Notes about Recipes in this book

• Hot spiced apple cider

  • southerncooker on October 16, 2020

    This was very good. I thought I had cinnamon sticks but didn't so I added some ground. Also no vanilla bean so added a splash of pure vanilla.

  • anya_sf on October 30, 2020

    Forgot I was out of whole star anise, so I added a dash of ground star anise. My son loved the non-alcoholic version. I'm not much of a bourbon drinker, but it tasted really good in this. Garnishes were cute, but not required.

  • kateiscoooking on November 21, 2020

    5* so good we made it again the next evening

  • dbuhler on February 11, 2024

    My whole family really loved this (non alcoholic version)! I didn't serve it with the cinnamon stick, apple or orange slices but I can see how they would be really fun to serve for guests. I couldn't really taste the star anise (probably because mine were old) so next time I'll add two, or go out and buy some fresh ones!

• Ultimate Bloody Marys

  • anya_sf on August 23, 2022

    Very good Bloody Marys, not for the faint of heart. Strong flavors, but nicely balanced. The downside is that the mixture does not keep beyond an hour as the spices get too strong.

• Frozen Palomas

  • anya_sf on June 18, 2021

    Maybe my fruit was extra tart, but these were mouth-puckering. They were delicious after we added extra simple syrup. Next time I will taste the mixture before freezing.

• Pomegranate gimlets

  • anya_sf on October 10, 2020

    Pretty drink, well balanced, not too sweet. Typical of Ina, one drink is fairly large and strong, and actually didn't fit in my martini glass. To make one "normal" drink, just change cups to ounces in the recipe.

  • ecasey830 on November 09, 2020

    I found this fairly sweet. I would reduce the simple syrup next time or maybe even leave it out entirely

  • manond on November 14, 2020

    This was so yummy! With a sugar rim, It would make a wonderful festive drink!

  • stockholm28 on April 03, 2022

    Nice drink. I appreciated anya_sf’s conversion tip and made a single drink.

  • KarinaFrancis on May 14, 2022

    Perfect start to our pomegranate themed dinner. I don’t have Ina’s stamina so reduced the gin to 1 cup. I can definitely see these as a Christmas drink

  • ChelseaP on July 08, 2022

    Such a delicious cocktail.

  • SpatulaCity on December 19, 2024

    Delicious and perfectly balanced. Can’t wait to make again for Christmas!

  • linda_tz71nh on May 31, 2026

    Yum!

• Simple syrup

  • anya_sf on August 19, 2022

    Traditional simple syrup 1:1 sugar:water

• Potato galettes with smoked salmon

  • stef on October 17, 2020

    Delicious. Potatoes were shredded in cuisinart with French fry disc. Instead of creme fraiche I used sour cream. Another delicious recipe for smoked salmon from Ina

  • anya_sf on October 28, 2020

    Ina didn't say whether to add more oil for the 2nd galette. There was still some in the pan, so I didn't, but the 2nd galette partly stuck, so clearly I should have. As a result, that galette kind of fell apart, although stuck together more upon reheating. I substituted sour cream for creme fraiche. The galettes tasted wonderful and didn't need extra salt. I wouldn't have minded more salmon.

• Fig & cheese toasts

  • anya_sf on October 13, 2020

    Easy and delicious. I used baguette slices for nice sized hors d'oeuvres, spreadable goat cheese (didn't have to microwave), and garnished with parsley. More than 2 figs were needed to get enough slices for all the toasts. Initially I forgot to top with salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar and they were really good anyway, although those ingredients boosted the flavor even more.

  • halfchefc on February 16, 2026

    Found some herbed goat cheese at Trader Joe's and used their fig jam, it was yummy! I didn't add the balsamic glaze since it's not my fav but didn't miss it.

• Warm spinach & artichoke dip

  • kateiscoooking on December 12, 2020

    Best version of this I've ever had!

  • anya_sf on May 09, 2021

    Nice version of this dip. I especially liked the caramelized onions. Next time I'll skip the cayenne - while not really spicy, the flavor muffled the artichoke and spinach flavors somewhat. Light mayo and canned artichoke hearts in water worked fine.

  • ginger2212 on October 23, 2021

    WOAH. This is the BEST version of spinach/artichoke dip. I've made it multiple times now - the carmelized onions really elevates it. I made this for a Spaniard who'd never tried the dip before and he was almost licking the dish at the end!

  • kelskae on January 03, 2022

    Best spinach & artichoke dip I've ever had - guests LOVE this.

  • julesamomof2 on January 17, 2022

    While good, this is not my favorite warm spinach dip recipe. I like the Martha Stewart version which uses fresh spinach. I wished this one were creamier and once the parmesan topping cooled it formed a crust which made it hard to scoop. I used reduced fat cream cheese and sour cream so not sure if that impacted the results.

  • hirsheys on February 23, 2022

    I made this dip yesterday and it got raves from my family. (I had no idea how much my brother-in-law loves spinach and artichoke dip!) Ina definitely likes to make things complicated (so many dishes!) and I just couldn't bring myself to dirty a mixer to cream together the sour cream, mayo, and cream cheese, so I just used a whisk. Otherwise, I followed the recipe and it came out great. The caramelizing of the onions is annoying, but adds a little something extra. Served with tortilla chips.

  • Rachaelsb on November 24, 2022

    Ridiculously flavorful and delicious. Crowd pleaser.

  • EmilyR on July 14, 2023

    This was a bit of a clean out the fridge dip for me...I had previously caramelized onions (skipping the cayenne), so I just used those and then weighed out fresh spinach in lieu of frozen and Trader Joe's oil packed artichokes. It came together and tastes great.

  • SpatulaCity on January 01, 2024

    Delicious, but agree with the others who have said they wished this were more “creamy”. The caramelized onions offered a great backbone of flavor and ever so slight sweetness. Everyone at the party really enjoyed it as is, though personally I’d have preferred it to be more truly dip like. Next time I’d increase mayo-sour cream- cream cheese elements, and also add maybe some Dijon or Worcestershire sauce.

  • briggs4598 on February 09, 2026

    Excellent dip. Based on comments, we increased the sour cream, mayo, and cream cheese a smidge. Onion forward, essentially a mix between traditional baked spinach/artichoke dip and onion dip.

  • katie_uspqdv on February 09, 2026

    One onion was plenty!

• Fresh crab nachos

  • anya_sf on October 15, 2020

    I'm sure this would be wonderful with fresh crab, but my budget doesn't allow for $50 nachos, so I used krab (surimi), since it gets mixed with cream cheese, etc., anyway. In the salsa, I used red onion (soaked in ice water to help tame the bite, although unfortunately that didn't entirely work) and 2 avocados, since who doesn't want more avocado? As you might expect, the nachos were rich and quite tasty, even with krab.

