobs upright in a bowl and carefully use a sharp knife to cut down the cob lengthwise, shaving the kernels off.  Do this to both cobs and set aside.

Now it's time to put everything together! 

Before you start building the nachos, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

If you made the homemade chips in advance (recipe below), grab those now.  If you opted for store bought, no worries.  Lay your chips out in a single layer in a medium pyrex dish (2.2 qt or 3 qt will do).  You can also use a baking dish but preferably something with sides so you can get layers going.  

Evenly sprinkle some of your mix of shredded cheeses, then some of the grilled corn and cooked down beans.  Then you'll lay down a second layer of chips, and do the same.  Finally, add a third layer of chips, cheese, beans, and corn as well as your grilled chicken (or portobellos for vegetarian).  Add a little more cheese on top of everything.

Stick in the oven at 350 for 15-20 minutes.  Nachos should be crispy and golden brown on top. 

Once done, carefully pull out of the oven and get to topping!

Drizzle citrus crema (recipe below), or top with sour cream for a shortcut.  Sprinkle with pickled onions and peppers (recipe below).  Finally, finish with a nice big scoop of pico de gallo (recipe below) and that incredible avocado poblano salsa.  Add some more fresh cilantro, and sliced radish if you like it.  Serve with all the extra toppings on the side so people can dip as they please, and most of all, enjoy every last crunchy bite!

HOMEMADE BAKED TORTILLA CHIPS

There’s nothing like homemade, crunchy baked tortilla chips.  It's actually insanely simple, and in my opinion, worth the end result.

Preheat your oven to 350.  Remove 18 corn tortillas from the bag, and 6 at a time, cut them down the middle into two halves, and then again into quarters.  Set all your quarters aside.

In a small dish, combine about 6 tbsps olive oil and juice of a small lime.  

Lay out 6 tortillas, or 24 quarters, onto a baking sheet in a single layer.  Depending on the size of your oven, lay 6 more tortillas out on a second and third baking sheet, or do this in batches.

Using a pastry brush, brush a little of the olive oil mixture onto each of the tortilla pieces.  Then flip and do the same on the other side of each piece.  Sprinkle the entire tray with sea salt.

Put the baking sheet into the oven and bake for 8-10 mins on the first side, checking along the way as all ovens are different, that the bottom side is golden brown.  Then flip and do another 5-10 mins on the second side until golden and crunchy.

If you are doing this in batches, repeat until all tortillas are done.  Combine in one bowl and toss with a little more sea salt if they need it.  I recommend making these the day of.

HEIRLOOM PICO DE GALLO

To prep the pico de gallo, using a serrated knife, dice half of a medium sized green heirloom tomato and half of a medium red heirloom tomato and add to a mixing bowl.  Cut off 3 rounds of red onion, dice into small pieces and combine in the bowl with the tomato.  Dice half a jalapeño into small pieces and fold in with the other ingredients (without seeds if you want less heat).  Add lime juice and sea salt to taste.  Cut off some clean cilantro leaves from the bunch and finely chop.  Add to the salsa, mix and adjust seasoning as needed. This should render about 1 cup of pico de gallo but use the entire tomatoes to make more, adding more of the other ingredients as well.  This is all to taste, so add more of anything you like. Trust your culinary intuition! Keeps in the fridge 2-3 days.

PICKLED ONIONS

To pickle the onions, cut one whole red onion into thin rounds and then chop rounds into halves.  Use the other half of the jalapeño and cut into rounds (without seeds for less heat). Add jalapeño and onions to a clean 8 oz jar. In a bowl, mix 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt and mix until the salt and sugar have dissolved.  Then pour the mixture into the jar so that they fully submerge the onion and jalapeño. Cover and let sit at room temperature for up to an hour.  Then store in the fridge.  You can make this up to 1 week in advance. 

CITRUS CREMA

To make your own citrus crema, to a bowl add 5 Tbsps of sour cream, juice of ½ a lime and a sprinkle of sea salt and whisk.  Keep in the fridge until ready to use.  Make this the day of.

Crispy Chicken Thighs w. Black Peppercorn Mayo

Crispy chicken, savory garlic and the heat of peppercorn mayo.

