Notes about Recipes in this book

• Chicken tagine with apricots, butternut squash and spinach

  • Jane on June 08, 2020

    I loved this and will definitely making again. I usually have all these ingredients on hand though in these days of quarantine cooking I had to sub preserved lemon for the olives and I didn't have cilantro for on top. Still very good!

  • Leo on September 09, 2020

    This was great. Had all of the ingredients on hand so was able to follow it exactly. Real depth of flavour and interesting textures. A bit fiddly in places but worth it. Without the final garnish and the fresh herbs it would be no more than good. Worth the effort. Will make again. Second time made with an orange sweet potato instead of squash. Worked really well. Definitely a keeper.

  • Rachaelsb on March 22, 2018

    This was unexpectedly delicious. The flavors are amazing and unfold with each bite. I used carrots instead of squash...didn't have olives so used capers instead. Everything worked just fine.

  • julesamomof2 on January 05, 2020

    As other reviewers have noted, this is much more delicious than expected. The potentially offensive ingredients - olives, dried apricots - almost dissolve into the whole and nobody noticed/objected. We all agreed this was a keeper!

  • lizbot2000 on September 30, 2018

    Wow! I made this because it got good reviews, but I wasn't really expecting much. Holy moly did it end up being good. I hate olives, so I used preserved lemons, which turned out great. Dipped some naan in it, too, because the only thing better than good food is good food + naan to deliver it to your mouth.

• Burmese chicken

  • SilverSage on November 04, 2017

    Judy found this way too spicy, but I liked it a lot.

  • Leo on September 23, 2020

    Yes this was quick and easy but it was also delicious. A gem of a recipe for weeknight cooking. I stirred in a good handful of spinach and served with rice. I only used a small amount of chicken - not sure if adding spinach would work with the full amount of chicken as there is not a huge amount of sauce. A keeper!

  • Dannausc on September 14, 2020

    Fairly quick and easy. Pretty decent.

• Thai beef salad (Yam neua)

  • Mrs. L on November 30, 2017

    Great dish. Was worried about the fish sauce but didn’t taste it. Leftovers were wonderful cold. Came together quickly.

• Refried beans

  • Mrs. L on December 01, 2017

    Uses canned not dried beans. Much fresher tasting than pre-made canned...but doesn’t taste the same.

• Skirt steak salad with arugula and peppadews

  • Mrs. L on December 01, 2017

    Loved the peppadews. Found them in the olive bar at Lunardi’s. Quick. Easy.

• Central Mexican guacamole

  • Mrs. L on December 01, 2017

    Good simple guacamole.

• Harissa

  • Anadara on February 21, 2020

    Easy, easy and delicious

• Gemelli pasta with chevre, arugula and walnuts

  • Emily Hope on June 05, 2019

    I'm sorry to say that this was very "meh" for us -- as written, it didn't have very much flavor and, with such strongly flavored components, seemed to be less than the sum of its parts. I added more goat cheese and dollops of a garlic scape pesto on top to save it. Not a repeat for us.

  • purrviciouz on May 21, 2019

    This is a great weeknight meal as it comes together in the time it takes to cook the pasta. My husband asked for a repeat already.

• Brown butter-cardamom banana bread

  • apattin on January 16, 2019

    Good. Needs more cardamom.

  • michalow on July 28, 2019

    Nice flavor and texture. Could cut back butter and sugar a little bit.

  • Dannausc on June 14, 2020

    I used 2 t. cardamom because I really like cardamom in baked goods. The banana bread was very good. I would make it again.

  • aholberg on October 28, 2020

    I went with 2 t. cardamom and it's just okay. Seems a little bland to me. Needed a little extra baking time.

• Sichuan chicken salad

  • jenmacgregor18 on March 22, 2018

    I used a rotisserie chx. It would probably be better poached as directed. I wasn't crazy about the dressing at first. But after a day or so in the fridge the flavors melded a bit better and I enjoyed it. It got a Yes vote from B. I may try again as written sometime.

  • jbny on October 19, 2021

    very good. used rotisserie chicken, so added garlic paste and ginger paste to the dressing (instead of poaching the chicken with garlic and ginger).

  • Lesliehauser on February 17, 2020

    So delicious. Served over salad greens and napa cabbage. Doubled the dressing, but only used 1/3 of the sesame oil and chili oil bc I ran out and it was perfect. Whole family loved it. And the broth from poaching would be an excellent base for another soup recipe.