  • julesamomof2 on January 18, 2023

    Mixed reviews for this recipe. They were no doubt delicious, but they cooled off quickly and once cool weren't as appetizing. I made the whole pan for 4 of us and probably threw away 2/3's of it. Leftovers would not work here. They were also very expensive, with the fresh crab. I can see this working for specific situations where nachos make sense and there's a bigger group, maybe a football party or something like that.

  • Sbilinski on February 11, 2023

    I love these nachos- even with the cost. We only make them once a year as an extra special treat and they are amazing.

• Cacio e pepe cheese puffs

  • taste24 on December 14, 2020

    These were lovely. Easy to cook, mix, and assemble. Excellent end result! We made a half batch and it worked perfectly.

  • anya_sf on December 29, 2021

    Delicious variation on gougeres. I made them several hours ahead and reheated at 375 F for about 8 min.

  • Juleslovesgoldies on June 07, 2026

    Fabulous! Devoured by the family, will be a regular.

• Grilled oysters with lemon dill butter

  • anya_sf on July 25, 2021

    I made 1/2 recipe, mixing the butter by hand. With medium-size "barbecue" oysters, 3 minutes on the grill yielded the desired not-raw-yet-fully-cooked texture. The lemon dill butter was delicious. Unfortunately, my oysters were a little gritty (perhaps due to poor shucking skills). They were quite briny and no extra salt was needed.

• Spicy pimento cheese spread

  • southerncooker on October 21, 2020

    Fvery good spicy version of pimento cheese. My roasted pepprts had gone bad so I used a 4 oz jar of pimentos.

  • KarinaFrancis on December 20, 2020

    I can’t believe I’ve never tried pimento cheese before, maybe I was waiting for Ina’s version. Easy to make, a bit of chopping, a bit of grating and a bit of mushing about. The flavours melded overnight and the heat became a little more pronounced, which was no bad thing. Note that depending on the cheese you use, salt might not be needed, taste before adding

  • averythingcooks on December 23, 2020

    I made this to go beside tonight’s dinner soup. I thought I had cream cheese - BUT it was “well past its prime” so my sub was herb & garlic Boursin. Other than that, it was pretty much as written with a mix of very old white cheddar and an extra old orange. It was certainly good smeared room temp onto triscuits but we opted to run the loaded crackers under the broiler til browned & bubbly - oh yes ....endlessly “more’ish”.

  • JJ2018 on January 09, 2021

    Made a half recipe. This is very nice but makes a lot and it is quite rich.

  • anya_sf on February 09, 2021

    Really good! Makes you want more, although it's quite rich. A nice amount of heat for hubby and myself, but too spicy for our son. Ina says not to use powdered onion, but that's what I had so I used a little less. I just made 1/4 recipe which served 3-4.

  • julesamomof2 on July 12, 2021

    This was very good, but spicy! Next time, halve the recipe as it makes alot. Served with ritz, carrots, and snap peas. Lots of dairy here.

  • hirsheys on February 03, 2022

    his is certainly a tasty, zippy version of pimento cheese. I appreciate the flavor the jalapenos bring to the table and the cream cheese helps to balance the heat. Not my favorite pimento cheese (the one from the Essential New York Times Cookbook still wins), but I will definitely keep this one in my back pocket when I want a change or when I'm cooking for someone who enjoys spicy flavors. (Made a half recipe and I'm glad of it - a whole one would be a lot.)

  • EmilyR on October 19, 2024

    I made this after having the pimento honey chicken sandwich at Chick-fil-a and wanting to recreate it. This is an excellent pimento with a good amount of heat. I cheated a bit with a food processor for better or for worse.

  • Grywhp on January 03, 2026

    Enjoyed this. Used a cheddar so sharp it was crumbly.

  • Anjackson1003 on February 09, 2026

    REALLY good pimento cheese! Agree with the reviews here—this makes a huge portion. Bringing it to a Super Bowl party wasn’t enough to finish it off so I’ll have to be creative with leftovers. I really appreciated the heat of the spread and the difference in textures.

• Kielbasa with mustard dip

  • Mrs. L on November 19, 2020

    Dip would be great with little cocktail franks.

  • southerncooker on January 03, 2021

    This was delicious. I used beef Kielbasa.

  • anya_sf on May 07, 2021

    Using good kielbasa from the Polish deli, this was absolutely delicious and so simple.

  • janereads on March 30, 2026

    Teaching spouse to cook and this was an excellent easy dinner with a side. We used packaged supermarket kielbasa. Sauce is very flavorful with two kinds of mustard and the prepared horseradish.

• Chicken pot pie soup

  • EmilyR on October 10, 2020

    This makes a sizable quantity so be prepared to eat it for days or share it with friends, family, or neighbors. I think I preferred the chicken pot pie soup from Cravings.

  • Kinhawaii on October 19, 2020

    Made half a recipe, we enjoyed it - different from the other chicken soups I have made. Will make again but may decrease the tarragon a little. Used regular flour & didn’t add the tiny onions.

  • anya_sf on November 09, 2020

    I had boneless, skinless chicken breasts which I baked at 400 F for 30 minutes (to 165 F). 3 Tbsp butter was enough. I only had 1 fennel bulb, but there were lots of vegetables, which I appreciated. Using canned low-salt broth, I thought there might be too much salt, but it was perfect. The sherry at the end really made a difference in the flavor. The soup was delicious, although I wouldn't have minded a touch of cream.

  • Running_with_Wools on November 15, 2020

    I used a rotisserie chicken, homemade stock, and omitted the last splash of sherry (wasn't sure if the kids would like that flavor). I also used gluten-free flour instead of the Wondra flour called for. It came out delicious and the kids all loved it too. This is a keeper for a cold winter night :)

  • lofolky on February 14, 2021

    This was a super tasty soup! Comforting but also not too heavy. Used a rotisserie chicken and store-bought bone broth. Loved the flavor the sherry added.

  • LemonVerbena on January 15, 2024

    I'm a vegetarian and I make this soup without chicken. So technically it's not "Chicken Pot Pie Soup" but I love it. It's one of my favorite soups.

  • Nancy402 on March 11, 2026

    Very hearty, and enough for a small army. Used the sherry I had on hand, Oloroso, with a teaspoon of brown sugar as a substitute for the cream sherry. The Parmesan rind and sherry make this special.

• Puff pastry croutons

  • EmilyR on October 10, 2020

    Very simple and if you go the extra distance with making them with cookie cutters they are very impressive with little effort.

