I didn’t have an exact plan at the grocery store. Despite my best efforts, I’m not great at meal planning, but I like buying building blocks. I like everyone to be happy, so I usually run dinner by Scott sometime in the afternoon to make sure he’s into it and building blocks of meals let me move things around if say I planned for tacos, but he had tacos for lunch. I also believe in comfort food the first week of school, making my kids’ favorite things. I think about this Cup of Jo piece from 2014 all the time about making home a haven. I can’t control what happens to my kids at school (they’re in first, fourth, and seventh grades this year), but I can make home the most comforting place possible.

So what did I buy and make? Thanks for asking. First, I bought a rotisserie chicken. One of my favorite tips comes from Caroline Chambers—pull all the chicken off the bones as soon as you get home while the chicken is warm and just put it in a container. That chicken became chicken sandwiches for my kids’ lunchboxes today.

I bought and a couple of flank steaks and marinated them in soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, and maple syrup. I figured we could have them for dinner last night (which we did), or they could hang in the fridge for a couple of days and if we wound up doing something else, I could just throw them, marinated, into the freezer.

I also bought a couple of baguettes, loaded up on fruit and baby carrots for those lunch boxes and made a big batch of homemade mac and cheese, again for sometime this week. I think it will be dinner tonight, but it would be fine refrigerated for a few days and freezes so well.

The last thing I threw together was a really simple carrot soup.

Last week a few things came together to get me to this soup. We got back from Brazil where I ate a bazillion fried things and needed a good dose of vegetables. A friend of mine had some dental work done and was limited in what she could eat, and this recipe for Hella Green Soup was top of mind, so I made a batch and felt very virtuous. Then we went to Prairie Whale for dinner over the weekend, where Scott got a carrot soup that was so good the rest of the family kept stealing spoonfuls.

I normally don’t love pureed soups, or cold soups, but for some reason they’re really hitting the spot for me right now. I came across a Hetty Liu McKinnon recipe recently where she talked about blending silken tofu into her soups to make them creamy and I liked the idea of adding some heft and protein. In the Hella Green Soup, Caroline Chambers also adds potatoes, and I think the combo of adding potatoes and tofu makes these soups feel more substantial and less like baby food. Anyway, here’s what I did. It’s nice to have a really easy, healthy thing to grab for lunch along with that rotisserie chicken.

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I’m eating this salad right now, and it’s so delicious I had to share it RIGHT NOW. You know what goes great with summer produce? Halloumi croutons and a very quick tomato vinaigrette. So chop up whatever you have on hand, or whatever you bought too much of at the farmer’s market and dress it all up with their new best friends.

Tomato Vinaigrette:

-1/2 pint cherry tomatoes OR 2-3 medium sized tomatoes OR one large heirloom tomato (this is also a great use of tomatoes that are getting a little soft or wrinkly
-1/4 cup vinegar—sherry, white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, they all work
-1 teaspoon of salt
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1 teaspoon honey

Throw everything in a blender and blend until smooth. This vinaigrette is also delicious on warm gigante beans with feta. It also keeps in the refrigerator for about a week. I’ve been putting in on everything.

For the halloumi croutons, the easiest, fastest way to make them is to pat the halloumi dry, cube the cheese, and then fry the cubes over medium heat in a little olive oil until they’re golden on all sides.

I still have my head thoroughly in the sand about school starting on Wednesday, but if you’re already in it, or your willing to be more organized than I am. Here’s my post from May, with 24 Lunch Box Ideas.

Your house doesn’t need to be perfectly clean (just make sure you have enough toilet paper), it doesn’t actually matter what you serve, your friends like you and they just want to hang out. While I think the effort that I put into planning, shopping, prepping, and cooking is often appreciated, it’s kind of beside the point. And if it wasn’t fun for me, that would be terrible for my guests, they would feel bad, like they were putting me out, and I never want people to feel that way when I invite them into our home.

If you’re nervous about having people over, find the style that works for you. If that’s BYO beer/wine/seltzer/lemonade and come sit on my porch or stoop, people will show up, promise. If that style is ordering pizza or being very upfront that you’re trying a new recipe that caught your eye and you have no idea how it will turn out, I’m along for the ride, that sounds like a great time to me. I’m in, when can I come? I also just want to hang out.

With that in mind, here’s a trick that will make you feel better about hosting. Lean into pretty bowls and baskets. I recently got some new East Fork bowls (you can get great deals if you shop seconds), and somehow they make everything in them look beautiful. In the words of Ina, “Store bought is fine!” Just put those potato chips in a pretty bowl. Fake it.

I also often get comments on the bowls that I use all the time in my Cooking Collectives and when I’m feeding a crowd. They were all gifted to me, but I can’t recommend them enough. I have a few and they’re made of resin (lightweight, durable), and wide and shallow. They make food look great. Especially salads, where so often people use big bowls and then all the good crunchy things sink to the bottom, or you eat the sparkly things off the top and then there are just heaps of lettuce below. I also like this Heath one that I’ve had forever.

To prove the point, one more anecdote: I like to put out something sweet at the end of my Cooking Collectives. It’s usually just a bite of something—it’s a weekday lunch after all. Last week it was 90 degrees and smoky outside so I put out these TruFru chocolate covered frozen raspberries in this Muji bowl to pass around. It made the group notice them, ask if I made them, more than anything made them look more intentional. I swear it was the bowl. Now you know all my secrets.

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As I was planning the menu for June’s Cooking Collective, I thought about the recipes I make every summer, that I can’t wait for. They’re bright and juicy, low lift, easy to expand for a crowd. I picked three that I make over and over again, and fit the bill: zucchini pizza and tomato and peach salad (a lunch to share), marinated chicken and miso corn salad (dinner kit), and addictive cabbage with roasted tofu (mom lunch for the next day). Here are the recipes, plus seven more of my absolute go-tos.

1. Smitten Kitchen Summer Squash Pizza— Here are my pro tips: store bought pizza dough works just fine. Also to squeeze the moisture out of the zucchini (annoying but necessary), I use a mesh produce bag, it makes the job so much easier than using a kitchen towel.

2. Miso Corn Salad—I can’t tell you how often I make this salad. Cutting corn off the cob is annoying, here are the methods I find least messy.

   -The first is to take a big bowl, and put an upside down pint container in the middle. Stand the cob on its end and cut down the sides with a sharp knife. The corn should fall into the bowl without awkwardly trying to cut the corn directly in the bowl. There’s a picture in the recipe if I’m not describing this well.

   -The other choice is to lay your corn on its side and cut the kernels off from there. Because the whole thing has a lower center of gravity relative to your cutting board, the kernels don’t go flying.

   

3. Tomato and Peach and/or Plum Panzanella—this is similar to how we used to make it at Delfina. It’s juicy and fresh, the bread gets that crisp gone soggy texture, and the lightly pickly onions balance everything out.