Growing up, my dad would make us a simple snack that delighted me to no end: sliced deli meat streaked with a thin layer of creamy mayonnaise, rolled up and consumed in two quick bites. As an adult, I have continued to revisit this snack during late evening, post-gym fridge raids, adding a little dijon mustard to the mix. Lazy eating at it’s finest. At some point, though, my taste for fine dining kicked in and I decided it was time to elevate the ingredients and morph this delicious tidbit from my past into a full blown meal. I traded plain old deli meat for crispy roasted chicken and flecked the mayonnaise with whole black peppercorns, coarsely ground. When serving I still like to follow in the footsteps of tradition, using the back of a spoon to spread a dollop of peppercorn mayonnaise into a thin flourish on the plate, followed by the chicken and rendered, garlicky juices. Serve next to Warm Israeli Couscous Salad and roasted vegetables adorned with Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce.

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Crispy Chicken Thighs w. Black Peppercorn Mayo

Serves 2

• 4 chicken thighs

• 8-9 cloves garlic

• Sea salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Whole black peppercorns

• Mayonnaise

• 1 lemon

• Neutral oil, like canola or safflower

• Cast iron or stainless steel pan

Preheat oven to 400.

Coat chicken thighs evenly all over with sea salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Let sit anywhere from 15 minutes at room temperature to 3 hours, refrigerated. Bring chicken to room temp before cooking.

Smash 7-8 large garlic cloves with the flat side of a sturdy knife, like a chefs knife, remove skin and place smashed garlic to the side.

Heat neutral oil in a large, high temperature, oven-safe pan (like a cast iron or stainless All-Clad) over med high heat.  When oil is shimmering and hot, add chicken to the pan skin side down. It should sizzle. If it doesn’t, take the chicken out and let it get sufficiently hot. Allow skin to brown about 5-8 minutes, adding a little more freshly ground black pepper about halfway through.

When skin is generously browned and separates easily from the bottom of the pan, turn the heat off. Using tongs, gently flip thighs skin side up. Add smashed garlic cloves to the pan and transfer to the oven. Cook another 15-20 mins or until your chicken is cooked through but still moist and juicy (the proper internal temperature of cooked chicken is 165). When your chicken is done, carefully remove your pan from the oven and move the chicken out of the pan to rest. Be sure to place a dry, well folded kitchen towel or oven mitt over the handle once you remove it from the oven as a “flag”, as the handle will be very hot & you don’t want to accidentally grab it.

When the chicken comes out, tilting the pan away from you, use a big spoon to baste the chicken with the rendered fat and garlic.

While the chicken rests, add a few tablespoons of mayonnaise to a ramekin or small bowl. Again, using the flat side of a sturdy knife, or a mortar and pestle, crush 10-12 whole black peppercorns. Add to mayo along with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Mix well. You can also make mayonnaise up to a day in advance.

When ready to serve, warm your remaining cooking fat with crispy garlic and spoon over chicken. Serve with peppercorn mayo on the side.

Baked Rigatoni Vodka

Brisk late-August evenings have my heart and belly at odds…

Every year I fear the feeling of that first fall chill. I impulsively frown at the thought of jackets and snow. While friends are celebrating the return of their favorite cozy sweaters and pumpkiny-things, I’ll be crying tears of winter contempt into this baked rigatoni vodka. Savory pancetta, a luscious vodka sauce and the addition of three cheeses create are one fierce emotional support meal, though. As long as I can bring it everywhere with me I might be okay.

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Baked Rigatoni Vodka

Serves up to 6

• ¾ cup pancetta, or 2-3 pcs of bacon with excess fat removed (simply omit if you are vegetarian)

• 1 medium white onion, 1 ¼ cup diced

• 7 baby bella mushrooms, stems removed, cleaned and thinly sliced, 1 heaping cup 

• 4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced, 1 ½ Tbsp

• ½ tsp Kosher salt

• ½ tsp Red chili flakes

• 4 Tbsps tomato paste

• 1 whole 14.5 oz can tomato puree or crushed tomatoes

• 4 oz vodka

• ⅛ cup fresh ricotta

• ¼ cup creme fraiche

• ¼ cup fresh grated Parmigiano

• ½ cup heavy cream

• Freshly grated black pepper

• 1 box rigatoni (sub GF pasta if necessary)

• Fresh mozzarella, 6-7 thin slices

• OPTIONAL PARMESAN GARLIC CRUST: 1/2 cup fresh grated Parmigiano, 3 garlic cloves minced, red chili flakes, freshly grated black pepper

First, finely mince 1 ½ Tbsp of raw garlic (4-5 cloves). Dice 1 heaping cup of white onions. Clean and remove the stems from 6-7 mushrooms and cut into thin slices.

