Notes about Recipes in this site

• Pistachio and raspberry tart

  • Jane on November 13, 2017

    I didn't love this though it was enjoyed by my guests. To be fair I think some of the issues were mine. I don't think my pistachios were raw although the pack did not say they were roasted. The paste and resulting frangipane were an unappealing khaki color rather than the delicate green I imagine it should have been. Also I made it in a 9" tart tin and only noticed after it was in the oven that the conversion on the NYT recipe is wrong. The recipe says 9"/26cm but 26cm is 10.25 inches. I think the larger size would have been better - my filling slightly overflowed and I added an extra 5 minutes baking time before it looked set. Even then I thought the center was too gooey when the tart cooled. The larger tin size and a shallower filling would not have had these issues. I don't think this is a dessert I will repeat. Pistachios are so much more expensive than almonds and I prefer an almond frangipane.

• World's best chocolate cake

  • Jane on November 03, 2017

    I liked this cake a lot though it really needs the ganache and coffee/cinnamon cream to make it a special dessert. With those it was a lovely dessert for not a lot of effort or time. I found it took 65 minutes at 170C to be baked through. Be aware the recipe on the NYT website has the F conversion at 350 which is too high - it should be 338F.

• Braised eggs with zucchini, feta and lemon

  • Jane on August 17, 2020

    A lovely lunch. I used rainbow chard and no zucchini blossoms. Like the other reviewers I didn't drain the oil (and used half of that called for). Will definitely make this again.

  • emiliang on June 06, 2020

    I completely agree with the other reviewers: don't bother draining and re-adding the oil. Used kale instead of spinach (I added it at the same time as the zucchini because it takes longer to cook than spinach). And used one zucchini and one summer squash for the extra color. Didn't have squash blossoms. Sprinkled some smoked paprika over everything. Since I didn't have a large-enough lid, I just used the oven for the last step: 10 minutes at 350 cooked the eggs perfectly. Great dish, will make again.

  • Frogcake on August 21, 2018

    A very tasty brunch dish, which I will make again. I added about a half cup of caramelized onions left over from another recipe and about 100 grams of thinly sliced and crisped prosciutto. I didn’t follow the technique suggested of draining off the oil - didn’t seem necessary.

• One-pan paprika chicken with lentils, squash and daqa

  • Jane on October 29, 2023

    This isn't the prettiest of dishes but it's very tasty. I used butternut squash rather than kabocha and boneless, skinless thighs. The specified ingredients would probably be better but this was still very good. The herbed sour cream is important in my view.

  • tmitra on March 06, 2023

    I liked several aspects of this dish, but ultimately, it wasn't very flavorful. If I made it again, I'd experiment significantly. For me, the cooking time was 10 minutes + 20 minutes + 10 (not 40!) minutes. The chicken and sweet potatoes (which I used in lieu of kabocha squash) were done at this point, and the lentils were close but could have used five more minutes. Many of the NYT Cooking reviews of this dish complain about it being too soupy, but for me, 2 c chicken stock + 1 c water worked well. I used pardina lentils and a roasting pan.

• Eggplant, lamb and yogurt casserole

  • blintz on January 25, 2023

    This took me longer than 2 hours and I was getting aggravated about opening the oven over and over (as directed) to stir and break up the lamb mixture, BUT it was all worth it. A very delicious take on moussaka and a recipe I will definitely make again. It makes a ton, so I froze half and we'll see how well it does being defrosted and reheated. Don't skimp on the cinnamon and allspice.

  • wkhull on January 22, 2023

    Extremely flavorful. Really nice dish to cook during winter. I used 2% fat Greek yogurt and what I thought would come out rubbery and lackluster, came out divine. I also committed a foodie crime and instead of using canned, subbed in three chopped lackluster pale and pasty grocery store tomatoes. And continued my sacrilegious anti-foodie path of destruction in the produce aisle by purchasing those big, big fat eggplants that I usually eschew. Don't skip the pine nuts.

• Roasted asparagus with buttered almonds, capers and dill

  • aargle on October 07, 2019

    Easy peasy and delicious as well. Happened to have every ingredient on hand - a lovely side dish.

• Pan-seared salmon with celery, olives and capers

  • bernalgirl on March 05, 2021

    Great interplay of flavors and textures. I grilled the salmon and substituted oil cured black olives because that’s what I had, but otherwise made the recipe as written. I would maintain the oil cured black olives when making this again.

• Double lemon chicken

  • meggan on October 27, 2022

    Agree that this was involved. I found the chicken stuck a lot to my "non-stick" pan and therefore tore off that nice crunchy layer that should have been there. I am not a huge lemon fan but I thought sauce was yummy if, in my case, a bit lumpy.

  • emiliang on May 10, 2022

    This was a little involved to prepare but the end result was worth it. Very savory. I substituted an actual preserved lemon (seeds removed) for the boiled lemon in the recipe, and I think that made the taste of the final dish more complex. The only problem I had was with the chicken sticking to the pan while frying. If I made it again, I'd try to lightly dredge the chicken breast pieces in flour right before frying.