4. Marinated grilled chicken or steak or salmon—I’ve talked about sauces before, but marinating is like your current self giving your future self a gift. It usually takes no more than five minutes and you’re set up for a delicious dinner later. My favorites are Bachan’s BBQ sauce for chicken, steak, or fish, or a yogurt marinade for chicken. I also love picnic chicken, with it’s salty, sweet, smoked paprika profile.

5. Peanut Noodles—These are great because they use up whatever veggies you have and are perfect at room temp.

6. Fried Fish Sandwiches

   

7. Bacon and Corn Pasta—We make this all year round, but it’s much better in the summer when the corn is at its peak.

   

8. Animal Barbecue Sauce—this recipe from Animal Restaurant in LA is the best one. It’s tangy and sweet (but not too sweet), and complex. It’s my go-to and it’s great for ribs, pulled pork, as a dipper for grilled chicken, it’s worth making from scratch and lasts forever in the fridge.

9. Hot Dogs—We keep things honest around here. It’s so fast and easy to throw them on the grill, they cook quickly, and sometimes they just hit the spot at the end of a summer day. We’re partial to Hebrew National in our house, served with Cape Cod potato chips, maybe some pickles and some obligatory carrots or cukes on the side.

10. Thai Lettuce Cups, aka lettuce tacos, always and forever.

Also, always cold watermelon, cherries, and recently we’ve been into smoothies poured into popsicle molds so when my littlest (the only kid at home, sob!) wants a popsicle for breakfast, I can say yes.

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There must be some science behind why food tastes better when you eat it outside. I don’t know what it is, but barring bees or rain, it just tastes better. This is a simple, easy dinner to make whether you’re feeding four people or fourteen, mostly prepped in advance with minimal cleanup and great leftovers.

When I had a few minutes early in the day I took a page from Jenny Rosenstrach’s book and made a quick yogurt marinade for the chicken (about 3lbs boneless skinless thighs for four of plus quite a bit leftover for lunches). I didn’t measure anything, but this is roughly what I stirred together:

-about a cup of plain yogurt
-juice from one lemon
-a couple of huge pinches of salt
-about a tablespoon of smoked paprika
-a few grated cloves of garlic
-a big healthy glug of olive oil

I added the chicken to a container, poured this over, mixed it around, and let it hang out in the fridge all afternoon. The exact amounts don’t really matter that much, you’re not eating this straight, so it doesn’t have to be that precise. If you have half a lemon, use that. Not into smoked paprika? Pick a different spice. Salad dressing works as a marinade, as does any kind of teriyaki (you know I love my Bachan’s BBQ sauce). We’re going for ease and flavor here. When you’re ready to eat, fire up your grill, cook the chicken on both sides for a couple of minutes. Don’t get distracted the way that I did, as my chicken got a little more blackened than I would have liked.

The rest of the dinner was steamed corn, a quick caesar salad with some little gems, radiccio, and kale, store bought dressing, croutons (mine were homemade because I had a stale baguette to use up, but store bought are great), and grated parm, plus a little bread and butter and a few cut up tomatoes on the side. It was simple, easy and I can’t wait to make it all again all summer long.

What are your simple go-to summer dinners? Please share!

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This dinner works for so many different circumstances. Walking in the door and need dinner NOW? Check. Having people over with a variety of dietary restrictions? No problem. Picky eaters and nothing can touch? Easily deconstructed.

In truth, this was a lunch I made in less than five minutes from last night’s leftovers, but the idea is the same.

Buy some vegetables—little gem lettuce, Persian cucumbers, kale, cabbage, a bunch of carrots (not the baby ones), maybe some radishes, maybe you have some mint in your garden or cilantro from the last time you made tacos. Buy a rotisserie chicken (or two if you’re a crowd) and pull all the meat off when you get home, before you refrigerate it, and stick it in a container. Vegetarian or vegan? Buy a couple of blocks of tofu and roast that while you’re making your dressing.

Whenever you have a second, pickle some carrots. Cut carrots into coins. Mix 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt with 1/4 cup hot or boiling water. Stir until the salt and sugar dissolve. Add about 1/2 a cup of white distilled vinegar (not white wine vinegar), stir, and pour over your carrots. Let sit for however long you have or refrigerate for a week or two.

Again, whenever you have another free moment, make a dressing. My beloved peanut sauce is great. I also love this gingery miso dressing from Samin Nostrat’s cookbook below).

I’ve also had Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook for years and the only recipe I ever make out of it is her Carrot Ginger dressing. It tastes like Japanese take out. (Also, use less shallot, 2 is too much).

The pickled carrots and satisfying dressing are what make it special—make them whenever you can and stash them in your fridge. When you’re ready to eat, assemble the whole thing—chop up your veggies, top with pickled carrots, chicken, whatever dressing you make, peanuts or cashews if you have them around and call it a day.

I don’t know about you, but in my world, everyone is all about Maycember, lamenting that May is too jammed packed with spring concerts and recitals, parades, sports, graduations, all of the things. As a general make from scratcher, I would like to invite you to lean into sauces as meal makers and shortcuts.

I’ve written about this before, but I was teaching a class yesterday on how to “Salad Like a Chef” (their title, not mine). I chatted with the participants about the importance of a good dressing and how it can make simple food feel more satisfying and intentional. We made my favorite all purpose Green Goddess (perfect for all those spring veggies coming in), and peanut dressing, my most tried and true meal maker.

On my way home from the class I stopped to pick up fish from Fjord, our local fish market, and spotted their new packaging for their sauces. How cute are these little jars? I love them. If you have one of these little guys you’re more than half way to a dinner that you’re excited to eat.

Here’s how I would use each one, from left to right:

Miso Marinade: Marinate cod, sea bass, or halibut for up to an hour and then roast in the oven at 425 for 8 minutes or so. It would also be great slathered on bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.

Dill Sauce: Make a quick salad with bibb or little gems, radishes, and cucumbers, add cooked shrimp and drizzle with sauce. If you want to it to be hardier, you could also add some boiled potatoes, blanched asparagus, or boiled eggs.

Ginger Sesame Marinade: cut pieces of salmon into 2 inch cubes and marinate for a couple of hours. Roast on a sheet tray at 425 for 8 minutes and serve with rice and chopped up crunchy veggies

Sauce Verte: This is similar to the dill sauce, above, and also my favorite Green Goddess. Drizzle over flaky white fish and potatoes or serve alongside rotisserie chicken with a simple salad

Chimmichurri: Serve with grilled steak. Flank and hangar are my favorite.

Classic Mignonette: Oysters! Mignonette would also be great drizzled over crispy roasted or boiled potatoes for a sort of vinegary, non-mayo potato salad.

