blue_dolphin

This is quite similar to the very adaptable Marian Burros/NYT Plum Torte recipe. Here's a link to it on Smitten Kitchen.

How about here on Epicurious

I liked this article from the WSJ: Can the Instant Pot Cook as Well as Julia Child? Not sure if there's a paywall, so my summary: Article author buys Instant Pot, uses it for a few braises and beans and stashes it on the shelf. She gives a fair assessment of the units strengths and weaknesses but is seemingly bored with ..." the economy-focused advice and down-home recipes dispensed on message boards and blogs." She decides to revisit the IP and brings it along to a family vacation where she boils eggs, makes a quick strawberry compote and finally puts together a full dinner from Julia Child's “Mastering The Art of French Cooking” (links to the IP-adapted recipes are in the article): Homard à l’Americaine (Lobster with Wine, Tomatoes, Garlic and Herbs) Soubise (Sweet Onion Risotto) Ratatouille (Eggplant Casserole With Tomatoes, Onions, Peppers, and Zucchini) Gâteau Reine de Saba (Queen of Sheba Cake) Conclusions:

Aside from cleaning as you go, as most have mentioned, it would be wise to develop a routine of clearing the decks (emptying dishwasher, putting away any hand-washed items and washing up anything in the sink, put out fresh dish towels/cloths, empty trash if needed ) at least once a day. Ideally, you want to do this before (or after) each meal but doing it at least once a day will help.

I wasn't sure where to post this....which ancient thread to resurrect? I decided on this one due to more recent activity (7 yrs ago .) This old Dips/Spreads thread was a contender, as was this Bread/Toast Spreads topic both with many good ideas. Here, I have two spreads from David Leibovitz's My Paris Kitchen, served with thinly sliced, toasted Multigrain Bread from the same book. The good M. Lebovitz has even provided instructions for serving a summer rosé (Ice is Nice p 67) with which I complied. On the left is Artichoke Tapenade with Rosemary Oil ( (Tapenade d'artichaut, huile d'olive aromatisée au romarin) and on the right, we have Sardine Spread (Rillettes de sardines) made with smoked trout instead of sardines. For the tapenade, I used frozen artichokes instead of canned and EVOO instead of plain olive oil for the rosemary oil. A little drizzle of that rosemary oil on the toast really elevates the tapenade. It's great as is but next time I will add some lemon zest to the tapenade as I love artichokes and lemon. I liked the smoked trout spread a lot but will also give the sardines a try one of these days.

I'd say what you've described would made a fine side for most anything....including a glass of nice wine!

Multigrain bread from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen. Recipe available online here. I'll have to try this again as I dumped in a random amount of water instead of choosing the cup with the measured quantity. I was hoping for something with a bit more chew. Makes good toast, though.

Sweet Wonderful news!

I really enjoyed Ottolenghi's Eggs with Spinach, Yogurt, and Spiced Butter. You could cook up the spinach ahead, then re-warm it and top with a freshly fried egg, yogurt and the spiced butter. I can't remember if you have yogurt or not. There's another Ottolenghi recipe for Spinach and gorgonzola-stuffed jacket potatoes that would be a good do-ahead.

Faced with those marvelous ingredients, I would have to try EVERY combination of s'mores!

I hope you like the cauliflower cake, @Anna N! I thought it tasted better the next day, slightly warm or at RT, after the flavors had a chance to meld. @ElsieD - it's not really a quiche, since there is no milk, cream and it doesn't form a custard of any sort. Edited to add: the recipe is widely available online, here is one link.

I have been cooking from Ottolenghi books recently, including a few cocktails from his book, NOPI. I found them all interesting to drink. Recipes for the first 5 are available online here. Coriander and Ginger Martini - Georgie Thorp This one calls for ginger syrup, vodka, lime juice, lightly toasted coriander seeds and fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves. I'm not a big fan of vodka drinks so I made this with a reposado tequila. I'd call it a Coriander & Ginger Margarita. The freshly made ginger syrup was quite potent. Chile Fino Old Fashioned - Georgie Thorp Chile-infused Añejo Sotol (I used a reposado sotol and infused with de árbol chiles), fino sherry, hazelnut liqueur and Angostura bitters. I dialed back a little on the hazelnut liqueur so it just enhanced the nutty flavors of the sherry. This is my favorite of the bunch. Banana and Cardamom - Lukasz Rafacz Muddled banana slices, a LOT of cardamom (10 pods/serving), Bob’s cardamom bitters (I used the option of extra cardamom), Flor de Caña white rum, Velvet Falernum liqueur (I used homemade falernum), cardamom honey, unfiltered apple juice (I substituted pineapple juice) and lime juice. I thought this would be terribly sweet and it was indeed sweet but still pleasant. My homemade falernum contributed a lot of spicy flavors which helped out. Saffron Chase - Niall Downey This calls for Chase gin & elderflower liqueur, lemon juice, saffron syrup and champagne. I used Sipsmith gin, Bertina elderflower liqueur and a California brut sparkling wine. This would be a good brunch cocktail. The saffron threads look pretty and the drink is a beautiful deep golden color. Sumac Martini - Lukasz Rafacz The recipe calls for sumac-infused vodka, Velvet Falernum (I subbed homemade falernum), lime juice, pomegranate juice and garnishes with a pinch of sumac. I tried this as written and it was pleasant. Then I used white rum for the sumac-infusion and liked it much better. Pineapple & Sage Martini - Niall Downey (recipe available online here) I found this to be the fussiest of these recipes with a roasted pineapple purée made by roasting a whole pineapple in the oven for 3 hours. Also a cardamom & sage-infused gin, clove syrup and lemon juice. The roasted pineapple flavor was interesting with the earthy cardamom, sage and clove.