  • anya_sf on November 09, 2020

    I took this opportunity to use up random puff pastry scraps which were lurking in my freezer. They didn't look as pretty, but worked fairly well otherwise. I cut them out ahead of time and chilled them. Perhaps because of that, they took over 15 minutes to bake. The croutons were nice with the soup.

• Split pea soup with crispy kielbasa

  • anya_sf on October 09, 2020

    I used dried thyme and bay leaf, and 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth + 4 cups water. Didn't need extra salt. I used an immersion blender to partially puree the soup and also added the meat from the ham hock to the soup (why would you discard it?). The soup was really good, a classic with a small twist.

  • ksg518 on October 25, 2024

    Very good version of split pea soup. I used dried thyme and bay leaf and skipped the part about blending some of the soup. I also diced and browned the sausage since the slices didn't seem to be very spoon friendly. Plus by browning the sausage in the soup pot before starting the rest of the soup, I had one less pan to wash.

  • Lepa on April 08, 2022

    I am feeling sick so my husband made this and it was a bowl of pure comfort. Like others, he used an immersion blender to make the soup smooth. He made it in the pressure cooker (after sauteing the vegetables), which took twenty minutes. We cut up the ham hock and put it back in the soup. Delicious!

  • kateiscoooking on December 12, 2020

    This was very good split pea soup. I think I'd prefer shredded ham to the kielbasa. But, otherwise, wouldn't make any changes.

  • breakthroughc on January 10, 2021

    One of my pet peeves is pictures that don't reflect the recipe. This soup is much thinner than the picture and the sausage sunk to the bottom. I t was just okay. I also added the meat from the ham hock, why would you throw it away.

  • GaryCooks on March 31, 2024

    I thought this was excellent. I like the addition of the kielbasa better than the normal ham - the kielbasa being more subtle than the ham that always seems to jump out at me. I’d decrease the salt from 2 to 1 tsp next time as my husband felt it was too salty, but it was fine for me and I don’t like salty food. I’m wondering where others are getting meat from their ham hocks - the few times I used them there was maybe 1 or 2 bites worth of meat - I prefer ham shanks that I found to have more meat. Bottom line - I’d definitely make this again.

• Salmorejo

  • EmilyR on October 10, 2020

    Another great soup from Ina. I used heirloom tomatoes as they are the main ingredient. I preferred it day of as opposed to left overs, because it separates a bit, but zipping it through the vitamix combines it back, if you have left overs.

  • anya_sf on August 29, 2021

    Half the recipe served 4 as a light starter. I reduced the oil to 1/4 c as I've learned from previous experience that more makes the soup too heavy for my taste. Skipped the cherry tomato garnish - would be pretty, but not much flavor contrast; basil and croutons were nice on top. Overall, quite tasty and refreshing.

  • dgiles on August 10, 2025

    This is a super simple, thick version of gazpacho. You get the full flavor of the tomatoes, even with the bread. As per Ina, I didn’t add olive oil, but will add it to each serving.

• Cheddar & chutney grilled cheese

  • southerncooker on October 10, 2020

    This was delicious. Since I don't have panini press I used Ina's suggestion of another pan to press sandwich. I love mango chutney so was pleased to find this simple recipe.

  • anya_sf on October 27, 2020

    We aren't huge chutney fans and weren't sure if we would like these sandwiches, but they were pretty good!

  • Lepa on October 28, 2020

    This is a welcome update on the grilled cheese sandwich. I loved it!

  • mzgourmand on November 17, 2020

    I have several of Ina Garten's books and while not hugely innovative they are very reliable. So I bought this book in part because I was curious about this recipe & what it might indicate about other recipes in the book. I love grilled cheese, I like mango chutney and I really wanted to like this version of a melted cheese sandwich. But we did not. I would have thought that the flavors of sharp cheddar and mango chutney would be very complementary but we didn't enjoy it & didn't finish our sandwiches. And we are, sadly, original members of the clean plates club. However, the suggested accompanying recipe of tomato bisque was fabulous and enjoyed by all.

  • stockholm28 on June 14, 2026

    I made this during the winter for book club to accompany soup. I used the air fryer setting in the oven so I could make 8 sandwiches on a sheet tray. These were very good but they are rich! Half a sandwich with soup was plenty.

  • SpatulaCity on March 23, 2024

    We thought this was good. I wouldn’t go out of my way to acquire mango chutney expressly for this purpose, but we had a lot of fun trying it as a grilled cheese component.

  • averythingcooks on November 24, 2023

    I absolutely loved this. I ran a knife through the chutney, used rye bread and made 1/2 a sandwich to eat with my soup (just in case I wasn't a fan)...and then promptly made & ate the other 1/2. I'm also going to try this with a spicy tomato chutney I canned this summer (after reading about this suggestion in the Food52 comments for this recipe). I also simply buttered my bread as I couldn't really see the advantage of melting the butter 1st and I do use my cast iron grill pan with another heavy pan on top, flipping 1/2 way to get the good, crispy grill ridges.

• Skillet-roasted chicken & potatoes

  • anya_sf on October 11, 2020

    I used 6 smaller chicken thighs (2.5 lbs), marinated 5 hours. After roasting for an hour, the thighs were well over 155 degrees, but I would want them to be at least 165 anyway, as I prefer thighs to be more done vs less. After being uncovered, the potatoes were mostly covered in liquid, but I think it was mainly chicken fat (which largely was absorbed or evaporated), and they turned out super delicious. The chicken skin was especially flavorful, although I wished it was crisper.

  • chefmichael on December 28, 2020

    Only change I made was to start with a whole roaster which I broke down. Wife prefers the white meat. Delicious recipe. Would make again.

  • Jenny on December 08, 2020

    When I made this -I didn't do the potato portion. I just wanted the roasted chicken. to my Dijon mixture I added some red pepper flakes and a few more spices and it was great. We all loved it. It was relatively easy to throw together. Next time I do this on a sheet pan - I'll line with foil because that pan was a nightmare to clean.

  • Zosia on January 19, 2021

    I made the chicken only, which was a delicious version of buttermilk-brined chicken.

  • Kinhawaii on November 20, 2022

    I agree- yummy but potatoes stuck a little to my pan on the sides despite lots of fat on the bottom. We mixed sweet potatoes in too. Loved the garlic.

  • adellel on December 23, 2025

    Slice the potatoes very thin

  • cadfael on July 19, 2025

    Really enjoyed

  • cadfael on March 10, 2021

    Made full recipe. Sliced my potatoes a little thinner and cooked everything 10 minutes longer, but essentially followed recipe. We really enjoyed this.

  • Barb_N on January 04, 2021

    I knew this would be problematic- marinate at least 4 hours but not more than 12. Of course I forgot to add the buttermilk in the morning so I bathed the chicken thighs at room temperature for as long as possible. I ended up roasting the chicken and potatoes separately, and served with charred radicchio and endive. Maybe next time I’ll follow the directions.