Pickled Jalapenos: Add to fish (or any kind) of tacos.

Housemade Teriyaki: Similar to the ginger sesame marinade, but you can also use it as a dip or drizzle for pretty much any protein.

Crab Mustard: Serve with crab (duh), or as an ingredient in or alongside crab cakes.

Cocktail Sauce: I think cocktail sauce is underrated and we should use it on more things. It works great for poached, roasted or grilled shrimp, but I also love it for dipping french fries or crispy roasted potatoes.

Chipotle Aioli: Great on fish tacos, fried fish sandwiches, or as a dip for chicken fingers and french fries.

Tartar Sauce: Classic—serve with any fried seafood. It’s also great in those fried fish sandwiches, or just as a dip for frozen fish sticks.

I’m going to skip the three herring jars, as I don’t have any experience with those…

This is unrelated to sauces, but I was chatting with a new acquaintance and we were talking about feeding kids. She told me that her goal for her kids was for them to be able to grow up and go anywhere—to any restaurant, anyone’s house— and be able to eat without accommodation. I thought that this long game view was such a nice framework for feeding kids. We often get caught up in what’s happening right now with our kids, going from meal to meal. I often have parents tell me that their kids are picky, but when they try to address it their child opts not to eat, or the fight that ensues is so unpleasant that it’s not worth it. I think looking at it this way can put you and your child on the same team rather than battling against one another. You can say something like, “As you grow up, you’re going to be in situations where butter pasta or chicken fingers, or _____food that you like___ is not an option. Or you’re going to want to blend in and have whatever everyone else is having. We should work together to make sure that you’re prepared and comfortable when that happens.” Anyway, I hadn’t thought about pickiness in this larger context. Just my little PSA for the day. If you’re stuck in a loop of catering to your kids’ palates, maybe add a sauce on the side?

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I was chatting with a couple of friends yesterday about the tyranny of packing lunches. It’s a pain, no one likes it, and every time I have this conversation with anyone, it’s clear that every kid has their preferences and deal breakers, often within the same family. There’s a whole list of no-gos: room temperature meat, cold quesadillas, the universal ban on peanut butter, drippy soy sauce, there are so many in puts. Hopefully this list will offer something for everyone.

Two other quick things—one is that I don’t worry so much about the temperature of my kids’ lunch food. Please don’t sue me, this is not proper food safety science, but generally I send my kids’ lunches in insulated bags, without ice packs (sometimes the food is hot, sometimes it’s cold), and generally it’s fine. They haven’t gotten sick yet, knock wood.

The other thing is a little rant—school lunch is a missed opportunity in the United States. If our country were different, we could use this time to introduce kids to interesting foods instead of catering to their salty, bland palates. We could ensure that kids get at least one healthy meal per day, and let them have a social experience where they’re more likely to organically try something new if their friends are eating it, without us parents around to nudge, nudge, nudge. This is nothing to say of the potential of supporting local food systems, reducing waste, and so many other things. I’m so thrilled that school breakfast and lunch is free for all students in New York State as of this year, eating is better than not eating, but we could do so much more.

Okay, on to the food. I’ve packed one to three lunches for my kids every school day since September 2016. Here are things that I pack in no particular order. I always include some kind of vegetable (carrots, cucumbers, peppers, cherry tomatoes, thawed edamame) and fruit, so I’ll focus on ‘mains.’

1. Charcuterie—particularly for my youngest and when all my kids were little. Cheese, crackers, salami, rolled up turkey.

2. Pasta—either leftover or cooked quickly in the morning. Most pasta is pretty good at room temp. Two of my three kids like cheese tortellini, too. Often if I’m making butter pasta I throw frozen peas or chopped broccoli in the pot in the last minute of cooking.

3. Sushi—it gets expensive, but it’s so fast and easy.

4. Chicken Sandwiches—this is a newish one for us, but it’s been a hit. Buy a baguette and rotisserie chicken and pull the meat off of the chicken when you get home and put it in a container, before you refrigerate it (this is a pro tip I just picked up from Caroline Chambers. Genius). Then for the sandwich I butter the baguette, add the chicken, some lettuce, mustard and wrap it up.

   

5. Chicken Caesar Kits—Each compartment of the lunchbox get’s part of the salad— chopped romaine or little gem lettuce, caesar dressing, parmesan, chicken (again rotisserie or any leftover chicken), croutons. Then the kids can mix it together at school.

6. Leftover pizza—use scissors to cut it directly into lunch boxes.

7. Chickpeas—my kids like them drained and rinsed from the can, or crispy.

8. Same with giant white beans—you can also turn them into a quick salad with some finely chopped celery, red wine vinegar, and olive oil.

9. Raw or roasted tofu—this is an underrated lunchbox option, the flavor is so benign and it’s great at room temperature.

10. Soup—most soup is really good in a lunchbox if you have a thermos.

11. Meatballs—also good out of a thermos with a little side of bread.

12. Rice and beans burritos with or without meat or eggs—Heat rice and beans in a bowl in the microwave and then wrap them in a tortilla and then foil so they stay together. This is especially great when you only have a little leftover rice and beans in the fridge.

13. Bagels—straightforward, simple, add your favorite spreads.

14. Taco kits—this idea came from a friend and I’m excited to try it. Add some ground meat, a little shredded cheese, a few tortillas and kids can make their own little tacos

15. Sunbutter and jelly—classic, my kids don’t like it, but yours might.

16. turkey or ham roll ups—lay turkey or ham slices on a tortilla with lettuce, cheese, whatever you like, and roll them up and cut them into one inch pieces.

17. Mini frittatas, like these. They’re super flexible and hold up well in a lunch box. Since we’re on eggs, I’ll add hardboiled eggs here, with a tiny foil packet of salt on the side.

Okay, this next section is going to be my Trader Joe’s lunchtime hero products. I’m here for yours, share them in the comments!

18. Mini chicken tacos

19. Mac and cheese bites

20. Pigs n Blankets (I like TJ’s, but prefer Hebrew National)

21. Chicken Fingers

22. Mini Chicken or Veg Samosas

23. Dumplings

24. Korean Rice Balls

    

    I know everyone has the things that work for their kids. I’d love to hear yours!

Also, if you live in the New York area, I’m doing a Summer Salads Workshop at the JCC of Mid-Westchester next week, May 20th, from 12-2pm. You can register HERE.

Lastly, again, sorry, just for locals, but come join me for the June Cooking Collective. We had May’s yesterday, and wouldn’t you like to eat this salad for lunch with a group of lovely ladies?

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Menopause is so in the zeitgeist that sometimes an interview with Mary Claire Haver crosses my podcast list or I’ll see an article that catches my eye, but mostly I get overwhelmed and skim through or finish the podcast and think, “who can possibly do all those things?” or “Yeah, but what am I supposed to do?” It all feels like too many “To Dos”, too many things to keep track of in an already busy life.

