In the spring of 2020 the world shut down confronted with an immense public health crisis. It meant I couldn't eat out, be fed by friends, or even go to the store more than once a week. I started a weekly newsletter to document my experience over the span of that unusual period in our history.
I've decided to continue that on a slightly different basis while slowly transitioning my paper notebooks into a digital format. Each month, I'll do a write up in the What's Cooking section, the latest just below. In the Recipes section, I'll slowly add and refine the formulas for what I cook and bake.
Even as daylight slowly makes its return, it’s been cold. Very cold.
On the savory side, I felt like I had to try a recipe for a ragù Genovese that I found in the FT.
Newest Recipes
Levain Pizza Dough
I started noodling with pizza made with a levain after trying Oobatz, a pizza place in Paris. They use a levain-based dough, and it adds a nice tang. I feed my levain with a relatively less refined flour (versus white all-purpose flour), which also adds a bit of extra flavor....
Weeknight Short Ribs
There are a million different ways to do a beef short rib braise. This is my go-to for a (somewhat) quick weeknight dinner that’s pretty good without needing a ton of effort....
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake
This is another great cake that I’ve had many times at the River Cafe.
Among the tweaks I’ve made to the recipe over the years, it’s a lot easier to start by whipping up the egg whites and then setting them aside....
Linguine al colatura
Colatura di alici (“anchovy drippings”) is a fish sauce, much like the Thai-style fish sauce that I was more familiar with. That said, colatura is very different from Thai fish sauce....
Cranberry Sauce
While a certain part of me feels the nostalgic draw of a can of wobbly cranberry sauce, once I had made and tried making a more grown up version, there was no going back....