• Roasted sausages, peppers & onions

  • Sbilinski on October 21, 2020

    Really good! Lighter and easier than my grandma’s version. I made the recipe for 2 people but could have scaled down the vegetables more. 4 sausages. 2 peppers, 1/2 onion, 1/2 fennel and 1/3 c of tomatoes would be enough. I have lots of leftover veg. Easy cleanup too!

  • MollyPellecchia on October 26, 2020

    Wow was this good. Skipped the fennel. Scaled down for 2 with 3 sausages. Could have easily eaten more veggies.

  • Devons on January 10, 2021

    Husband and I enjoyed this. We halved recipe. I over cooked vegetables a bit. Nonetheless, very nice. would make it again. Fast preparation, lends itself to flexibility with ingredients.

  • anya_sf on November 25, 2020

    I made 1/2 recipe, roasting the vegetables in a 9"x13" pyrex casserole. They didn't fit in a single layer (not sure if they were supposed to), so they didn't brown as much as they might have, but did get nice and tender and plenty flavorful. I garnished with parsley and pecorino instead of basil and parmesan. Really delicious, especially with the polenta! Also very easy, mostly hands-off method.

  • ksg518 on March 03, 2021

    This is good and I think lighter than when I've made similar dishes on the cooktop. I made half a recipe using only sweet Italian sausage. I substituted a cubanelle pepper for the poblano and grape tomatoes for the cherry tomatoes (adding them a little later to make up for their size). But I think this recipe can stand up to a fair amount of tweaking.

  • stef on September 21, 2021

    Veggies were done following recipe but sausage were done on BBQ. This was good but ordinary for us

  • averythingcooks on April 20, 2022

    I scaled this back for 2 and with no fennel on hand, I upped the amount (& variety) of peppers. I added 5 whole, unpeeled garlic cloves as I'm always leery of burnt garlic in dishes like this.....the soft, roasted cloves were squeezed/mixed in at the end. Before transferring the sausages to the veg pan, I sliced them into 1" chunks. This was served in bowls with lots of basil, chunks of feta (in place of parm), a drizzle of balsamic vinaigrette & some crispy Parmesan croutons to soak up all the juices....delicious!

  • BrendaD1962 on August 29, 2021

    What a great recipe, fast, easy, and delicious. I also halved the recipe as it’s just two of us. We loved the flavours and really really enjoyed this recipe. A definite keeper.

  • Soulkitchenjen on December 04, 2022

    Halved the recipe, only used hot sausage, and omitted fennel. Very good served with Parmesan risotto and homemade garlic bread.

• Baked fish chowder

  • anya_sf on October 23, 2020

    Half the recipe made 3 hearty dinner servings with bread and green salad on the side. I used dried thyme, bottled clam juice, and frozen cod which wasn't quite all the way thawed; the fish still cooked in 20 minutes. I didn't bother peeling the potatoes; they cooked a bit unevenly so be sure to check a few for doneness. The chowder was really delicious!

  • kari500 on February 04, 2022

    This is outstanding. I did my chopping the day before, so the day I cooked it it mostly felt like babysitting it. I used Lobster Better than Bouillon, turkey bacon (I don't eat pork), and haddock as my fish. For me, it was just the right amount of liquid.

  • aholtw on December 07, 2020

    Made this recipe as written and it had way too much liquid. Was more like a soup not a chowder. Next time I would use half of the broth.

  • jenburkholder on November 09, 2025

    Echoing all the other comments, this was really tasty. I halved the recipe but used a bit more potato. Dried thyme, chopped onions vs sliced, fish stock, and just random cod from the freezer. Thinner pieces of fish and cooked in 15 minutes. Used Sambuca instead of Pernod since I had neither and the Sambuca was available in a 50 ml bottle. Not fast but easy, and would repeat.

  • kellyluc on January 19, 2024

    I made half a batch for 2 of us. Smaller LeCreuset. Very delicious on a cold night with toasted sourdough. For perfect timing, I took the pot out of the oven after the first 30 minute bake. Then 25 minutes before serving I brought it to a simmer, added the cod, milk and cream and in it went for a perfect 20 minute bake. Popped in the Pernod and bacon. I would serve this to company, anytime!

  • NancyinA2 on April 10, 2022

    Saffron - 3/4 teaspoon = .5 grams. Weighing saffron is easier. I use 2 pounds of potatoes. Perfect.

  • mai_zvq9nx on March 29, 2026

    Great recipe with great flavor. Was worried about the licorice flavor from the Pernod but it was minimal and worked. Made one change by just adding a bit more fish and vegetables. Sometimes shrimp. It’s a repeat recipe for my family.

  • julie_o94mq6 on May 07, 2026

    Shortened it up a bit, used leftover baked grouper with panko crust and leftover roasted potatoes. Heavy on the herbs! Cut down the cooking time. Delicious and make it on the regular with leftover fish. One of my husbands favorites!

  • stef on February 28, 2022

    So good. Didn't have fish stock so used chicken and I tablespoon fish sauce. Not a quick recipe but so worth it.

• Creamy tomato bisque

  • anya_sf on October 27, 2020

    I love cream of tomato soup and thought this recipe was great. The soup was quite thick and somewhat chunky from the alliums, but I prefer a soup with texture; those who like smooth soup could always puree it. I bet this would make delicious pasta sauce.

  • mzgourmand on November 17, 2020

    Very rich, very delicious, very Ina. We all loved it - it was the essence of comfort food.

  • SACarlson on December 20, 2020

    This soup was like the equivalent of putting on a thick, cozy sweater on a cold day. Very, very delicious. I served it with parmesan croutons, which added a nice contrasting texture.

  • Yuanboa on January 13, 2026

    Enjoyed this soup!

  • dbuhler on August 04, 2023

    My husband and I enjoyed this soup, but neither of my kids would eat more than the one bite they tried. I opted to blend it smooth and I would definitely do that again. I did need to add about a TBS of sugar to temper the acidity and I wish I would have halved the pepper flakes (for the kids) because it was a bit spicy. This also makes a huge amount of soup so I would half it next time. I served it with ATK's Grown-up Grilled Cheese, but next time I would just serve it with bread because the grilled cheese and all the dairy in the soup was a bit too much for us.

  • Allissagoodrich on February 15, 2026

    I recommend blending with an immersion blender to achieve your preferred texture.

  • NJChicaa on May 20, 2023

    Outstanding. I make this over and over again.

