Everyday Dorie: Basta Pasta Potato Salad
July 23, 2022 at 9:49 pm | Posted in cook the book fridays, everyday dorie, groups, other savory, pickles, salads, savory things, veggies | 2 CommentsTags: everyday dorie, salad, savory
This Basta Pasta Potato Salad really threw me for a loop. I judged a recipe by its name and not its actual ingredient list and was thoroughly convinced it was a pasta and potato salad. Sounds unusual, but mash-ups are all the rage, and I’m down for some carb-on-carb action. I saved aside a small portion of a twisty little dried pasta shape that I thought would look cute in photos just for this. Imagine my surprise when I finally set out to make the salad and there was no pasta to be found in the recipe.
What this recipe (based on a potato salad Dorie had at a restaurant called Basta Pasta– mystery of the missing pasta solved!) does have are typical pot sally mix-ins like mayo, scallions, capers and pickles, as well as some not-so-typical ones like saffron, wasabi, OJ and cukes. Dorie wouldn’t lead us too far down a crazy path, though, and it all works together nicely. It’s kind of what you’re used to, but with a twist, and sometimes it feels good to keep things interesting.
For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see what we all thought.
Tuesdays with Dorie BWD: Crumb-Topped Ricotta Coffee Cake
July 12, 2022 at 4:45 pm | Posted in breakfast things, BWD, groups, muffins & quick breads, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 CommentsTags: baking, brekkie, cake
This Crumb-Topped Ricotta Coffee Cake is one of my recent baking standouts. With a heap of super-crispy (thanks to a secret ingredient…shhhh, it’s cornmeal) crumbs on top and a dense but tender cake (thanks to a not-so-secret ingredient…ricotta), it doesn’t get much better. Oh wait– what about adding a layer of fruit? Well, that would make it better, but not to worry, as this cake has that, too. I used sweet dark cherries in mine, but you could use any berry. Hiding just under the layer of crumbs, the fruit turns soft and jammy. It’s good for a breakfast, snack or dessert treat. Really, this cake hits all the notes.
If you don’t have the book Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple by Dorie Greenspan yet, get it and join us as we bake through it every second and fourth Tuesdays! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll and all the other participation deets over on Tuesdays with Dorie!
Everyday Dorie: Cornmeal-Buttermilk Skillet Cake
July 8, 2022 at 3:29 pm | Posted in breakfast things, cakes & tortes, everyday dorie, groups, muffins & quick breads, simple cakes, sweet things | 3 CommentsTags: cake, everyday dorie
This Cornmeal-Buttermilk Skillet Cake with Strawberries is one I actually whipped up a couple of years ago. With the pandemic in full swing, summer 2020 was all around good times. I, like most you, was cooking with whatever I could get my hands on or had already. Saturdays were my shopping days, masked up at the farmers’ market and wondering what would be left after waiting in block-long socially distanced lines, and then going to the grocery store for the other stuff and finding the shelves half empty. But if you know how to cook, you can make some pretty good stuff in all kinds of different circumstances…you can even have cake.
This was an easy, dump-and-stir type of cake that can be baked off as a loaf or a round (I went with the cast iron skillet option). It’s made similar to cornbread, but a little sweeter. I stirred in some strawberries, but you can use whatever berries you have, or none at all. Maybe I should make it again this summer, while the blackberries are around and more readily available.
For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see all of our cakes this week.
Everyday Dorie: Mostly Rhubarb Tart
June 24, 2022 at 2:05 pm | Posted in everyday dorie, general pastry, groups, pies & tarts, sweet things | 7 CommentsTags: everyday dorie
Mostly Rhubarb Tart is just what the name says…a tart that’s mostly rhubarb, but with a little extra stuff, too. Macerated rhubarb covers the bottom of a par-baked Sweet Tart Dough crust. An easy custard, quickly whisked together but delicately rose-scented, fills in all the gaps. Then some halved strawberries are arranged here-and-there on top. I was pleased to find hot pink stalks of rhubarb at my greenmarket, and by placing the strawberries on top of everything else, they get direct heat and concentrate into deep red jammy pops. Anyway, the whole thing was very pretty and tasted like a spring day.
For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see all of our tarts this week.
Everyday Dorie: Portuguese-Style Fish and Beans en Papillote
June 10, 2022 at 7:59 pm | Posted in cook the book fridays, everyday dorie, groups, other savory, savory things, snacks | 3 CommentsTags: dip, everyday dorie, savory
It’s been a minute since I’ve cooked something en papillote, but gosh, what a good technique to be reminded of with this Portuguese-Style Fish and Beans en Papillote. I don’t really cook fish that often, and usually save it for eating out, but this was an easy and excellent dinner. No stuck-to-the-pan skin or disappointingly shredded up flesh or accidental overcooking happening here. Not even any fishy splatters to clean off the stovetop. Everything– layers of sliced lemon and tomatoes sandwiching garlic-and-paprika-marinated cannellini beans and a similarly-seasoned fish fillet–steams nicely in contained bundle in the oven.
Dorie uses cod in her recipe, but I went with some striped bass from Long Island, because that’s what my fish guy had today and recommended. She also uses thyme and scallions in her bundles, but I swapped those for parsley and garlic scapes. A drizzle of olive oil and white wine helps kickstart the formation of a flavorful broth, which turned out brick red for me, as I used a heavy hand with the paprika in my seasoning….I regret nothing. Tied up in a parchment pouch, it all comes out of the oven perfectly cooked in just 15 minutes, including the jammy and delicious lemon slices, which I’m glad I didn’t just push aside. Technically, this is a complete meal in pouch, but I roasted some broccolini while the oven was on and warmed up a piece of bread, too, to mop up all that yummy broth.
For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see what we all thought.
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