• Christmas glazed ham

  • meggan on April 01, 2024

    That glaze was a real miss. It is thick and unappetizing.

• Butternut squash lasagna pie

  • twarner on October 30, 2022

    Not difficult if you use the food processor for all prep. Used chard instead of spinach,delicious,

• Spring onion and cheese potato cake, two ways: pea and thyme filling

  • Rutabaga on September 12, 2020

    I made this using Yukon Gold potatoes and dried thyme, and it was very good. My only disappointment was that the taste of the preserved lemon didn't really come through. My husband and older son especially liked it, and I appreciated the fact that it can be prepared in advance, then baked just prior to serving it. It makes a hefty amount, and we ate about half of it in one meal, then enjoyed the rest as leftovers.

• One-pan crispy spaghetti and chicken

  • Rutabaga on December 22, 2020

    This was a really good family meal, just serve a simple veg on the side. My husband and younger son especially liked it. My older son wasn't as into it, but liked it reasonably well. I probably doubled the amount of breadcrumbs, but that was the best part.

• Cheesy bread balls in tomato sauce

  • Rutabaga on December 25, 2020

    This is really yummy. My youngest son especially loved the bread balls, although neither of the kids were very into the sauce. For some reason, they've been a bit anti-tomato sauce recently, although they still like pizza. My husband and I felt the sauce made the dish; eating a bite of cheesy bread together with the sauce was the ideal way to enjoy it. In any case, it's a fun, indulgent meal, and not too difficult as long as you have time to make the bread dough an hour or two in advance.

• Chickpea and herb fatteh [tahini sauce, chile oil]

  • Rutabaga on July 25, 2020

    This was very good, although I think my chickpeas were a little overcooked. I think I also included too many chickpeas in the herb paste, which wasn't bad, but increased the amount of paste and changed the consistency of the dish (mine looked much pastier than the photo from the NYT). But the flavor is great, and making it with fresh cooked chickpeas really sets it apart. We ate it with pita, the tahini sauce, and also whipped feta dip.

• Maple-cardamom saffron sticky buns

  • coryelizabeth on February 17, 2018

    These are incredible. The buns were light, fluffy, and perfectly cooked at 20 minutes. I added a teaspoon of "buttery sweet dough" extract when making the buns, but I'm sure they'd be delicious without it; the saffron is really a genius touch. I also added a small dribble of maple extract to the maple syrup, just to bring the maple flavor in balance with the cardamom. For the garnish, I used nigella seeds (this was terrific), but I'm betting sesame seeds would be really good, too. Finally, I found that the buns needed to removed from the pan and brushed on all sides with the syrup to promote the absorption. This recipe is really wonderful: different and yet comforting at the same time.

• Sweet-and-sour tofu with barberries

  • tmitra on March 07, 2024

    While Ottolenghi's recipes aren't always home runs for me, I generally love his flavors and the way he experiments with them. This recipe, however, was a complete flop, made worse by the fact that it required a lot of time, expensive ingredients, and dishes. I made it as written. It lacks flavor and isn't sweet at all, the texture of the sauce is unpleasant from all of the cornstarch, and the tofu (why not extra firm?) falls apart. I'd strongly discourage you from making it.

• Rosemary, olive oil and orange cake

  • metacritic on April 01, 2024

    Absolutely delicious on day 1. Overly dried on day 2, though that could have been a storage issue (we didn't refrigerate overnight.Quite easy and completed from start to finish within an hour.

• Shrimp Bolognese

  • Kinhawaii on March 20, 2022

    Delicious! Will make again. Took the advice of others & cooked the shells in the stock & used only a cup of stock- didn’t need the 2 cups.

• Oven fries with tahini yogurt and smoky-sweet nuts

  • patioweather on June 11, 2024

    This was an easier way to cook oven fries than the "boil then bake" method. However, I felt like there were better uses of this sauce than potatoes, and better things to put on potatoes than this sauce. The use of herb stems was a big "aha!" moment for me though.

• Crispy coconut, asparagus and green bean salad

  • wkhull on July 10, 2023

    I was shocked how much flavor and texture was in this dish.

• Chilled soba in dashi with tomatoes and corn

  • chezmaryb on September 25, 2023

    Enjoyed this recipe. The flavors are not bold, very subtle overall, but very refreshing and filling. The miso mixed with tomato was my favorite part.

• Grilled tomatoes and onions with feta-harissa pine nuts

  • msakir on September 22, 2019

    Great base for shakshuka!

• One-pan pasta with harissa Bolognese

  • DFarnham on January 28, 2021

    So good and easy!

• Salmon cakes with Thai basil yogurt

  • nutrica6 on February 07, 2024

    These are a lot of work but really delicious. I used canned salmon and it worked well. The sunchokes add a nice flavor.