  • embk27 on December 29, 2020

    This was a delicious soup - reminded me of Heinz. The soup looked really pale and milky to begin with but I soon realised that one 28 ounce can of chopped tomatoes is equivalent to two of the usual cans in England! So, six cans of chopped tomatoes later...I had a really lovely warming soup. I puréed at the end as I wanted a smoother texture.

• Ultimate tuna melts

  • anya_sf on October 28, 2020

    Jarred tuna in oil (I used Tonnino) really does taste better, but it is quite pricey. This recipe calls for way too much mayonnaise, IMO - I used 2/3 the amount and could have used 1/2. Otherwise it was delicious. Skipped the microgreens, just garnished with extra dill.

  • Lepa on November 14, 2020

    This is heavy on the mayo but we loved it. I thought the salad was a bit salty (and I love salt) but after we added the Emmentaler cheese it was perfect. I didn't have microgreens so skipped them. This was an easy, satisfying lunch.

  • chefmichael on December 29, 2020

    Riffed on this a bit. Delicious. Start with good Mayo, good bread, celery, and lemon juice, and make it your own from there, and you cannot go wrong.

  • Rinshin on February 18, 2025

    Very good open-faced tuna melt with a nod to Scandinavian Smørrebrød, with the distinct dill flavor coming through. I halved the recipe and, like most recipes, unless I'm making a brine mixture or pickles, I do not follow the salt quantity, preferring to salt to taste. I followed the recipe otherwise but used smoked Gouda that I needed to use up. Served on seeded sourdough alongside Molly Katzen's Cream of Tomato Soup I. Perfect light dinner. Photo added.

  • Zosia on February 13, 2021

    Very tasty. We particularly liked the brightness of the lemon juice and the Emmentaler in place of our usual cheddar. I used mayo to taste.

  • SpatulaCity on November 04, 2023

    Tasty! Used TJs oil packed tuna and not the fancy stuff. Based on some of the other notes I added lemon juice to taste since we don’t like too much lemony-acid in our food. We had French bread, but next time would prefer either Sourdough or Rye for extra tang and dimension. Topped with gruyere and Arugula. Good!

• Smashed hamburgers with caramelized onions

  • anya_sf on October 29, 2020

    Recipe title was confusing as I'm used to smashed burgers that are truly flattened. These are 1" thick and just get lightly pressed (not even sure why) and end up very tall with the generous amounts of toppings. I'm never confident about telling when meat's done; I cooked the burgers for the longer stated time and sadly the burgers were medium-well, not medium-rare (freezer not cold enough?). They were still plenty juicy and flavorful and I'd definitely make them again - loved the caramelized onions and gruyere.

  • Abchmiel on March 20, 2026

    Really liked these. Agree not necessarily “smashed” but they sure are delicious! Loved the caramelized onions with Gruyère. Perfection!

  • Dollhouse_Cuisine on April 09, 2024

    Pretty good.

  • NJChicaa on May 20, 2023

    These were very good. Not very smashed but tasty.

• Crispy chicken with lemon orzo

  • anya_sf on October 31, 2020

    I cooked 3 chicken breasts, using 3/4 of the other ingredients, but still in a 12" skillet. There was definitely enough flour mixture, oil, and butter for 4 breasts. I didn't bother removing the tenders and just used the longer cooking time at the end. The orzo was quite salty, so I didn't sprinkle the chicken with extra salt, but definitely would if not serving with the orzo (or using less salt in the orzo). This method yielded super crispy skin as promised.

  • Kag2020 on November 07, 2020

    Great method for cooking boneless chicken breasts with the skin on. I will use the method again because the skin is perfectly crisp and the meat was very juicy. However after cooking the chicken in the 4 tablespoons of butter and a bit of oil I couldn’t bring myself to add the other 5 tablespoons of butter to the pan. The recipe may have been amazing with the extra butter but I don’t think it’s necessary.

  • julesamomof2 on December 28, 2021

    I love Ina, but this was a miss for me. Way too much butter and oil and while that did produce perfect chicken skin we don't eat that anyway, so it was a waste. I added an entire bag of baby spinach to give the orzo some greens, which was a nice addition. The end result was a bit dry, but I wasn't about to try to create pan sauce out of the grease at the bottom of the skillet. Not a repeat for us.

  • stef on January 15, 2021

    I just made the lemon orzo. We really liked it. I think it would be nice to serve cold in the summer.

  • SpatulaCity on January 11, 2023

    Enjoyed the chicken - very easy preparation with crispy skin as promised! Next time I'm going to brine the chicken in advance so it has more flavor. Husband is sensitive to lemon, so the side pasta was just okay for us. We added a lot of extra dill and parsley for freshness

  • Soulkitchenjen on December 05, 2022

    Absolutely delicious. Only sub was chicken thighs for chicken breasts. My daughter was literally sucking the chicken off of the bone. The salad was nice and bright next to the chicken.

  • JJOca on February 13, 2022

    This is a wonderful soul-warming recipe that makes one feel safe and loved, really it does. I have made this numerous times, for my family and for guests coming over mid-week. It is always a success and there is never any chicken leftover, however much I cook. I have made one variation, which is to use bone-in chicken thighs, I increase the time in the oven by 5 minutes and that seems to get the chicken cooked though. Crispy skiing and juicy, tender meat. …and I would recommend utilising the full amount of butter in the recipe.

  • rachel_pjtrgo on April 02, 2026

    Medium low heat when chicken is on the skillet and lower the temperature to 400 when it goes in the oven. Otherwise very delicious!

  • jgreenheck on November 13, 2021

    This is an easy weeknight dinner…and leftovers work as a nice lunch.

• Lemon orzo with feta

  • anya_sf on October 31, 2020

    Quick and easy. Very good with the chicken, but quite salty on its own; would use less salt next time. 3 of us finished it all and actually would have eaten more.

  • Melissa_427 on August 14, 2024

    Served with a simple broiled fish. Added a handful of quartered cherry tomatoes and would absolutely do so again!

  • Dollhouse_Cuisine on April 09, 2024

    Good.

  • NJChicaa on May 20, 2023

    I overdid it with the dill but otherwise I really liked this. Would make again.

  • averythingcooks on April 16, 2022

    I was sure I would like this more than I did...can't quite put my finger on it...however T did like it. I did watch the salt (as suggested by others) and served it beside some crispy air fryer chicken cutlets with olive oil braised grape tomatoes & basil. Maybe I like my orzo with more vegetable add-ins for some more texture?

  • stef on January 24, 2022

    We really liked this. Goes well with fish

• Ultimate beef stew

  • anya_sf on November 13, 2020

    Not sure this is the ultimate stew, but it was very good. Made a day ahead so it was easier to degrease (rather than trying to do that halfway through cooking), and since stews generally improve in flavor overnight. This was the first time I'd ever actually found boneless short ribs (despite lots of recipes calling for them lately) and that cut worked very well. Next time I would consider adding thyme or other herbs. We enjoyed this over egg noodles.

