Category Archives: Recipes (Savory)

Epic Tarragon Roast Chicken That Lives Up To Its Name

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What makes this dish epic? A juicy roast chicken plus an addictive creamy sauce -- all made together in one pan.
What makes this dish epic? A juicy roast chicken plus an addictive creamy sauce — all made together in one pan.

Few dishes satisfy like a great roast chicken.

And this particular one is truly sensational.

It may not have the most shatteringly crisp skin, but I’ll forgive that because what it does possess is even better — a fabulous creamy sauce flavored with white wine and loads of tarragon that cooks up conveniently in the same roasting pan.

In short, “Epic Tarragon Roast Chicken” is indeed epic.

This straightforward recipe is from “The Farm Table” (Ten Speed Press), of which I received a review copy. It was written by Julius Roberts, a farmer and former chef of the acclaimed Noble Rot restaurant in London.

After growing disillusioned and burnt out from the stresses of cooking professionally, Roberts decided to leave the big city to return to the land. A first-time farmer, he writes evocatively about his journey to create a small, self-sufficient farm where he learned animal husbandry, foraging, and what it really means to live, breathe, and eat by the seasons.

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In Praise of Curtis Stone’s Spiced Barbecue Lamb Ribs with Labneh

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Sink your teeth into juicy lamb ribs flavored with warm spices.
Sink your teeth into juicy lamb ribs flavored with warm spices.

If you love pork ribs or beef ribs, you really ought to give lamb ones a go.

Because they boast even more flavor and tenderness, along with an incomparable juicy, fatty richness that’s a pure guilty pleasure.

“Spiced Barbecue Lamb Ribs with Labneh” is a sure-bet introduction to them. The fool-proof recipe is by celebrity chef Curtis Stone, and comes from his acclaimed Hollywood restaurant, Gwen, which he operates with his brother, the restaurateur Luke Stone.

And despite the recipe name, you don’t even really need a barbecue grill to make these. They can be made entirely in the oven, if you like.

It’s from the book, “Eater: 100 Essential Restaurant Recipes” (Abrams, 2023), of which I received a review copy, which was written by Eater’s restaurant editor, Hillary Dixler Canavan.

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Clarissa Wei’s Taiwanese Steamed Preserved Greens and Pork

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A dish that reminds me of childhood favorites my mom used to make.
A dish that reminds me of childhood favorites my mom used to make.

For many people, their idea of pure comfort food involves sinking their teeth into a juicy grilled meat patty.

Not me.

Instead, I find the ultimate contentment in a tender meat patty that’s steamed.

The kind that emerges from a bamboo steamer in its own deep pool of delectable juices and flavorings all beautifully co-mingled, and just begging to be spooned over a bowl of steamed white rice.

“Steamed Preserved Greens and Pork” is that kind of dish. It’s from “Made In Taiwan” (Simon Element, 2023) of which I received a review copy.

This beautiful, acclaimed book is the work of Clarissa Wei, a Taipei-based food journalist who has been writing about the cuisines and cultures of Taiwan and China for more than 10 years.

While Taiwanese cooking has often been lumped under the all-encompassing umbrella of “Chinese food,” Wei takes pains to give this fiercely independent island nation of 23.5 million people its culinary due. When she describes Taiwan as being shaped “like a sweet potato — curvy and fat in the middle, gently tapered off at the ends,” you know you are in for a mouthwatering time, as well as a captivating read.

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This Season’s Asparagus and Spring Allium Strata

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Cheesy asparagus strata with a bevy of spring onions and spring garlic.
Cheesy asparagus strata with a bevy of spring onions and spring garlic.

“Asparagus and Spring Allium Strata” combines my three most favorite spring ingredients:

Green garlic or young garlic with their Fabio-like, long, flowing green tops, no papery skins, and a fresher, sweeter flavor.

Spring onions or immature onions with their small, compact, and tender bulbs that boast a milder flavor.

And of course, asparagus. When I can find them, I always go for the thick stalks because they cook up more tender with a more robust taste, too.

If you’re new to stratas, just think of them as a savory bread pudding — perfect for brunch, lunch or dinner. It’s just toasted or day-old bread saturated with an eggy custard mixture much like making French toast, then layered in a baking dish with vegetables, cheese and other ingredients.

This delicious version is from “The Vegetable Eater” (Workman Publishing), of which I received a review copy. It was written by Cara Mangini, a San Francisco chef and creator of Little Eater, a produce-inspired company that offers catering and weekly meal-service delivery, and opened a number of locally sourced restaurants in Columbus, OH. She was named one of the top 50 plant-forward chefs in the world by the Culinary Institute of America and the EAT foundation.

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Nutty Braised Beef Short Ribs

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Short ribs get gilded with plenty of orange peel, sticky dates, and crunchy pistachios
Short ribs get gilded with plenty of orange peel, sticky dates, and crunchy pistachios

Yes, these succulent, fall-off-the-bone short ribs sure are nutty — thanks to a final flourish of rich and crunchy pistachios.

“Braised Beef Short Ribs with Orange Peel, Dates, and Pistachios” is from “Pistachios Sweet and Savory Recipes Inspired by World Cuisines” (Cameron & Company, 2023), of which I received a review copy.

The book is by veteran cookbook authors Barbara Bryant of St. Louis and Palm Beach; and James Beard Award-winning writer Georgeanne Brennan of Winters, CA, who is also a co-founder of the wonderful aperitif company, L’Apero les Trois.

Pistachios may be native to to Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria, but their appeal now reaches far and wide. The United States is the leading producer of pistachios, with California having bragging rights in producing 99 percent of them.

They are good for you, too. A handful of pistachios (about 50 kernels) has as much protein as an egg and more fiber than an orange, according to the book. Pistachios also have high levels of unsaturated fatty acids and potassium.

And don’t toss those pistachios shells. Mix them with wood chips, bark or leaves to make a handy mulch that will slowly break down over time to release nutrients into the soil. Just be sure to use unsalted shells; or rinse salted shells and allow them to dry beforehand.

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