That said, this Menopause Toolkit (also MCH) landed in my inbox one morning a few weeks ago and I thought, “Great, a toolkit is something I can use.” So I started reading. I got to the part about Nutrition:

If you take nothing else from this series, take this: nutrition is not about restriction, punishment, or achieving some idealized body. It is about giving your body what it needs to function well during a metabolically demanding transition.

Nutrition Essentials

• Anti-inflammatory eating pattern: Prioritize whole foods, vegetables, fruits, healthy fats (olive oil, avocado, nuts, fatty fish), and minimize processed foods, refined carbohydrates, and industrial seed oils. This is not a named diet. It is a pattern.

• Protein: 1.3 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of ideal body weight per day. This is significantly more than most women are eating. For a 150-pound (68 kg) woman, this means roughly 90 to 110 grams of protein daily. Protein supports muscle preservation, satiety, and metabolic health. Data from the Women’s Health Initiative found that women with protein intake at 1.6 g/kg had the lowest risk of frailty. But protein alone is not enough. You must combine adequate protein with resistance training for it to preserve muscle mass.

• Fiber: greater than 25 grams per day, ideally 35+ grams. Fiber supports gut health, improves insulin sensitivity, lowers cholesterol, and reduces cardiovascular risk. Most women are getting less than half of this amount.

• Added sugars: less than 25 grams per day. This is not total carbohydrates. This is added sugars. One can of soda contains approximately 39 grams. A flavored yogurt can contain 20 grams. Check labels. The impact on insulin sensitivity is real.

• Track your intake, at least initially. Use a nutrition tracking app like Cronometer. You cannot manage what you do not measure. Most women are shocked when they see how little protein and fiber they are actually consuming, and how much added sugar has crept in.

This is not a short-term intervention. This is how you eat now. Not forever at 100% adherence, because life is not a controlled study. But as your baseline, your default, the thing you return to when you have drifted.

My reaction? Whoa. I grew up as a chubby kid in 90s diet culture and really try my best never to weigh myself. The idea of tracking protein and fiber and everything just sounds so draining, so arid and joyless. As a food person, I can’t even imagine how this translates into real food—are back to only eating boneless skinless chicken breasts and quinoa? This is how you eat now. What? Who? Me? I don’t want to eat like that.

Alllll that said, yes, whole foods, fiber, and protein are great, I’m all in on crowding in fruits and vegetables, nuts, and seeds and beans. And clearly I’m not immune to this or I wouldn’t be here talking about it. Sometimes I pick up a tub of cottage cheese at the grocery store because I feel like as a 43 year old woman in 2026 I’m supposed to, and then it sits there. I’ll sometimes spoon some into a bowl and top it with blueberries for a quick lunch, but I’m never excited about it. So then I give it the side eye in my fridge for a week or so and eventually I have to figure out what to do with it. Enter these egg and cottage cheese bites. They have protein and fiber and calcium. The ones in these pictures are full of leftover broccolini from last night’s dinner. They’re warm and salty in a way that cottage cheese never is. You can fill them with whatever veggies, cheese, or meats you have around.

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I’ve said this before, but I always love a peek at the way people actually do their lives, the nitty gritty of it. But HOW do you do bedtime in your house? What does your morning routine look like? Tell me alllll the details. For me, the question I get most often is how do you make dinner most nights, especially when you all walk in the door at 6:30pm?

On Monday, I had a busy day while the kids were at school (no cooking, barely time to shower), and then I was shuttling kids around from school to gymnastics, home from soccer, etc., from basically 2:45-6:30pm, save for a 20 minute window from 5-5:30ish.

I was all set to order takeout during that gap in traversing Westchester, but realized I had the ingredients for carbonara and I could do almost all of the prep work in that window, while also reading the Creepy Crayon and Creepy Pair of Underwear to my 5 year old.

Here’s what I did:

I pulled out my kitchen scissors and cut about half a pound of bacon directly into a pan and set it over medium heat to crisp up.

I read the first half of the story.

I paused to stir the bacon.

I read the second half of the story.

While my daughter went to go find the second book (which required finding a step stool and looking through her brother’s shelves), in a large bowl I cracked two eggs, added about half a cup of grated parm, finely chopped 1/2 a bunch of parsley and used a fork to whisk those three ingredients together. Then I set the bowl aside (it looks weird and grainy, but I promise it’s fine. It’s how Marcella Hazan makes carbonara so…).

At this point the bacon was crispy, so I added 1/4 cup of white wine, let it bubble and evaporate and then just turned the stove off.

I filled a large pot with water and put it on the stove, but didn’t turn it on.

I read the second book.

I prepped a salad with whatever veggies were in the fridge—Monday it was little gems, a little radicchio, fennel, and cucumber.

Mae and I set the table together.

As I was heading out the door for the last carpool run, I turned on the stove to start heating the pasta water to very low. Also you should know that Scott was upstairs on work calls so I felt okay having the stove on, I would not do that if no one was home. Even if you turn on your stove as soon as you walk in the door, the water will be boiling by the time you’re done unpacking lunch boxes.

When I got home, I slid the spaghetti into the pot, turned the bacon pan back to low to rewarm, and dressed my salad. After 9 minutes I added about a cup of frozen peas to the pasta, and one minute after that I drained the pasta and peas, added them to the bowl with the eggs along with the bacon and tossed, tossed, tossed. Basically by the time my kids had washed their hands, we sat down to a pretty solid homemade dinner, and I could save takeout for another night.

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If you’re looking for a vegetarian version, I would make this Debora Madison classic. In a very small sauce pan, combine a quarter cup of olive oil, four or five minced garlic cloves and 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp red pepper flakes, depending on your heat tolerance. Put that over low heat and cook until the garlic just starts to bubble at the edges and turn a tiny bit golden. While that’s happening, finely chop half a cup of parsley and measure out about half a cup of grated parm. Pause until you’re ready to eat. Then cook your pasta, (adding peas or broccoli florets in the last minute of cooking) drain it and return it to the pot and add the garlicky, spicy oil, parsley and parm and toss well. Divide into bowls. This pasta is great with breadcrumbs scattered on top, if you have them around. I also sometimes dissolve anchovies into the oil for some extra umami.

The first thing I’ll say is that it might seem separate from putting out recipes in this space, but the mission for all of it—the substack, the Cooking Collective, and the coaching— is the same to help people feel empowered in their kitchens. In all these different ways I want to remove the barriers to cooking—the stress around figuring out what to make, knowing whether a recipe will be good, the shopping, the dishes, the overall mental load of feeding yourself and your family. Beyond that, I want to make cooking joyful and restorative rather than a chore.