  • Aggie92 on October 21, 2022

    We found this to be an excellent recipe for beef stew which is something I rarely make. I used beef stew meat instead of boneless short ribs, a fairly inexpensive brandy, a pound of mushrooms instead of fennel, and canned peas (insert eye roll, but my husband adores them). Omitted the pancetta, as this stew was getting too expensive. Added a couple of bay leaves and finished with a glug of red wine vinegar just before serving. I also wanted to make sure my carrots and potatoes (fingerlings) were well cooked, so I added them at the beginning instead of halfway through. Two and a half hours later we had a delicious and warming stew on a rainy, cold autumn evening.

  • bktravels on November 18, 2020

    I agree with anya_sf. This was good, but not the rich, ultimate stew I was hoping for. The blandness of the potatoes detracted from the intensity of the other flavors. Next time, I will leave the potatoes out, and I will definitely try serving the stew over egg noodles.

  • julesamomof2 on January 18, 2023

    Very good stew, but I think 'ultimate' is very much personal preference. I would prefer mine without potatoes, and served over egg noodles and one of my guests hates peas, so I left those out. That said, very good flavor overall and the use of boneless short ribs is genius and I will keep that in my back pocket for sure.

  • averythingcooks on October 11, 2025

    Ultimate?? Who knows but we did think it was very good. I used the best stewing beef I can buy & replaced the fennel with celery + sweet red pepper. I was surprised re: no fresh herbs so I added thyme early & then finished with parsley. Melissa Clark introduced me to roasting the carrots separately (with olive oil & my fresh herb salt), then serving them over the bowls of stew and that's pretty much what I do every time now. This was a good fall dinner but again....ultimate?? Hmmmm...

  • Bessp on October 11, 2025

    This was not my favorite beef stew. Even after cooking quite a bit longer than the recipe suggests, the beef wasn't quite the tenderness I wanted. It also lacked a bit of depth for me, and I found it a touch sour. I left out the fennel because we don't like it, and I added thyme. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly.

  • lofolky on February 14, 2021

    I also agree that this was very good, but missing something to make it “ultimate” for me. Got lucky and found boneless short ribs at Costco. Had to cook quite a bit longer than the recipe states because my potatoes were not cooked enough.

  • megan_b5otez on April 12, 2026

    The best stew in the world! Husband loved

• Sautéed rainbow chard

  • vickster on November 14, 2020

    Basic but delicious. Parmesan cheese is a wonderful touch.

  • southerncooker on October 14, 2020

    Good but not much different than other sauteed chard.

  • ksg518 on April 11, 2025

    I agree with the other reviews that this is basic but good. Very easy for a quick side.

  • anya_sf on November 25, 2020

    Any chard works here. This is the way I usually prepare chard, but with more seasoning, which made it taste even better.

• Roasted butternut squash with brown butter & sage

  • LaurenB on January 06, 2021

    One of those rare super simple recipes that taste amazing. Forgot to toss while roasting, so only got caramelization on one side, but was still great. Mine looked more like the pic in the book than the ones posted here, with the sage turning black in the browned butter, not sure if that makes a difference in flavor, but I would aim for that again because it was delicious!

  • southerncooker on October 14, 2020

    Delicious. Loved the addition of sage butter with chili flakes and lemon zest added after roasting.

  • Rachaelsb on January 10, 2024

    Surprisingly incredibly delicious!!! The squash was so sweet but balanced beautifully by sage, lemon, salt and brown butter. A winner!

  • SpatulaCity on November 16, 2023

    Easy to fix, and a delicious combo

  • anya_sf on October 24, 2020

    I had to roast the squash at 450 initially because I was also roasting a chicken, but the squash turned out fine, done in 25 minutes. Really delicious!

  • MissKoo on February 13, 2021

    Maximum flavor and fairly minimal effort. Roasted the squash an additional 10 minutes or so for more caramelization and used Korean-style red pepper instead of regular crushed red pepper flakes -- a substitution I've come to prefer in many recipes. This was a terrific side dish with rack of lamb and a recipe I anticipate making again, and again. Dinner guests loved it.

• Roasted cauliflower with lemon & capers

  • ecasey830 on November 22, 2020

    I found this a little too salty. I used anchovy paste so I'd probably reduce that or eliminate the salt on the cauliflower in the future

  • KarinaFrancis on December 17, 2020

    Yum! The butter extends the flavour of the chilli, garlic and lemon, but would probably make it not so nice cold. I cut back a bit on the salt and it was just the right balance

  • anya_sf on January 19, 2021

    I omitted the red pepper flakes due to spice-averse diners. This was quite good, if a bit salty. Could use less topping. Still, the family finished it all.

  • SpatulaCity on February 01, 2025

    I really liked this! My measuring was loosely goosey, so in the end used only 1/2 lemon and 2 anchovies, but upped the capers and parsley. Resulted in a deliciously punchy and flavorful cauliflower that I’d be happy to eat on repeat!

  • Zosia on January 17, 2021

    I've made a few recipes with these same ingredients; the flavours are great but I really liked the method used here of flavouring roasted cauliflower with a dressing of sorts that could be added generously, or sparingly. I omitted the butter, reduced the oil in the sauce and the cauliflower and added salt and pepper to taste. I forgot the Parmesan but it wasn't missed.

  • cadfael on March 27, 2023

    Love it!

  • Baxter850 on January 18, 2025

    Delicious. I’ve always loved the idea of this dish and flavor combination but every recipe I tried seemed to be missing something until this one. This is going in the rotation. Only used 1 anchovy—will try 2 next time.

  • SugarTreeBaking on February 22, 2021

    Terrific flavors, but I’d agree with the other notes- too salty.

  • angela_gnbj4y on February 16, 2026

    Followed recipe but used anchovy paste. It was good and would be a good complement to something rich. Also goes will with roasted fish.

  • molly_utp3qf on May 03, 2026

    Made this with a lot less oil than the recipe called for but felt it was delicious!

• Chunky apple butter

  • southerncooker on October 16, 2020

    Delicious on toast and with a turkey sausage biscuit.

  • anya_sf on October 20, 2020

    Used Granny Smith and Gala apples. I wasn't sure how much liquid should evaporate; I simmered the apple butter an extra 5 minutes just in case and the final texture seemed good. The apple butter was very good on toast.

• Smashed eggs on toast

  • southerncooker on October 17, 2020

    Very good. Loved the mustard on this.