Heat a large saucepan with high sides over medium heat. When pan is hot, add pancetta. If you don’t have pancetta, use bacon with some of the excess fat removed. Cook until a majority of the pancetta is golden and crispy, being sure not to burn it.

Turn the heat off and with a slotted spoon, remove pancetta from the pan, letting any fat drip through before putting in a small bowl. Set aside. If you are using bacon, remove from the pan and set aside on a paper towel to drain the excess fat.

Pour out most of the fat that reminds in the pan, leaving just enough to coat the bottom. Place the pan back over a medium heat and once hot, add diced onions. When they start to sweat, scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan and soften, 3-4 minutes, turning the heat down if the onions start to get too much color or if the pan is looking dry.

Then add sliced mushrooms to the pan along with ½ teaspoon of coarse kosher salt. Mix and cook another 2 mins. Next, add minced garlic to the pan along with ½ teaspoon red chili flakes, stirring occasionally to make sure garlic doesn’t burn. After another 2 mins, when garlic is fragrant, add tomato paste. After a minute or two, over a low heat, deglaze the pan with 4 oz vodka. Let the alcohol cook off, 5 or so minutes.

Start your water for pasta. Once the water has reached a simmer, salt to taste like the sea. 

Add your canned tomato puree or crushed tomatoes to the pan. You can also use whole peeled tomatoes and simply crush by hand, or if you prefer a smoother sauce, puree in a blender/food processor. Bring the sauce to a rapid simmer, and then turn down the heat letting it cook down to bring the flavors together, 10-15 minutes.

Once your pasta water is boiling, add the pasta and cook exactly to al dente. The pasta cooks a few minutes in the oven at the end, so if it gets overcooked here, it will be mushy when you serve it.

In the meantime, in a small bowl, combine 1/8 cup ricotta, 1/4 cup creme fraiche and 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano. Add a few cranks of freshly ground black pepper and mix. This will be coating your noodles before you add the vodka sauce.

Next, go ahead and add your cooked pancetta back to the sauce. If you used bacon, dice it and add.

Then add heavy cream and mix, until you reach desired level of creaminess, up to ½ cup. If you prefer a less creamy sauce, start with 1/4 cup. Mix to incorporate. Let cook together another 5 mins over medium low heat.

Then do a final seasoning check - add freshly ground black pepper, and more salt and chili pepper if you like. I usually add more of both here. When pasta is just al dente, strain, reserving a little of the starchy pasta liquid. 

Put pasta into a baking dish, like a 9x13 with at least 2 ½ inches of depth. If your baking dish smaller, you may want to mix your pasta with the sauces in the pot you boiled it in. To the pasta, add the three cheese mixture, and gently stir in order to evenly coat. 

Turn your oven onto the high broil setting.

Spoon the vodka sauce over the pasta and gently fold together again, being careful not to break pasta. If you prefer your food very hot when you eat, you may want to bring your vodka sauce to a simmer before spooning it over the pasta.

Once pasta has been evenly coated in vodka sauce, add a few splashes of pasta water to loosen. It should create a little creamy liquid in the bottom of the baking dish.

Cut mozzarella into 6 or 7 thin slices, and then tear apart and put on top of pasta.

Place baking dish in the oven just until the mozzarella is golden brown and melted, 3-5 minutes. Keep an eye and don’t walk away because some broilers are very hot, and you don’t want to burn the cheese. I usually check after 3 minutes, and add another 2 minutes if it’s not browned yet.

When the mozzarella is ready, remove baking dish from oven and set aside to let cool for a minute or two.

OPTIONAL - FRIED GARLIC & PARMESAN CRUST: For a final touch, while your pasta cools, finely mince 3 cloves of garlic. In a non stick pan with oil, gently fry the garlic over low heat, mixing constantly until a light golden color. Then remove from the heat and add to a small bowl to cool. In another bowl, grate 1/2 cup of fresh Parmigiano. Once the garlic is cool, mix with grated parmesan, a little red chili flake for some heat and a crank of black pepper. Sprinkle over pasta just before digging in.