To make cooking fun, you need a tools and a plan, some support.

To that end, there’s the coaching.

For my busy parents, I run an eight week program where I help you get out of the 5pm scramble and build a simple, realistic way to get dinner on the table. How does it work?

• We look at your real life—what’s actually happening at 5pm (chaos, too many kids with too many activities, decision fatigue)

• We see where things are breaking down

• Then we remove the friction, figure out what’s realistic and create a plan (and backup plans)

• You come away with easy recipes that work, good grocery shopping and prep habits, and a sustainable system.

If you know anyone who finds dinner daunting and could use some support, send them my way. I also work with families with picky eaters, women going through different life stages (pregnancy, postpartum, menopause, etc.), and people who need help navigating dietary changes.

Oh you’re just here for the recipes? I got you. May I suggest Fried Fish Sandwiches? That’s what we’re having for dinner tonight.

A quick note—the recipe for my most go-to shakshuka is HERE. It’s one of the quickest, most cheatery meals that I know how to make, no knife, no cutting board—You literally dump some tomato sauce into a skillet, add a bunch of chopped up greens (you can even use pre-chopped kale, or boxed spinach or whatever), some drained and rinsed chickpeas, cook until the greens have wilted, crack some eggs in, cover the pan and call it a day. So fast, easy, cheap, veg, protein, fiber, all the things.

Okay, back to this other version. Usually for my Cooking Collectives I have the group make recipes that I make all the time—Crispy Thai Lettuce Cups, Tlayudas, Red Lentil Soup, Peanut Sauce—but for some reason this week I could not get the idea of a spanakopita shakshuka out of my head. By that, I mean the filling from spanakopita, the traditional Greek pastry, with eggs cracked right into it, like shakshuka. It was stuck there and I had to try it. A giant skillet of cooked, herby greens is a hard sell for my kids (even with a heaping side of emotional support baguette), so incorporating it into lunch with a game group of women was my window. I’m happy to say that it totally delivered.

If you live in the area and you’d like to join for the next Cooking Collective, let me know! It will be on Wednesday, May 13th. In the meantime, happy spring!

As a bonus, if you need a quick, easy sheet pan dinner, try out this crispy gnocchi with pancetta and asparagus. The win here is that the gnocchi cooks on one sheet tray and the vegetables cook on the other, so if its’ a plus for you crew to keep things separate, this might the meal for you : ).

Sheet Pan Gnocchi With Pancetta And Asparagus

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At the last Cooking Collective, one of my lovely participants asked if I meal plan. While I’d like to say yes, the answer is really no. In my dream world, I’m a dinner authoritarian where I just get to decide what we’re having, but in real life I have other people who I love and want to be happy and I’m more of a dinner architect. For better or worse, dinner is decided anew each day. So do I grocery shop every day? No. Sometimes it feels that way, but the reality is that I create my shopping list with an eye toward what I think of as meal building blocks—pasta, a few different proteins, a variety of vegetables. I think in terms of flavor profiles (Asian, Mexican, Italian), or vehicles (bowls, tacos, a more classic meat/starch/veg). That way when it gets time to have the conversation about dinner, I have a general idea of what’s possible with what we have in the house already.

I know people love apps like Paprika, but I just keep a running note on my phone about what we need. I almost always include tofu, boneless skinless chicken thighs, canned chickpeas, bacon, sometimes something like ground turkey or beef. I make sure we always have pasta, rice, and tortillas. We also have a pretty well stocked fridge/pantry of parmesan, lemons, vinegars, soy sauce, sesame oil, panko, tomato paste, Indian simmer sauces, and Better than Bouillon. For veggies, it depends on what looks good, but carrots, cucumbers, onions, garlic, ginger, cabbage, little gems, broccoli, cauliflower, parsley, and cilantro are staples. This is kind of like Ali Slagle’s 40 Ingredients Forever. From these 27 things, I can go in so many different flavor directions—stir fry or quick pasta, rice bowls, tacos, or soup. Sometimes I need to pick up an item or two to round out the meal (bread, fish), but that makes the trip to the store a quick in and out. I also look to my freezer for building blocks—bolognese sauce, black beans, frozen dal or chana masala, that are all waiting, ready to go.

Writing this, I’m trying to think about whether I wind up with a lot of waste, and sure, some weeks are worse than others, but I think generally it’s not so bad. A lot of these items can last for a long time in the fridge, or live an even longer life in the freezer if they’re not getting used up fast enough. Also, since I’m more dinner architect than dinner authoritarian, I can steer our crew toward something that uses up whatever needs to get used. I don’t know, it works for us right now in this moment that we’re in.

Need some meal ideas? There are so many HERE.

If you need more, or are more of a meal planner (hat tip to you), or aspire to be (you got this!), go back to the early days of this substack. The original purpose of being here was to alleviate the mental load of dinner, where each post included four recipes and an organized shopping list.

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Last thing! If you live in the New York area and are interested in joining us for the next Cooking Collective, let me know. They’re truly so fun—we gather in my kitchen from 11am-1pm and make lunch to eat together, and everyone goes home with dinner kits for family dinner that night and one serving of lunch for the following day. They’re $50 and the next few dates are Wednesday, April 15, Wednesday, May 13th, and TBD Wednesday, June 17th. Come cook with me!

What can I have on the table fast when my kids and I walk in the door at 6:30pm from soccer/dance/art/piano (or all of the above) and they want dinner NOW.

As spring picks up, my life is increasingly like this, too. As my kids are getting older and practices are getting longer and later, it’s even more of thing. With the goal of eating right away in mind, here are some dinners I’ve relied on lately.

My one note is that I work from home, so I often have time to prep during the day before the chaos starts at 3pm. If this is not the case for you, lean into your freezer and bank whatever you can whenever you have time.

RICE COOKERS

First, let’s talk about rice cookers. If you or your family doesn’t like rice, just skip ahead. I’ve written about this before—I’m not a kitchen gadget person. I hate clutter, and I suck at reading instruction manuals (ask my husband). I never got a slow cooker or an Instapot, but I LOVE my rice cooker (I have this cutie pie) and it’s such a savior for these kinds of nights. You measure out rice and water, push a button and it can keep the rice warm for DAYS. That rice can be the foundation for so many very quick meals. Here are some ideas:

• Any kind of beans for a rice and beans situation—my go-to black beans (I almost always have a container in my freezer), or a can of refried beans heated for a minute in the microwave, etc. they all work. Serve with avocado, cilantro, pickled onions, shredded cheese, whatever you like.

