We paired the blueberry cornflake crumble from "Cook This Book" by Molly Baz with vanilla ice cream.
Anyone who’s tried to braid challah, perfect a tricky knife cut or poach an egg based solely on a written recipe knows this to be true: There’s a point when words aren’t enough.
Molly Baz, Bon Appetit senior editor and former star of the magazine’s (problematic) YouTube channel, gets it. In “Cook This Book” (Clarkson Potter, 2021) every other recipe drops a QR code into the text. These link to quick videos, sized for a smartphone screen, in which Baz deveins shrimp or demonstrates a roll cut on cucumbers.
“Some techniques are best expressed visually,” she writes. “Watch the on-the-go teaching moment and jump right back into the recipe you’re cooking.”
Baz’s energetic, approachable voice is all over this cookbook. I love her take on lemons (“a desert-island ingredient for me”), the flavor flow-charts and checklists, and Baz’s golden rules. “Your palate is the only palate that matters” is something I’ve said to friends, too!
As my community-supported agriculture (CSA) boxes start rolling in, I’ve been digging into this cookbook, and I love it so much I’m thisclose to doing a full “Julie and Julia” thing. Pick it up from a local bookstore or bookshop.org ($29.90). Very few of these recipes are online, but hopefully you’ll find some inspiration.
Green beans with garlicky pistachio vinaigrette — I love the technique here, which is to blanch the beans and serve them cold with chopped nuts on top. I made this recipe three different ways — once sans parmesan for a dairy-averse friend, another time with walnuts instead of pistachios. It’s so adaptable. purewow.com/recipes/green-beans-garlicky-pistachio-vinaigrette
Farro and charred corn salad with salted almonds and queso fresco — This was the first of a few things I made for a friend who was recuperating from surgery. It has a lot of individual components — you have to char the corn, quick pickle the onions, cook the farro, and toast the nuts. But the combination of sweet and salty with fresh herbs (I used mint and basil) is wonderful, and it travels well for lunch at work. (Similar in theme: sweetpeasandsaffron.com/charred-corn-salad-with-feta-mint-and-quinoa)
Seedy sweet potato and ginger snacking cake — If a cake has sweet potatoes and pumpkin seeds in it, I can eat it for breakfast, right? Heck yes. When I bake this ginger-scented, crunchy-topped cake again, I will sub alternative grains, like buckwheat or spelt, for a portion of the AP flour.
Skirt steak with red chimichurri — I picked up a bavette steak at Meat People, a new butcher shop in my neighborhood, for this weeknight dinner. I love a quick chimichurri or salsa verde on grilled meats and fish. (A variation from Hank Shaw: honest-food.net/red-chimichurri-recipe)
Slow-roasted cod tostadas with juicy cucumber salad — Cod loin works well in this summery recipe, which Baz accompanies with a fresh citrus salad and tortilla chips. This is a classic example of when a video is helpful: learning how to supreme a grapefruit. (Another Baz recipe for family-style fish tacos: bonappetit.com/recipe/family-style-fish-tacos).
Orecchiette with bacon, snap peas and ricotta — I. Love. Everything. “Little ears” are my favorite pasta shape. Thick-cut bacon gives it carbonara flair, and the combination of fresh ricotta and grated parmesan with sweet, crunchy snap peas — it doesn’t get better. And it’s so fast! (Add bacon to this and you’re close-ish: bonappetit.com/recipe/orecchiette-with-caramelized-onions-sugar-snap-peas-and-ricotta-cheese)
Pastrami roast chicken with schmaltzy onions and dill — I have cleaned my cast iron skillet so many times in the past couple of weeks. It’s Baz’s go-to pan, I think? I let this sugar-and-spice-rubbed roast chicken get a little too dark because I am lazy and do not listen well, but it was still fabulous. Roasted chicken fat garlic! freshprincesscooks.com/2021/04/26/pastrami-roast-chicken
Supremely creamy tomato and cheddar soup — I picked up the ingredients for this soup and almost didn’t make it, thanks to that mid-June heatwave that lumbered through Madison a few weeks ago. Who wants soup when it’s hot? Apparently when it’s this lusciously creamy, I do. (A riff by Claire Saffitz: bonappetit.com/recipe/creamy-tomato-soup-cheese-toasties.)
Peanutty pork noodles with crunchy celery — I finished this pasta at 10 p.m. well after my partner had given up on dinner, so I ended up eating the entire thing slowly over the course of several days. I’m happy to report it’s delicious straight from the fridge, the sweet-spicy-porky flavors intact. kitchenconfidencewithlili.com/blog/2021/5/18/peanutty-pork-noodles-with-crunchy-celery
Spiced, grilled and swaddled chicken thighs with the works — Shawarma vibes! This food cart-inspired chicken situation is the perfect thing to make on a night when you didn’t expect to have time to grill but suddenly do, and the sun isn’t going to set for another couple of hours, and you just cracked a bottle of cold rosé. That rub of smoked paprika, cumin, cinnamon and cayenne is just so good. matchingfoodandwine.com/news/recipes/spiced-grilled-and-swaddled-chicken-thighs-with-the-works
The right way to make popcorn — I have a lot of feelings about popcorn technique. Baz agrees with me about the skillet, in which she adds all the melted butter and canola oil right at the top, plus some turmeric (for color) and salt. Nutritional yeast is the finishing touch. I’ll be honest, I wrecked my first batch, salting it to high heaven. Still, I think she’s onto something. (Post-pop technique: facebook.com/watch/?v=2055792558070406)
Beef and celery stir-fry with wilted basil — Stir-fries with thinly sliced protein and crunchy veg come together in a flash and are an easy way to incorporate extra CSA or market veggies. I added baby bok choy to this one. youtube.com/watch?v=EfzCLsG3F-4
Blueberry cornflake crisp — I’m already planning variations on this easy crisp with stone fruit, like peaches and plums, and whatever local strawberries I can get my hands on. Corn flakes have a lighter texture than the oats I usually use, and a teaspoon of ground cardamom adds a little something extra. We served it with vanilla ice cream, of course. (This strawberry rhubarb crisp is similar: flavor-feed.com/strawberry-rhubarb-cornflake-crisps).
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June 25, 2021 at 11:45PM
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CT Kitchen: 'Cook This Book' with snacking cakes, pork noodles and perfect popcorn - Madison.com
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