  • anya_sf on October 23, 2020

    The egg was cooked perfectly for my taste (I'd call it soft boiled rather than jammy), although I did have trouble peeling it, so it's not a foolproof method in that regard - I have better luck peeling instant pot eggs. The mustard and dill made this extra flavorful.

  • SugarTreeBaking on February 21, 2021

    Very good, eggs were perfectly cooked. Follow the recipe as stated and be careful to not over salt as I did.

  • Juleslovesgoldies on May 30, 2026

    Husband enjoyed these, nice to do a slightly different take of eggs on toast. The timing for the cooking of the eggs was perfect.

  • adellel on December 28, 2025

    Eggs were perfect! Mustard added a nice little tang - make sure to use just the amount suggested. Will make again!

• Apple cinnamon Dutch baby

  • KarinaFrancis on December 29, 2020

    I love a Dutch baby and this is no exception. I’ve never cooked anything into the batter before, and I think that’s what produced the very caramelised edges. Will be repeated

  • anya_sf on October 18, 2020

    Lacking a 9" crepe pan, I used my carbon steel skillet which is 9" across the bottom but 12" across the top, which may have been too large. Although I kept the apples on low heat while mixing the batter, the pan might not have been hot enough. The Dutch baby puffed on the sides, but the center remained fairly flat and eggy and the apples remained a separate layer under the pancake. The flavor was good, but I've had better luck with other recipes. I might try this again in a smaller cast iron pan, turning the burner on high just before adding the batter.

  • stef on December 29, 2020

    This turned out great. DH loved it. Will repeat

  • SugarTreeBaking on February 21, 2021

    Easy, delicious. Didn’t have Granny Smith, subbed a Fuji apple and cut back the sugar slightly. Will repeat this recipe.

  • tmitra on January 11, 2025

    This was great with a 9" cast iron pan but definitely served two rather than four at our house. I'll experiment with scaling up.

  • julie_o94mq6 on May 15, 2026

    Easiest, fastest and great ROI!! Great bang for your buck! Delicious, tasty, add fruit and flaky sea salt and it’s an easy win!

  • ascrivani on August 15, 2025

    We use 3 regular eggs for this and it works great. We put 3 Tbsp of butter to melt in the pan. This is our go-to Dutch baby recipe.

• Baked rigatoni with lamb ragù

  • Devons on January 09, 2021

    Excellent. Labor-intensive for sure and worth it. Because it is the two of us, I put it into two pans and froze the second one. Agree with Anya review below that more cheese is a good idea. Doubled the amount of Parmesan. Next time I will do more mozzarella and partially freezing it is a great tip. Also reduce the amount of salt to 2/3 and added a bit more red pepper.

  • Rachaelsb on January 11, 2021

    Delish. Pure comfort food with great flavor. If we were able to have a large crowd, this would be what I would serve! I can dream:-)

  • anya_sf on January 07, 2021

    Made as written except baked at 375 F hoping it would be done faster, and it was done about 5-10 min sooner. Partially froze the mozzarella to make it easier to grate and slice. I think you could just dice the mozzarella rather than grating it. I'm not sure how much difference the eggs made, as the mixture didn't end up very custardy (or even that creamy); the tomato/vegetable sauce was more prominent. My family loved the flavor of this dish, although they wouldn't have minded more cheese.

  • SugarTreeBaking on November 06, 2021

    I had high hopes for this recipe, so many delicious ingredients - lamb, red wine, fennel. We were disappointed with the resulting dish. Where the heck was the flavor? Meh - this one won't be repeated.

  • ginger2212 on December 08, 2024

    All the notes for this are spot on. It was VERY good. I don't care much for the taste of lamb so this did a really good job bringing out all the delicious flavors. I agree it needs more cheese and I'm not sure how much the egg helps. I added celery along with the carrot and fennel for more veg. It was a lot of work for the resulting flavor. I would direct your attention to the lamb-stuffed eggplant in Cook like a Pro before this one.

  • molly_utp3qf on May 03, 2026

    Not sure it was worth the work… I thought this was lacking in flavor considering all that went into it. Also felt it had too much wine.

  • courtney_nb7i83 on March 01, 2026

    I made this for Valentine’s Day and it did not disappoint. I swapped out lamb for ground beef. The red wine gives it a lot of flavor without overpowering the dish. I assembled this dish up to baking and refrigerated overnight to bake the next day. My family of four ate this up!

  • courtney_nb7i83 on March 01, 2026

    I made this for Valentine’s Day and it did not disappoint. I swapped out lamb for ground beef. The red wine gives it a lot of flavor without overpowering the dish. I assembled this dish up to baking and refrigerated overnight to bake the next day. My family of four ate this up! I paired this with a simple side salad, homemade bread, and a flourless chocolate cake for dessert. Great for special occasions or Sunday dinner.

• Fresh raspberry mini corn muffins

  • Devons on November 29, 2020

    Made full recipe which produced 48 mini muffins plus an additional 12. Used frozen raspberries which prevented juice “bleed“ into the batter. Forgot Demerara sugar on last batch. It definitely adds a bit of crunch and color on muffin tops. Use scant scoops 1-3/4” not full scoops.

  • anya_sf on October 12, 2020

    I made the batter the night before. Half the recipe filled 24 mini muffin cups to the brim. The muffins overflowed while baking, so they weren't perfectly shaped like the photo in the book. Be sure to grease the tops of the muffin pans and/or don't fill them as much. Next time I'd just make regular muffins. The flavor and texture were good. I preferred this fresh raspberry version to the jam version in The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook.

  • tmitra on October 07, 2025

    I skipped the raspberries, skipped the Demerara sugar, and made standard-size muffins, yielding 12 plus another 7. I don't care for cornbread but found these very good, especially with raspberry jam. They're plenty sweet as is, though maybe the inclusion of tart raspberries is counterbalanced by the Demerara sugar.

• Bittersweet chocolate cake

  • Devons on November 29, 2020

    Easy to make and dark, chocolatey flavors. The center collapsed and was soft as the photo shows. Had some bourbon honey simple syrup left over from a cocktail; added a couple spoonfuls to the whipped cream. Perfect.

  • Kinhawaii on February 20, 2022

    Very delicious- but I took it out too soon. I thought it wasn’t too wobbly at 40 min in my dark springform but the center was too soft- took the photo the next day- I guess if you are going for a molten center & eat it warm that would work, like a big lava cake. It’s like making a big brownie & I like that it’s in 1 bowl. I will definitely try it again & leave it in another 5 minutes. I love the soft rich texture with the crunchier brownie edges.

  • julesamomof2 on January 16, 2023

    I didn't have high expectations for this cake as it seemed almost too simple but it was very delicious and much lighter and less dense then expected. Light mousse like texture with crisp edges. I baked for 43 minutes in a 9" springform pan.