• Fried or scrambled eggs—sprinkle with scallions, add some sliced cucumber, maybe some chili crisp

• Rice bowls with peanut sauce and any protein—roasted tofu is particularly good at room temp if you can make it earlier in the day, but you could add rotisserie chicken or teriyaki salmon also works greats. I like shredded cabbage, and whatever other crunchy veggies you have around—sliced cucumbers, slivered snap peas, frozen edamame, etc. You could also roast some broccoli with the tofu and serve that at room temp as well.

• Middle Eastern Meatballs with yogurt sauce and chopped cucumbers and tomatoes

• Tandoori Chickpeas, again I like shredded cabbage, sliced cucumbers, and some cilantro

If you wind up with extra rice, make bacon and egg fried rice.

MEATBALLS

Next, let’s talk about meatballs. Like rice, meatballs are super versatile, easy to make ahead, freeze well, reheat like a dream and can take on pretty much any flavor profile.

• There’s classic Italian—obviously great with pasta, but it’s even faster to throw them on a roll or baguette with or without some mozzarella on top (just put them open faced under the broiler for a minute or two)

• There’s what I’ll call retro meatballs—kind of a 70s throwback, sweet and glazy with jam (apricot and orange marmalade are both great here), soy sauce, and apple cider vinegar. These are great with rice (see above) or again as a sandwich that resembles a quick banh mi—slice up the meatballs and add cucumbers, pickled carrots, cilantro, mint, and a squeeze of hoisin or Bachan’s. This is a random tip, but the other day when I made these I didn’t have enough turkey and instead finely crumbled in a pound of tofu. The tofu kept the meatballs nice and bouncy without sacrificing anything.

• For a more Middle Eastern Meatball, I love these Ottolenghi Turkey Zucchini Meatballs. Serve them with pita or any kind of flatbread and some plain yogurt (if you don’t want to make the yogurt sauce in the recipe, adding a little salt, a grated clove of garlic, and a squeeze of lemon juice will work in a pinch)

THE FREEZER and SALADS

The other two things that come to mind when I think of dinners that can get on the table fast are foods that are already hanging out in your freezer and can heated quickly and dishes that are good at room temperature. For these I’d encourage you to look through the directory from when I more closely stuck to the Quick, Make Ahead, Sheet Pan, and Wild Card format. Any soup or stew works great here, and if that’s not your thing there’s always Trader Joe’s to the rescue.

There’s also the whole category of foods that are great at room temperature, which mostly makes me think of cold peanut noodles and salads. I know it’s hard to get kids excited about salads, but they’re good for picky eaters because they can be so easily deconstructed. Some favorites around here are chicken caesar and bacon and butternut squash.

If all of this feels like too much work, there are always quesadillas, and buttered pasta with frozen peas thrown in at the end, my always and forever go-to.

“Korean pancake is my new go to for using up leftovers and the whole thing is crispy and delicious. And it takes 5 seconds to make.”

Have you ever heard a better endorsement to make anything from anyone? I tried to convince her to guest post, but alas, she’s in back to back meetings today, so you’re stuck with me, sorry.

I had made these before, but more as fiddly, smaller pancakes that didn’t really feel like a meal. This is hearty and filling and so flexible. What I’m about to tell you is WILDLY inauthentic. If you’re Korean, I’m so sorry.

I think the beauty of this is that it could literally include anything—any veggies in your fridge, any leftover meat (if you came to my Cooking Collective yesterday and went home with a Thai Lettuce Cup Kit and have leftover meat or tofu, that would be perfect here). You could use chopped up frozen shrimp, chickpeas, rice, pickles, truly anything. The pancake I just made (what’s a post without pictures) was basically a salad as a pancake—a bit of cabbage, a few leaves of kale, a handful of snap peas, some pickled onions, and leftover herbs. It’s an excellent way to Trojan horse more veggies into your meal. As for the batter, it’s great the way it’s supposed to be with chopped kimchi added in. I didn’t have any kimchi and added a teaspoon or so of soy sauce and some pickled onions. You could add parmesan or any other hard grated cheese. Again, so inauthentic. I’m so sorry.

Here’s the formula for 2 10-inch pancakes
I hesitate to tell you how many people it will feed since it depends on what you’re filling it with.

4-6 cups filling—veggies, meat, tofu, chickpeas, rice, etc. finely chopped or shredded
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup corn starch, rice flour, or potato starch
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
3/4 cup ice water
1/4 cup kimchi, finely chopped, or grated cheese, etc.
2-3 tablespoons oil
Optional Serving Suggestions: Chopped cilantro, Japanese Barbecue Sauce, Hoisin Sauce, Chili Crisp, Sriracha, etc.

Combine all of your fillings in a bowl. In another large bowl, combine the flour, corn starch, salt, and baking powder. In a measuring cup, combine the water, the egg, and the kimchi, if using. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until well combined.

You have two options here: My filling ingredients were pretty voluminous here, so I decided to cook them down a bit before combining them with the batter. If you’d like to do that, place your pan over medium heat, add a tablespoon or two of oil and saute everything until it’s wilted a bit, about 3 or 4 minutes. Add your cooked filling to your bowl of batter and mix until everything is evenly coated. Place your pan back over medium heat and add another glug of oil. Transfer half the pancake mixture to the pan, spreading it out to create one large pancake. Cook until the underside is golden and then flip and cook until the other side is nicely browned as well, about 4-5 minutes per side. Slide onto a cutting board or plate and cut into wedges to serve. Repeat with remaining pancake batter.

If you’re using pretty dense fillings or leftovers that wouldn’t benefit from cooking in advance (chickpeas, rice, leftover meat, scallions, shredded carrots, etc.) just add your fillings straight to your bowl with the batter and stir to combine so everything is evenly coated and cook as directed above.

Thanks for the inspo and the delicious lunch, Emily!!

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That said, if I were making dinner for them, I would make this pasta amatriciana. It’s red (romance!), but also, easy, fast, and a little special. It also makes me think of Tosca Cafe in San Francisco, with its low lighting, buzzy, storied vibe, and red booths.

The amatriciana there came as tangles of bucatini, studded with crispy bits of guanciale and was just perfect every time. They have a new owner and chef now, its April Bloomfield era is over, but that pasta was so good.

I think in these kinds of situations people tend to get ambitious with their meals. This version easy enough that whoever is doing the cooking won’t be too put out by the time they get dinner on the table, even if they’re not the usual house cook and they’re working hard to show their love through food .

Pasta not your thing this Valentine’s Day? Check out last year’s Easy But Fancy Way to Celebrate Love

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Can I tell you about my chicken and dumplings? In the New York Times recipe that I used as a reference (as usual, I simplified, used what I had, etc.) Alison Roman basically describes it as if a matzo ball and a biscuit had a baby. Sign. Me. Up. Everyone in our house is sniffling (yours too? Cool) and this hit the spot for four out of five Behars (my littlest picked out the chicken and begrudgingly ate a carrot).