• French carrot salad

  • jenmacgregor18 on June 05, 2018

    I hate tarragon & so left it out; but followed directions otherwise. It seems too sweet with the honey & white balsamic, even w/ cayenne & shallots to offset. Besides the sweetness, it has a fresh taste. I like the texture of the grated carrots & keeps really well in the fridge. I may try again with another strong flavored herb or just leave out the honey next time.

• Tamarind dipping sauce

  • chawkins on July 06, 2019

    Quite good but the Chiang Mai chicken that this was made for was moist and flavorful and did not really need a dipping sauce.

• No-sear lamb and chickpea stew

  • Leo on September 20, 2020

    This worked OK for me. I am cooking for two so I used about 500g neck fillet which I judged needed about 45 minutes initial cooking but the same amount of spices. I used 4 cups of water but could have used 3. It was very soupy. The lamb was tender and with some buttered naan the meal was delicious. My husband loved it but I think that I missed the depth of flavour from an initial browning. I probably have better recipes with the same flavour profile.

  • Lsblackburn1 on February 29, 2020

    This was just okay. The flavors were nice but the lamb was tough and not very delicious (used lamb stew meat... maybe the no-sear approach just doesn’t work...). I served it over egg noodles.

• Hot oil-flashed chard with ginger, scallions and chili

  • Leo on September 27, 2020

    Made this with raw young spinach. Absolutely delicious. Will do with other greens... Soon.

• Slow-roasted tomatoes

  • Rinshin on October 05, 2018

    Super tasty. Mine were done in 3/4 of the time. Tomato paste and balsamic vinegar deepened the taste tremendously even with store bought anemic roma tomatoes. Keeps frozen nicely for many uses.

• Spanish spice-crusted pork tenderloin bites (Pinchos Morunos)

  • Rachaelsb on May 30, 2020

    Good. Makes simple but satisfying dinner. Paired with Parsley Rice (Silver Palette) and plain broccoli.

  • jbny on June 22, 2021

    Delicious! Good for company dinner.

  • Amyateit on November 20, 2021

    Like Racheal said “good but simple” A quick fix. Don’t forget the lemon garlic mixture, it makes the dish.

• Trapani pesto

  • Rachaelsb on February 26, 2018

    Easy to prepare; nice alternative for dinner.

• Spicy stir-fried cumin beef

  • jbny on September 05, 2021

    very good. Cook beef even less than indicated. Can add other vegetables (parboiled if necessary) -- brown them briefly after doing the onions.

• Miso-shiitake soup with napa cabbage

  • tarae1204 on January 29, 2021

    I made this tonight with every ingredient except wakame and I found it lacked depth of flavor. Might have been better using stock to replace wakame.

• Sweet-and-spicy ginger green beans

  • lizbot2000 on September 23, 2018

    This is a really handy recipe for making a side that'll go with a lot of different things when you're meal-prepping/bento-making. It's really nicely acidic but with a good balance of sweet and umami. My new favorite green bean recipe.

  • montecristo99 on February 09, 2019

    Agree with lizbot2000--this is my new favorite green bean recipe. It shouldn't taste this good, for how little effort it requires. Sweet, spicy, acidic, and ready in a matter of minutes. A winner!

  • Dannausc on August 06, 2020

    I used 1 t. red pepper flakes. I used Sichuan pepper in place of the white pepper. Easy, tasty.

  • valbe on August 10, 2020

    I made this based on the previous notes and I was not disappointed. Definitely a winner!

• Spicy red lentil stew with coconut milk and spinach

  • lizbot2000 on September 23, 2018

    This is just ridiculously easy and delicious. Probably the best recipe for red lentil stew I've ever made, by a lot. I'm going to be making this constantly this fall.

  • Lsblackburn1 on February 18, 2019

    This stew tastes creamy and luscious but has no animal fat at all. Easy and delicious. I added some cilantro because I had some that needed using up.

• Chinese stir-fried eggs with tomatoes

  • lizbot2000 on September 23, 2018

    I've been making versions of stir-fried eggs and tomatoes for years, and this still felt new and different and exciting. Also easy as hell and fast.

• Lemon-buttermilk pound cake

  • Cookie24 on April 09, 2018

    Whipping the egg whites for this pound cake did make it lighter than other recipes. Changed the flavor from lemon to orange and added orange oil as well, everything else remained the same. Cake was moist and the sugar coating for the bundt pan gave the cake a nice sweet light crunch. Thumbs up from the family. Served with orange supremes and whipped cream. Great the next morning, plain with coffee.

