Category Archives: Recipes (Savory)

Roasted Delicata Squash with Smoked Paprika-Herb Sauce

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Crescent-slices of delicata squash get beautifully roasted in the oven until tender and sweet.
Crescent-slices of delicata squash get beautifully roasted in the oven until tender and sweet.

Unless it’s baking pizza, the very bottom rack of my oven seldom gets used.

But thanks to America’s Test Kitchen, I now realize that it’s the perfect position to get deeply browned and caramelized undersides of potatoes, squash, and other veggies.

That’s exactly what I ended up with when making “Roasted Delicata Squash with Smoked Paprika-Herb Sauce” from the new cookbook, “The Complete Plant-Based Cookbook: 500 Inspired, Flexible Recipes for Eating Well Without Meat” of which I received a review copy.

The book, by America’s Test Kitchen, is ideal for anyone, especially those looking to incorporate more plant-based dishes into their diet in this new year. Even if you’re an avowed carnivore, you’ll still find plenty to like, especially if you enjoy these dishes as an accompaniment to whatever meat protein you prefer.

Recipes run the gamut from “Carrot Spice Steel-Cut Oatmeal,” “Pinto Bean-Beet Burgers,” and “Creamy Cashew Mac and Cheese” to “Overstuffed Sweet Potatoes with Tofu and Thai Curry,” “Turkish Eggplant Casserole,” and “Dark Chocolate Avocado Pudding.”

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Quac ‘N Cheese with Tillamook Maker’s Reserve Aged White Cheddar

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Move over mac and cheese; make way for "Quac 'N Cheese.''
Move over mac and cheese; make way for “Quac ‘N Cheese.”

Picture a tantalizingly golden crusted, ooey-gooey mac and cheese.

Now, swap out that elbow pasta for rainbow quinoa instead.

Stay with me, stay with me.

Right about now, you’re thinking what an awful idea that is. Why in the world would you switch the classic tried-and-true pasta for something so healthful, and which frankly, always looks to me like a wool sweater that’s been put through a meat grinder?

Because my friends, it’s actually really, really good. And with the amount of cheese that goes into this dish, believe you me, it’s as far from health food as it gets. So there.

Tillamook's just-released Maker's Reserve Sharp Cheddar in 2015, 2016, and 2017 vintages.
Tillamook’s just-released Maker’s Reserve Sharp Cheddar in 2015, 2016, and 2017 vintages.

“Quac ‘N Cheese” is worth your while. If made with Tillamook Maker’s Reserve White Cheddar, it’s guaranteed to boast an impeccable cheesiness, too. I had a chance to try samples of the reserve cheeses, which are now available in stores, and are worth seeking out.

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Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Capers Over Linguine

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You won't believe how many capers are in this dish. But it works beautifully.
You won’t believe how many capers are in this dish. But it works beautifully.

Even if your Thanksgiving gathering was smaller than usual, you’re no doubt still recovering from all those days of heavy-lifting prepping and cooking.

You deserve a break — with a recipe that puts dinner on the table quickly and effortlessly now, plus has the decided advantage of providing way more bang for the buck than it ought.

“Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Capers” is such a dish.

It’s from the new cookbook, “I Cook in Color: Bright Flavors from My Kitchen and Around the World” (Running Press), of which I received a review copy. It was written by Asha Gomez, who runs the Atlanta culinary studio, The Third Space; and Martha Hall Foose, an award-winning cookbook author from Mississippi.

The book is a collection of recipes informed by Gomez’s dual Southern upbringing — born in Southern India and now living in the American South.

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Whole Roasted Cauliflower With Mustard, Citrus, and IPA

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Just a few carefully selected ingredients combine for this whole roasted cauliflower dish for an incredible depth of flavor.
Just a few carefully selected ingredients combine for this whole roasted cauliflower dish for an incredible depth of flavor.

Have you ever tasted a restaurant dish, and sat back in wonder, flat-out amazed over its intense depth of flavor? Whether it’s a tomato dish that tasted more tomato-y than even the most perfect peak-grown tomato off the vine or the beef dish so boffo meaty it was like tasting beef for the first time again?

Turns out it’s not all about just using the best ingredients. It has even more to do with combining the right ingredients to magnify their shared flavor attributes.

That’s the genius of the new “Flavor for All: Everyday Recipes and Creative Pairings” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), of which I received a review copy.

It’s by James Briscione, a former culinary instructor who worked with IBM on its “Chef Watson,” which develops cognitive computing applications to create better ingredient combinations. Briscione also was the first two-time “Chopped” champion. He wrote the book with his wife, Brooke Parkhurst, a former culinary instructor. Together, the couple run Angelena’s Ristorante Italiano in Pensacola, FL.

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Kimchi Mac and Cheese Ups the Game

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A delightfully crisp panko crust, along with kimchi and gochujang take this mac and cheese to another level.
A delightfully crisp panko crust, along with kimchi and gochujang take this mac and cheese to another level.

Get ready to raise your mac and cheese game.

All it takes is a little kimchi and gochujang.

“Kimchi Mac and Cheese” is from the new “The Honeysuckle Cookbook: 100 Healthy, Feel-Good Recipes to Live Deliciously”(Rodale), of which I received a review copy.

It’s by Dzung Lewis, a financial analyst in the Bay Area who moved to Los Angeles and pursued her real passion of cooking. Born to Vietnamese immigrants, she started the popular YouTube channel “Honeysuckle.”

Lewis’ forte is taking familiar dishes and adding a fun spin, such as in “Matcha-Almond Breakfast Loaf,” “Miso Udon Carbonara” and “Ginger-Cardamom Lemon Bars.”

Kimchi is a staple in my fridge, so I was eager to add it to mac and cheese. It did not disappoint, adding a touch of acidity and a real depth in the way that Dijon mustard often does in this classic.

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