Chicken and Dumplings

Serves 6

For the soup:

2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2-3 ribs celery OR half a fennel bulb, chopped
4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
2ish cups cooked shredded chicken (see below) OR 1lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
6 cups chicken broth (I always use Better than Bouillon)
1 cup frozen peas

In a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat, add the butter and the oil. When the butter is melted, add the onion and saute for a 3-4 minutes until translucent. Add the flour and a big pinch of salt and stir for a minute or two, cooking out the flour. Add the celery or fennel and carrots and cook until they’re beginning to soften, about five minutes. If using cooked chicken, add both the chicken and broth now, scraping up any bits from the bottom of the pot. If using raw chicken, turn the heat to high and add the chicken, stirring until it is opaque, and then add the broth, scraping up any bits on the bottom of the pot. Turn the heat to the lowest setting and make the dumplings.

For the Dumplings:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2-3 tablespoons parsley or chives, finely chopped, optional
3/4 cup buttermilk OR 1/2 cup plain yogurt mixed with 1/4 cup milk (or a similar ratio, it doesn’t have to be exact)
1 egg
2 tablespoons butter, melted

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and herbs, if using. In a measuring cup, mix the buttermilk or yogurt/milk with the egg. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients, and then drizzle over the melted butter. Use a spatula to combine just until everything comes together.

With the soup simmering, use a spoon to drop small golf ball sized balls of dough into the pot. They’ll float on the surface and can be touching, but try to get them all in one layer. Cover the pot and cook for 20-25 minutes. When the soup is done, the dumplings will be firm if you squeeze one (you can also cut one open to make sure it’s cooked all the way through) and the vegetables will be tender. Ladle into bowls and garnish with more parsley or chives, if desired.

I’ll tell you from experience that leftovers make a ridiculously delicious lunch reheated in the microwave.

Wait, wait, two more quickie tips.

One: If you don’t feel like making the dumplings, you can always add store bought gnocchi for a similar vibe, a la this recipe.

Two: Let me plan a dinner for you in the few days before you make this (because you all really should). This one is inspired by this recipe from Dinner:

It looks fancy and dramatic here, but I made it easier. We had my dad over for dinner, so I started with two spatchcocked chickens (my grocery store sells them already flattened) and I was reminded that making two chickens is pretty much exactly the same amount of effort as making one and who doesn’t like having leftover chicken around? I preheated the oven to 450° and lined two sheet trays with foil. I dumped two cans of drained and rinsed chickpeas in a bowl along with two pounds of halved Brussels sprouts (instead of the kale), a very thinly sliced quartered lemon, and added oil, salt, and 2 teaspoons of smoked paprika and stirred that together. Then I tipped the chickpea mix out onto the sheet trays, laid the chicken on top skin side up, and seasoned that simply with salt. I popped both trays in the oven. After about twenty minutes the Brussels were crispy, so using tongs, I pulled those out and let everything else cook for about 10 more minutes. When the chickens wer done, I carved them up and then served the chickpeas and veggies alongside. Easy peasy. I loved in the end that I had basic, salty roast chicken that I could easily repurpose later, with a flavorful, smoky, lemony side.

The leftover chicken became the chicken and dumplings, the best thing I made this week.

And lastly, my friends, as always, let me know if you would like to join us for the next Cooking Collective, or simply want to be added to the email list. They’ve been so, so lovely. I’m aiming for the third Wednesday of the month with a few variations for school vacations, etc., so the next few are February 25th, March 18th, and April 22nd. If you’re interested, but can’t make those dates, let me know that, too.

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Now that it’s my kitchen and I’m doing the cooking cooking, sometimes having extra kids show up at the table can mean rejiggering what we’re having or ordering pizza. Last night the stars aligned, we had a few extra kids and I was already planning to make this flexible rice and beans skillet with bubbly cheese on top and tortillas on the side. We had plenty.

The inspo here was a recipe my son noticed in The Week Junior. I tweaked it a little, leaving out the peppers, and using a little less salsa (ours was spicy) and more broth. otherwise I followed the recipe and it was delicious. I think it would be perfect for the Superbowl, or if you’re renting a house somewhere this winter and need to feed a croud without buying too many ingredients or knowing what the kitchen will be like. It’s also perfect for a Tuesday night when you just need something warm and filling fast. It was vegetarian, gluten free (if using corn tortillas), cozy, and flexible.

Cheesy Rice and Bean Skillet Tacos

Serves 6-8

2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups uncooked long grain rice
1/2 to 1 cup salsa
3.5 to 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (I always use Better than Bouillon)
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend or cheddar
Flour or corn tortillas
Optional Toppings: Cilantro, shredded cabbage, avocado, pickled onions, jalapeños, salsa, etc

In a large oven safe skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and a big pinch of salt. When the onion is translucent, about 5-8 minutes, add the beans and rice and give everything a stir. Add the salsa and broth in whatever ratio you want until it measures out to 4.5 cups of liquid (the original recipe calls for 1 cup salsa, 3.5 broth, I did 1/2 a cup salsa, 4 cups broth). Bring to a boil and then cover and lower to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your broiler. when the rice is cooked through, give everything a big stir and then sprinkle the cheese evenly over the skillet and pop it in the oven on the highest rack. Broil for 3-5 minutes until the cheese is melted and golden in spots. Watch carefully as it goes quick. Serve with tortillas and desired toppings.

Given the current climate—the actual snow drifted deepfreeze of the Northeast and the chilling, horrifying news coming out of everywhere, I often feel helpless. Of course I turn to food for comfort, to nourish my family and community. Here are some things that I’ve made in the last week in case your brain is having trouble landing on what to make for dinner. Beef and Broccoli, Oven Chicken Fingers and Mashed Potatoes, those delicious Umami Short Ribs from last week, Snow Day Carbonara, Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder with more Addictive Cabbage and Carla Lalli Music’s Sweet Potatoes with Tahini Butter.

Also, if you’re looking for another dose of warmth, come join our Cooking Collective. The next one will be Wednesday, February 25th, and following one will be on Wednesday, March 18th. If you’re interested, fill out the form HERE. This doesn’t commit you to anything, it just adds you to the email list so you can get all the info for these two and future gatherings.

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These short ribs are so full of umami, so savory and comforting, and so flexible. Two little notes about short ribs:

A million years ago in San Francisco, after I left my restaurant job and was trying to figure out what to do, I started cooking for monthly Winemaker Salons. We would work with small wine producers, taste through a progression of five wines and figure out what to pair with them. It was so fun, and we made so many versions of braisy meats. They’re a great way to bring out flavors in wine, whether it’s soy, cherry, cola, coffee, citrus, etc. All of that is to say if you don’t have one of the ingredients I call for below, don’t worry too much about it, you just want to get a balance between salty, sweet, and acidic. If you have any questions about specific swaps, let me know.

