My own tried-and-true recipes for home cooks.
Pull-Apart Challah
Brussels Sprout Caesar with Parm Crisps
Now I offer the newest rendition: the Brussels sprout Caesar. Cousin to the kale, Brussels sprouts offer versatility in their ability to both be eaten roasted and raw. Their flavor complements the pungency of a Caesar dressing, which I amplify with Meyer lemons (that touch of spicy mandarin sweetness does wonders).
But the real reason I’m publishing this recipe is for the PARMESAN CRISP HATS! Who knew that a Caesar salad looked so good cranially-adorned? Imagine placing this salad down in front of your loved one, proffering them the exquisitely barbaric opportunity to smash a parmesan crisp right over their Caesar salad.
French Onion Soup
The first time I made French onion soup, I realized how easy (and cheap) it is to make. I had always believed that French onion soup was some fancy and flamboyant dish that I could only get at a restaurant. The soup always comes out bubbling and in some fancy bowl with a dramatic handle or maybe lion motifs engraved on the side and somehow that translated in my mind (and I think a lot of you all, too) that it was impossible for me to make at home. That’s completely incorrect. And it makes sense that it’s actually suitable for home cooks because French onion soup was historically never a fancy dish but peasant food. Look at the ingredients. Onions. Stock. Cheese. Bread. That’s not fancy. Anyone can make this dish as long as you have a little bit of time to caramelize your onions.
Apple Butter Babka
Babka is a great thing. As most of you probably know, the two main babka variations are chocolate and cinnamon sugar. It’s obvious that chocolate is the superior of the two (the cinnamon sugar is so…dry? bland? boring?). I’m not trying to dispute the chocolate supremacy with this recipe. I’m merely suggesting that there’s an opportunity to make a babka that’s decidedly less rich and better suited to eating as a snack all day long. Apple butter actually has a great sweet-bitter balance (most of the time) since it’s deeply caramelized, so I thought it would be a great autumnal filling for babka. The pecans and raisins definitely take the bread into cinnamon raisin bread territory, but I sort of like that connection.
Banana Bread
For some reason, I never downloaded TikTok at the beginning of the pandemic in spring of 2020. So I totally missed out on the phase when everyone was making whipped coffee, sourdough bread, and banana bread. I don’t know if people need another banana bread recipe, but this one that I’ve adapted from my aunt is killer. The hint of cinnamon bloomed in hot brown butter is heavenly. And it’s all made in one bowl by hand, so you can truly whip this out in no time at all.