Inspired by a large but lonely potato and a big bunch of basil, I made a smaller, 3-egg version of the potato, feta and basil tortilla from David Lebovitz's My Paris Kitchen Served with spicy tomato chutney.

Understood! I'll say that the Taleggio really added a ton of flavor to this recipe so I would choose the most strongly flavored cheese you can access, or a mix of a strong stinky and a soft melty. It's also quite salty so you'll probably want more salt in the stuffing if you go with a different cheese.

Well, if you can find a slightly stinky, semi-soft, washed rind cheese that would be closest. I might try some of that smoky blue cheese you had earlier.

I had some marshmallows hanging around but had to toss them because they got hard and dried out!

I read this: And saw all the booze photos and concluded that @Anna N had immediately decided to hit the sauce!

Another Ottolenghi salad, Orange & Date Salad from Plenty More. I wasn't quite sure about the dressing, which contains lemon juice, garlic, orange blossom water, cinnamon, toasted fennel seed, olive oil, salt & pepper but it works very well with all the greens & herbs (arugula, red lettuce, cilantro, parsley & mint). I'll make this one again.

Stuffed Portobello with Melting Taleggio from Plenty p 56. The ingredient list is online here. I used some bigger cremini instead of portobellos and used a little less sun dried tomatoes than called for but otherwise followed the recipe. Stuffing contains onion, celery, sundried tomato, garlic, Parmesan, tarragon & basil. I have had some tasty stuffed mushrooms in the past but I've never tasted a better melty cheese than Taleggio - so, so good!

A lime-ginger version of the Semolina, Coconut & Marmalade cake from Ottolenghi's Jerusalem. My deviations: lime juice & zest instead of orange, homemade lime-ginger marmalade instead of orange marmalade. I (over)baked it in 4 little loaf pans and made a lime-ginger syrup to brush on after baking instead of the orange flower syrup specified. Served with yogurt and candied lime peel. I wouldn't say that syrup-soaked cakes are my most favorite thing but this one has nice texture from the coconut, ground almonds and semolina and I really liked the way the slightly tart yogurt complements the sweetness of the cake.

Just in time for the weekend festivities!

I love to use this service from my library, especially when traveling. Before I leave home, I download an assortment of current issues to my iPad so I can browse through them on the plane or otherwise away from WiFi. Saves me the $$$ I would spend buying them at the airport gift shop!

Focaccia with parsley & olives from Ottolenghi I took advantage of a cool-down in the local weather to turn on the oven and this popped out!

Like you, I started this month owning Plenty. I bought it back in 2011 but had only cooked a handful of recipes. I have the other 4 Ottolenghi books on loan from the local library and have been enjoying all of them. Plenty and Plenty More are neck and neck as far as favorite recipes go at this point, which makes sense as they're both vegetarian and I don't cook a ton of meat. Plenty seems to be the most plagued by measurement discrepancies where a few incorrect US measures replaced metric in the US editions (for example a 2 mm dough thickness converted to 1 inch). Annoying but not terribly problematic if you pay attention. The other books (at least the editions I have) have both sets of measurements. I like the stories connected with the recipes in Jerusalem so that one would be my favorite to curl up with for some reading time. Ottolenghi has a nice little section on savory pastries and may have the best variety of recipe types - meat, fish, veg, breads, desserts. I have a few meat or chicken dishes from each of those books on my list but haven't tried them. NOPI is my least favorite so far. The recipes are sometimes unnecessarily fussy but, on the other hand, I've also gotten some good ideas there and the cocktails have been fun. For another comparison, here's a link to a piece on Food52: How to Navigate Ottolenghi's Suite of Books

Very late lunch: Tagliatelle with walnuts & lemon from Ottolenghi's Plenty More. Essentially the same as this online recipe for tagliolini with walnuts & lemon. Deviations: I used Trader Joe's lemon pepper pappardelle instead of tagliatelle and added some sugar snap peas and yellow bell pepper. I like the way the browned butter and sage work with the walnuts. It reminded me a little of the linguine all'amalfitana from Diana Henry's Simple, which I prefer because ... garlic, red chile and anchovies