The second thing is that my lovely chef friend Annie (hi AO!) was a master at private cooking gigs and she used to do all of her shopping between Costco and Bi-Rite, a beautiful, precious market in SF. One of her Costco staples was the boneless short ribs. I was slow to get on the Costco bandwagon, but now that I’m here, I’m happy to vouch for this particular product, too. That said, this braise would work with bone-in short ribs, pork butt, brisket, any meat that benefits from long cooking.

Umami Bomb Short Ribs

For 5-6 servings

About 4lbs boneless short ribs (or bone-in, brisket, pork butt, etc.)
Kosher salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup mirin
2 tablespoons sesame oil
6ish garlic cloves, peeled
2-inch piece of ginger, thinly sliced, or 6ish frozen cubes
1 large orange or 2-3 clementines peeled and segmented

Preheat the oven to 300°. Season your short ribs lightly with salt. Heat the oil in a large, high-sided saute pan or dutch oven over high heat. Add the meat in a single layer, and leave undisturbed until a nice crust forms on the bottom, about 5-8 minutes. When the ribs release easily from the pan, flip them over and deeply brown the other side, another 5-8 minutes. Work in batches if necessary, moving the finished ones to a plate. Meanwhile in a measuring cup, combine the orange juice, soy sauce, mirin, and sesame oil. When all of the meat is browned, put it all in the pan or transfer it to a baking dish if it doesn’t all fit at once, or if your pan is not oven proof. Add your soy-orange juice mixture, scraping up any brown bits. Add the garlic, ginger, and orange/clementine segments. Add enough water to almost cover the meat, but not quite. Cover the pan or dish with a lid or foil and pop it in the oven. Boneless short ribs take about 2 hours. If you’re using a larger cut of meat or meat with bones (sorry to say meat so many times!), it may take as long as three hours.

When the meat is done, it will start to break apart easily when prodded with tongs or a fork. Remove it from the oven. At this point, you can refrigerate it for up to three or four days, or freeze it for a few months. If you’re ready to eat right away, preheat the broiler and transfer the meat to a foil lined sheet tray. Broil until the ribs have a lovely crust on the outside, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter, spoon some of the sauce over and serve. If you’ve made the ribs ahead of time, you can remove the layer of fat that has collected at the top. If refrigerated, proceed with the broiling step adding a couple of minutes so the meat is heated through. If the ribs are coming from the freezer, defrost them and then continue with the broiling step.

Addictive Cabbage

This recipe has been in my ‘to make’ folder for a while and this dinner was the day. To be honest, I’m not sure why I waited so long. I knew we needed something cold, crunchy, and refreshing, and I knew I wasn’t going back to the grocery store. I followed the recipe as written and honestly, it really was addictive, I could have eaten the whole bowl. I know I would get kicked out Japan for saying this, where precision is key, but I think this is pretty flexible. Here’s the gist:

Cut up half a head of cabbage into squares (or shreds, or whatever you want) and toss with a lot of salt (the exact amount doesn’t matter that much, you’re going to rinse it off anyway). Scrunch scrunch it for 30 seconds or so until it starts to get pliable and then let it sit for 10 minutes. While it’s sitting, make the dressing: combine two teaspoons of sesame oil, a grated clove of garlic and a tiny pinch of salt. Rinse the cabbage in colander and spin it try. At this point you could dress it and eat it right away, or pop it in the fridge to eat it later. Dress before serving. I don’t know how the leftovers turn out because there weren’t any.

Starchy Side

I made polenta, which was nice. I think rice would be more fitting here, mashed potatoes would work. Really whatever you like : ).

Lastly, we had our second Cooking Collective and gathering in person is just the best. We made black beans and everyone went home with Tlayuda kits, we made Melissa Clark’s Turkey and White Bean Soup with Greens for everyone to take home for lunches later in the week, and then we sat down together to Coconut Curry Cod and had a lovely lunch all together. We’d love for you to join us!

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In the last week I listened to two podcasts about food and eating that I thought were both great. Both were balanced and nonjudgmental in a way that I appreciated. The first is the Ask Lisa Podcast with Dr. Reshma Shah, which focuses on helping kids to develop a healthy relationship to food. It’s something that I wind up talking to parents about all the time—how do I get my kid to eat more vegetables? My daughter is so picky, I find myself making three different dinners every night, etc. I crossed paths with Dr. Shah in California and she’s lovely in person and low-key in this conversation. Rather than prescriptive, she focuses on ways to think about kids and food. She talks about how often as parents it might benefit us to say less (me!) and that we should just take the temperature down around food in general. If you have kids, I think it’s worth a listen.

The second was Trevor Noah’s interview with Dr. Jessica Knurick. I work with a lot of confused eaters, and I think a lot of this info might be helpful. I like that she talks about how despite food trends and marketing, the science around what we should put in our bodies has been consistent for decades.

If you listen to either, I’d be curious to hear what you think. Shoot me a note!

Now, onto the food.

My kids and I made this Persian Lentil Rice with Dates on Monday night and it was delicious. They had asked for squeaky cheese (halloumi) with honey for dinner. I was trying to figure out what should go with it and landed on this. It was comforting and pretty easy to put together (they liked helping to chop onions and dates, stirring, etc). It would also be perfect for a crowd with braised lamb shanks.

The recipe made a lot and there were only three of us that night, so we had the leftover rice with roasted chicken the next night. It was good, but I would say the real winner of this whole spread were the carrots, red onion, and chickpeas that got roasted under the chicken. Uncharacteristically, my son asked about dinner as he was walking out the door to go to school and he said, “Can you make those carrots that you make with the tlayudas?” I don’t know about you, but if my kid is requesting vegetables, I’m going to make it happen (see above). They were sweet and savory and a little schmaltzy, and we all loved the crispy chickpeas almost more than the chicken.

If you’re feeling bored of what you usually make, let this sheet pan of chickpeas, carrots, and onions be one new thing that you try.

Line a sheet tray with foil, peel and slice a bunch of carrots, peel and thinly slice a red onion, drain and rinse a can or two of chickpeas and lay it all out on the tray. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt. Roast at 425° for 25-30 minutes until the vegetables are sweet and caramelized and the chickpeas are crispy. You can zhuzh it up with smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, cumin, orange zest, or a squeeze of honey, but you can also just keep it simple. If you want to turn it into a full meal, you could make tlayudas, or add chicken to the tray as I did, or serve it over rice, or with hummus and pita, lots of options. It’s just an easy vegetable level up from steamed broccoli, or an obligatory side salad (which I rely on plenty).

Lastly, if what you really need is an edible hug right now (who doesn’t?), I’ve been thinking about Congee this week. Its savory, gentle, flexibility might be just the right thing for this moment.

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