Category Archives: Recipes (Savory)

A One-Pot Honey Garlic Chicken with Mushroom Fregola That Really Hits the Spot

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Honey garlic chicken, mushrooms, and fregola in a fabulous one-pot dish.
Honey garlic chicken, mushrooms, and fregola in a fabulous one-pot dish.

If you’re already dreaming of sticky, honey garlic chicken wings for Super Bowl Sunday, this dish is guaranteed to score a touchdown with you because it takes that same irresistible combination of flavors and makes a complete one-pot meal out of it.

“One-Pot Honey Garlic Chicken with Mushroom Fregola” is a can’t-miss recipe from the new “Italianish” (DK), of which I received a review copy.

It’s by Hudson Valley, NY-based Danny Freeman, the brains behind the popular DannyLovesPasta Instagram and TikTok accounts.

It’s a collection of more than 100 Italian-American recipes that have their roots in tradition, but include creative shortcuts and techniques to make them easily accessible for home cooks, especially those with harried schedules. There’s even a handy “time index” that suggests recipes to make for “fast meals” and “60-minute meals.” Many of the recipes are sure to appeal to kids, too.

After all, Freeman knows all about that, having given up his career as lawyer to raise two kids with his husband.

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Tuck Into Tagliatelle — With Korean-Style Ragu

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Italian tagliatelle with a tomato-less ragu that gets a Korean twist.
Italian tagliatelle with a tomato-less ragu that gets a Korean twist.

You may know gochujang, the fiery red fermented Korean chili paste.

But perhaps lesser known are its compatriots: doenjang, fermented soybean paste; and ganjang, a thin, dark soy sauce.

These three fermented pastes and sauces are essential building blocks in Korean cooking, according to Mingoo Kang.

The Seoul-born Kang should know. He’s chef-owner of Mingles in Seoul, which not only holds two Michelin stars, but was named one of Asia’s “50 Best Restaurants.”

In his cookbook, “Jang” (Artisan, 2024), of which I received a review copy, he explores how these three ingredients are integral to his heritage and his cooking.

The book was written with assistance from Joshua David Stein, a New York City cookbook author and Nadia Cho, who has been a liaison for chefs and journalists to Korean food and culture.

“Jang,” which rhymes with “song,” showcases more than 60 recipes, some traditional and others more unconventional. They run the gamut from “Ganjang Granola Yogurt” and ‘Ssamjang Cacio e Pepe” to “Yangnyeom Chicken (Korean Fried Chicken)” and “Doenjang Vanilla Creme Brulee.”

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Gnocchi — But Turn It Korean

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Korean bibimbap gets a little Italian flair.
Korean bibimbap gets a little Italian flair.

When it comes to cooking, Hetty Lui McKinnon has a knack for seeing what others don’t. With a gift for fusing ingredients from different cultures, this Chinese Australian cookbook author who lives in Brooklyn creates dishes that aren’t confounding, but rather thoughtfully and marvelously cohesive.

After all, who else would think to take Italian gnocchi and turn it into a foundation for Korean bibimbap?

Her “Bibimbap-Style Gnocchi with Gochujang Vinaigrette” absolutely works, too, with purchased gnocchi taking the place of the usual chewy Korean rice cakes or fluffy steamed rice.

The recipe is from her latest cookbook, “Linger” (Alfred A. Knopf), of which I received a review copy. It’s a collection of hearty salads and simple desserts that are especially dear to her heart.

In fact, salads are what inspired her culinary career. As a mother of three living in Australia, she started a salad delivery service out of her home. Two days a week, for four years, she made salads and delivered them on her bike to customers.

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Where’s the Cumin?

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Fragrant and irresistible lamb pizza, made even better with cumin.
Fragrant and irresistible lamb pizza, made even better with cumin.

When I spied this recipe for “Xi’an Famous Pizza” that was inspired by the mouth-watering Chinese food served at the family-owned New York institution, Xi’an Famous Foods, one thought came to mind immediately:

Where’s the cumin?

This pizza was originally a collaboration between Paulie Gee’s pizzeria in Brooklyn, which created this popular lamb-topped pizza with Xi’an Famous Foods’ spicy, umami bomb chili crisp drizzled over the top.

But anyone like myself who’s ever dined at one of the locations of this casual, no-frills Chinese restaurant surely can’t forget the deep earthy warmth of the cumin-scented lamb that adorns its hand-ripped noodles or gets stuffed burger-style into tender flatbread.

So, when I made this pizza, there was no way I was going to leave out the cumin.

The recipe is from “Pizza From the Heart” (Union Square & Co.), of which I received a review copy. It was written by Paulie Gee and Mary Ann Giannone, founder’s of Paulie Gee’s, which now boasts locations in Chicago, Baltimore and Ohio, too. It was written with assistance from food writer, Sarah Zorn.

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Lighten the Load, Part III: Creamy Pasta with Smoked Salmon, Arugula, Peas, and Lemon

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A creamy, delicious pasta without the guilt.
A creamy, delicious pasta without the guilt.

A creamy, decadent tasting pasta that can be considered light?

You bet. In more ways than one, too.

That’s because “Creamy Pasta with Smoked Salmon, Arugula, Peas, and Lemon” gets its luxurious body not from heavy cream, but from full-fat Greek yogurt. That means not only fewer calories and less fat, but a lot more protein.

Even more of a selling point is the fact that it takes all of 15 minutes to put together.

That’s because it’s a no-cook sauce, which makes it ideal to make whenever you’re pressed for time. Or in the heat of summer when that last thing you want is heat up the stove or oven for long.

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