There’s no denying that banana bread is delicious; unfortunately, it’s not exactly the healthiest or most filling way to start the day. If you don’t have a big appetite in the morning, a slice might tide you over until lunch, but I prefer something more substantial (read: more fiber and protein, less sugar and flour). This banana bread baked oatmeal is the answer. Super-ripe mashed bananas and finely-chopped dates mimic banana bread’s sweet, almost-caramel-like, roasted banana flavor, while the half moon slices add visual interest. Toasted walnuts bring nuttiness and crunch, while a combination of whole milk, two types of oats, and an egg make it more satiating. While I’m not ready to give up banana bread as an occasional treat, this satisfies the same cravings all for less than 500 calories a serving.
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Gluten-Free
Radicchio Salad With Manchego
There’s much to like about Food52, Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs’ blog, culinary community, and shop, but if I had to choose just one area to highlight, it would be the blog’s aptly-titled Genius Recipes column, written by Kristen Miglore. Every week, Miglore highlights a recipe from a cookbook, restaurant, or other source that earns this title from both being ridiculously-tasty and clever in its preparation.
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Kale and Sweet Potato Soup With Cumin
In our pantry, you’ll pretty much always find a package or two of instant ramen stashed away. While it serves well as dinner in a pinch, especially when dressed up with a poached egg, sliced scallions, and sriracha, it’s really there for when either Andrew or I are sick with a cold. (Some might crave chicken noodle soup, but I prefer the sinus-clearing heat of instant ramen and other spicy soups.) Andrew recently had the flu, so our stockpile of instant ramen was raided. I only wish I had discovered this kale and sweet potato soup recipe before then, as ramen — while tasty — isn’t exactly the most nutritious option, and this would’ve been the perfect supplement to that.
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One-Pan Sesame Salmon With Shiitake Mushrooms
Over five years, my boyfriend Andrew and I have shared too many meals to count, but this simple, elegant salmon dish is one I’ll always remember. One of the first things I cooked for him, it felt like an unequivocal success, a meal enjoyed by all parties. Years later, when I made it again, Andrew gently revealed that he wasn’t too keen on it that first time; to his tastes the salmon was a bit too rare, something he was far too polite to point out at the time.
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Enoki Mushroom and Kimchi Bowl With Poached Eggs
Like a good Californian, I have a major soft spot for bowl food, especially in the form of vegetables topped with a runny-yolked poached egg. This particular combination of enoki mushrooms, kimchi, scallions, and sesame seeds is my latest fixation, as it’s super-flavorful, fast to fix, packs in the probiotics, and it feels at home any time of day (provided you’re down with eggs for dinner).
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Slow-Cooker Black Beans With Quinoa and Sweet Potatoes
Beans and lentils are two of my dietary staples; fiber- and protein-rich, versatile, and inexpensive, there’s not much these humble legumes can’t do. I typically keep a few cans of cannellinis, chickpeas, and black beans in the pantry for quick-fix dinners, like rosemary-garlic chickpea soup and broccoli white bean soup, but most of the time I prefer to cook them myself using a slow-cooker.
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Perfectly-Crisp Roast Chicken Thighs
Typically, I’m very skeptical of things dubbed “best” or “perfect”. My perfect is not necessarily your perfect, and worse, these terms are so often overused by lazy writers looking to grab attention that it’s hard to trust that it’s not overblown. So when I saw that Bon Appetít was claiming a recipe with such a simple ingredient list (chicken thighs, salt, and oil) was superlative, I was both intrigued and doubtful that it could live up to these lofty claims. Well, as you may have surmised, I was wrong. Since I first tried out this technique for cooking chicken thighs, I have rarely strayed from it, as it is a pretty much foolproof.
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Salt and Vinegar Roasted Chickpeas
As one might guess after seeing the bottles of vinegar lined up on my counter, I’m very — bordering on ridiculously — fond of tart foods. So it’s somewhat surprising that I didn’t really understand the appeal of salt and vinegar potato chips until recently. But, it’s safe to say that once I got it, I got it.
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Blood Orange Aperol Granita
With it’s sunny red-orange hue and gently-bittersweet flavor, Aperol might seem an amaro best suited for taking the edge off blazing-hot summer afternoons. (There’s certainly some truth to that thought; when it comes to day drinking, it’s hard to top a fizzy Aperol Spritz.) But I’d argue it’s equally appropriate during these dreary winter months.
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Broccoli White Bean Soup
As someone who spends a lot of time reading, I find it endlessly interesting to see what titles are on the bookshelves of others. Right now, we’re living in my boyfriend Andrew’s dad’s apartment in Manhattan — thanks, Mark! — so I’ve had some time to peruse his collection. Tucked in-between two photography books was a memoir that had long been on my to-read list: Heat by Bill Buford. A former New Yorker editor, Buford tells a fascinating story about leaving behind his position at the magazine to learn the ins and outs of Italian cooking, starting with months spent staging at Mario Batali’s Babbo.
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