You’re Invited

There’s room in the car; we’ll stop by soon to collect you. The more, the merrier, right? Not that tonight isn’t going to be ecstatically fun already, what, with everybody being in such a good mood. Optimistic and happy to greet the new year. Perfect setting for a party, really. Plus, there’s sure to be…

My Pie, That’s Why

Doesn’t everybody love baby spinach, pineapple and mushrooms on their pizza?  Seriously?  Why not?  Weirdos. The beauty of Cast Iron Pan Pizzas, though, as dreamt in the January & February 2020 Cook’s Illustrated, is that each pizza is customizable for each person at the table.  In the great deep-dish/thin-crust debate, these pan pizzas definitely side…

How Did This Happen?

Today’s creation requires little elaboration, as it’s a savory herbed pancake covered in a delicious mixture of mushrooms sautéed with leeks, then topped with grated Parmigiano Reggiano and lemon zest.  Sound good?  It is, clearly so, yet things become murky when it comes to the name, Dutch Baby.  Wait…what? All right, here are details.  A…

Hail, Caesar!

Not Caesar Augustus, but Caesar Cardini, the restauranteur who invented this salad at his establishment in Acapulco, Mexico in the 1920s.  By legend, Cardini ran out of ingredients for a conventional salad at a particularly busy moment and, instead of giving in, he persisted and improvised with whatever the kitchen had on hand. This included…

Now, That’s Italian

Or so it would seem, with polenta forming a creamy base and Parmigiano Reggiano topping it all with a salty tanginess.  With just a few ingredients and requiring less non-stop attention than cooking a proper polenta usually demands, Oven Polenta with Roasted Mushrooms and Thyme became a keeper when Bon Appetit featured it in the…