• Turkish beans with pickled tomatoes

  • Cookie24 on August 21, 2019

    I've made this a few times and each time something gets adjusted to please the family tastes. The beans are good even without the pickled tomatoes (family prefers no topping). I've reduced the red pepper flakes (family prefers not so spicy) and omitted the pomegranate molasses when I didn't have any. Also have substituted dill with parsley and cooked it in my slow cooker instead of the oven. Have used Mayocoba beans or Cranberry beans that have been soaked over night with salt. I always add beef base to boost beefy flavor; the most important ingredient besides the beans is the beef shank, it makes the dish. Since I don't always make the tomato topping, I'll serve it with a squeeze of lime or wedges on the side to add some acid.

• No-sear beef and chickpea stew

  • jems on September 30, 2020

    We like spicy but this was MUCH too spicy. Added lemon juice to tame a bit.

• Spanish garlic soup

  • montecristo99 on January 30, 2019

    This was terrific, and really simple to make. I thought the smokiness from the paprika would be too strong, but with the addition of the croutons (don't skip these) the soup was just right.

• Steamed chocolate cake

  • Paulacastillo on December 21, 2017

    Amazing flavor and so easy to make! My favorite go to when I need to make dessert in a heart beat.

• Cuban-style pork shoulder with mojo sauce

  • purrviciouz on November 26, 2021

    Quite delicious however i made a big mess due to unclear directions in the recipe. The instructions say to pour remaining citrus juice into the bottom of the pan but it should say the bottom of the packet.

• Kale salad with smoked almonds and picada crumbs

  • purrviciouz on June 03, 2019

    I used toasted almonds instead of smoked and then did half smoked paprika and half sweet paprika. I also added some chicken. This was divine and will be repeated.

• Japanese potato salad

  • cellenly on April 28, 2020

    Made 3x, with and without ham. I think I prefer without ham. Had as a side with chicken tonkatsu.

  • Lsblackburn1 on June 30, 2019

    This was a perfect balance of creamy and tangy! I used Kewpie mayo but kept the other dressing ingredients the same. I didn’t add ham and it was not missed at all.

  • BrendaD1962 on May 15, 2022

    Loved this! Very very good. I followed recipe except left out the ham.

• Korean pork and kimchi stew (Jjigae)

  • Lsblackburn1 on January 20, 2019

    I thought this would last us 2 nights, but it was so delicious we devoured it in one! Easy to make, too. Made as written except for adding some fresh shiitakes.

• Turkish meatballs with lime-yogurt sauce

  • Lsblackburn1 on February 24, 2020

    I made these with lamb / beef mixed. Nice flavors but fell apart some when cooking. Not the most successful version of kofta I’ve tried. The yogurt/ tahini sauce was great.

• Australian oat-coconut cookies (Anzac biscuits)

  • Lsblackburn1 on March 19, 2020

    These are very easy to make and tasty. Be careful; the recipe doesn’t tell you to add the flour!

• Rye chocolate chip cookies

  • MarciK on October 22, 2020

    Best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had. I used a dark rye, and it wasn’t an obvious rye flavor. I also used semi-sweet chocolate chips, no pecans because I didn’t have them. This will be my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe from now on.

• Za'atar chicken cutlets and lemon-parsley salad

  • hbakke on May 04, 2019

    I made this exactly as written and it was delicious. The parsley salad with the lemon zest/juice complemented the tangy pomegranate drizzle on the chicken. The whole dish came together in a bit over 30 minutes. Delicious!

• Spaghetti with lemon, anchovies and capers

  • hbakke on May 03, 2021

    I've never cooked with anchovies, so I was a little hesitant at the amount to add to pasta. I added all of them and it was great. This is a quick, delicious pasta. I especially liked the added lemon zest and juice. I would make this again.

• Pistachio-cardamom cake

  • MissKoo on July 15, 2020

    Wowza. Fabulous loaf cake for cardamom and pistachio fans. I made it late in the day, wrapped it when completely cooled, and frosted it the next day. Had a small slice on day 1 and wasn't wowed, but by the next evening when frosted and served to friends, it was moist, rich, and utterly magical. Hint of orange flavor adds a lovely dimension, and the flavors integrate and interplay beautifully with no one flavor dominating. Recipe was right on re toasting the pistachios for best flavor and texture. Definitely a keeper recipe to make again.