Crispy Aleppo Chickpeas

Spicy, crunchy chickpeas with a hint of citrus…

Speckled with the beautiful flavor and color of Aleppo pepper. I will summarize if you don’t feel like reading on: these chickpeas are always a good idea. They have become a weekly staple in my fridge because of their versatility. I eat them on their own. I eat them in salads. I eat them under a fried egg. I eat them in the morning or late at night. Lest this turn into an ode to chickpeas à la Green Eggs and Ham, let’s cut to the chase. You should make these chickpeas … soon.

The key ingredient may require a little forethought: aleppo pepper. While this isn’t a spice most of us have lying around next to the salt and pepper, it absolutely should be. Hailing from Syria and Turkey, this beautifully hued pepper is, according to Healthyish, “…about half as hot as crushed red chile flakes…”. So, bring this dish to your next dinner party and it will easily accommodate both your friends who like heat and those who don’t. Plus it will sound impressive when you announce that it’s your new favorite spice.

I encourage you to be heavy handed on the Aleppo pepper and on the lemon. Let the chickpeas cook longer than you think, giving them ample time to get crispy. Make the dish even more savory by adding some chopped baby bella mushrooms and letting those cook down in the mix — a drizzle of yogurt on top and it’s all dressed to impress. Or make them simply like I did here for a perfect brunch, paired with garlicky kale and a fried egg.

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Crispy Aleppo Chickpeas

• 1 can of chickpeas

• 1 medium lemon

• 3 garlic cloves

• Extra virgin olive oil

• Aleppo pepper

• Sea salt

• OPTIONAL: Kale, eggs, garlic, baby Bella mushrooms, yogurt for drizzling, wildbrine Kimchi Sriracha (available at most Whole Foods)

First make the spicy chickpeas. You can make these in advance and use them for up to a week in salads, with eggs or as a side to any breakfast, lunch or dinner. Reheat them in a pan and serve crispy and warm.

In an 11’ frying pan, heat 2 Tbsps of olive oil over medium heat. Thoroughly rinse your chickpeas in a strainer of all the liquid from the can. Pat dry with a kitchen towel or paper towels. Add clean, dry chickpeas to the pan, patting them down into a single layer. After 2-3 minutes, add ½ tsp of sea salt,1 heaping tsp of aleppo pepper and 2-3 finely chopped garlic cloves. Mix frequently to make sure nothing is burning and to scrape crispy aleppo pepper and garlic from the bottom of the pan. Pat chickpeas back down into a single layer. If your garlic or spices are starting to burn, turn the heat down a little. Cook another 5 or so minutes, until golden.

If you want to add chopped mushrooms, add them now, allowing them to become tender and then adjusting seasoning as needed.

Remove pan from the heat and add juice of half a large lemon and mix, scraping the bottom of the pan.

Serve chickpeas warm on their own, topped with another good squeeze of lemon juice, and maybe a drizzle of yogurt.

For a perfect breakfast, move your cooked chickpeas to a bowl and cover to keep warm. Clean and use the same pan to cook up your garlicky kale and a fried egg.

Clean and cut kale: remove the tough stem by cutting the leaf away from the spine on each side with a sharp knife. Fold leaves and roughly chop.

In your clean pan, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat until it starts to shimmer. Add at least 1 large handful chopped raw kale to the pan and let it begin to soften, about 2 minutes, stirring often to cook evenly. To the pan add 2 finely chopped garlic cloves. Cook a few minutes more until wilted, sprinkle with sea salt to taste, then remove from the heat and put on a plate. Again in the same pan, add a splash of olive oil and allow to get hot so you can fry your egg: add egg without breaking the yolk to the pan - it should sizzle a bit when you drop it in. You want the bottom to get crispy and the whites to set, while the yolk remains runny. Monitor the heat so it doesn’t cook too quickly, and use a cover to use the power of steam to set your whites if they’re taking a bit of time. Just keep an eye so you don’t cook your yolk. Gently remove the egg and place on top of greens. Spoon chickpeas onto the plate. Serve with condiments of your choice. I love pairing it with spicy, tangy wildbrine Kimchi Sriracha (available at most Whole Foods).