  • anya_sf on December 21, 2020

    Ingredient conversion if baking by weight: 200 g each butter, chocolate, sugar, and eggs. I made 1/2 recipe in a 6" pan. Cake was very easy to mix, but tricky to tell when done. I took it out of the oven after 34 minutes when the center was partially puffed and developed a crack. That seemed perfect, as the cake's texture was soft and fudgy but not underdone. Great chocolate flavor, wonderful with either vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, as suggested.

• Roasted sweet potatoes with chipotle orange butter

  • Devons on November 29, 2020

    Excellent flavors, perfect for our Thanksgiving dinner. needed a light sprinkling of kosher salt. Tip from Kevin is cooking blog and website about how to roll compound butter into perfect cylinder: wrap butter in plastic wrap, twist ends, and pull through empty toilet paper roll. Then refrigerate or freeze :-)

  • anya_sf on April 05, 2021

    I had to roast the sweet potatoes ahead of time and reheat them, which worked fine. The chipotle orange butter was a bit difficult to mix; maybe a fork would actually work better than the mixer. With most of the seeds removed from the chiles, the butter was really flavorful and not too spicy, and balanced the sweetness of the potatoes nicely.

• Roasted broccolini & cheddar

  • EmilyR on October 10, 2020

    Beyond simple, but always encourages me to eat a half sheet pan worth of broccolini.

  • Lepa on October 25, 2020

    I liked this but nobody else in my family did. I think they don't like the texture of roasted broccoli (?)

  • kleins99 on November 03, 2021

    Meh. Truth: there's no need for the cheese.

  • SpatulaCity on December 29, 2023

    Easy and delicious. Used nicely sharp New Zealand cheddar and it was great!

  • anya_sf on February 10, 2021

    I used 2 sheet pans so the broccolini wouldn't be too crowded and roasted 2 extra minutes. Although the stems were quite thin, plus sliced in half, they were still somewhat chewier than I'd prefer. I think blanching works better to tenderize broccolini. Or I'd roast them longer. I accidentally shredded the cheese - don't think that made a difference. The cheese and lemon were great with it.

  • Skamper on May 28, 2025

    I made this with parmesan. roasted the broccolini for 13 minutes initially, then added the cheese. We both liked.

  • Plumberful on November 21, 2022

    This makes a very nice attractive side dish. I made it exactly as written and the broccolini was nicely roasted, tender but with a nice firm bite. Use a good strong aged cheddar. The flavors are delicious.

  • taste24 on July 02, 2021

    Unfortunately I did not have any lemon, and only has provolone and colby jack cheese on hand. We loved this! Easy and delicious.

• Black & white cookies

  • EmilyR on October 10, 2020

    These black and whites are what you've been searching for. They are a tiny trip to New York City. I added a touch of lemon juice to my white and they were perfect. I made a double batch and they were gone in just a few days.

  • Kristjudy on December 08, 2020

    These are fabulous cookies! Lovely cake texture cookie, both the chocolate and the vanilla frostings were perfect. Wish I had made a double batch. This recipe makes a large cookie.

  • Rodrigaba on November 24, 2020

    I normally don't like black and white cookies but these had very good flavor. Err on the side of undercooking so they stay very soft.

  • hirsheys on March 28, 2022

    These are tasty cookies, but still not quite right - the texture isn't quite soft enough (maybe I should have cooked them less?) and the frosting doesn't taste like NYC cookies. Still, I will enjoy every last one of these. Really yummy, and honestly, not nearly as hard as you'd think.

  • Kinhawaii on January 09, 2021

    Good cookies. I got 10- had lots of extra frosting so piled it on- not sure if it’s supposed to be like that? Next time will try EmilyR’s suggestion of lemon juice.

  • anya_sf on January 22, 2021

    Most black & white cookies I've had have been dry and insipid. These were pretty good! I used Ghirardelli 60% bittersweet chocolate and preferred the chocolate side to the vanilla side. I had to add extra cream to make the vanilla frosting spreadable and should have tried adding lemon juice to the vanilla as suggested. I got 10 large cookies plus a bonus half-size cookie. There were ample amounts of both frostings.

• Steak fajitas

  • Rachaelsb on July 14, 2021

    This was a great dinner-easy and good straight forward flavor. Fun to cook as well!

  • adellel on January 07, 2026

    I normally want sour cream on my fajitas, but these didn’t need anything to make them tasty. Subbed 3/4t of cumin and added when cooking veggies. Will add garlic later next time.

  • danielle_iz7yjg on May 14, 2026

    I wasn’t sure about a fajita recipe without chili powder or paprika but the cumin seeds alone gave great flavor. Straightforward and easy to make.

  • anya_sf on September 05, 2021

    Less expensive tri-tip steak worked well here; my steak was just 1" thick, but the stated cooking time was good - with a thicker steak, longer might be needed. "Just" 5 oz manchego and 4 oz jack cheese was plenty. The peppers and onions turned out wonderfully soft, charred, and sweet. Out of cumin seed, I used 3/4 tsp ground cumin. Omitted scallions. After filling the tortillas (using all the filling so they were quite full), I put them back in the oven for a few minutes to melt the cheese. My family loved these. They were hearty, but we finished them all.

• Fresh pea salad with mint & Manchego

  • julesamomof2 on November 06, 2024

    This was a miss for me. Too much cheese, and it doesn't keep whatsoever. I made it maybe 2-3 hours in advance and it was soggy and the peas got mushy. Also, too much dressing.

  • anya_sf on September 16, 2021

    Surprisingly, I found late season shelling peas. I blanched the snap peas as well, just for a second (personal preference). There was a lot of cheese relative to peas; you could use half, and the salad would also be good without cheese. Less than half the dressing was needed. This salad had a lovely, bright flavor - quite delicious.

  • bwhip on April 09, 2023

    Delicious and different, a lovely taste of spring. I agree with the other reviewer - less cheese, and half the dressing is plenty.

• Broccoli & kale salad

  • julesamomof2 on January 18, 2023

    Mixed reviews on this one, most of which can be fixed with some tweaks. My broccoli were soggy after blanching for 'exactly' 4 minutes per the directions so next time will pull them at 3. And the dressing seems to be sensitive to the type of olive oil used, I used extra virgin and it was quite strongly flavored and actually quite thin. I would say a repeat with the above tweaks.

  • SpatulaCity on January 11, 2023

    Delicious! Accidentally bought tuscan kale instead of baby kale, but blanching for two minutes got it to the right texture. Next time I would steam the broccoli, or only boil for 3 minutes, as the tips got a little mushy. Cesar dressing was delicious on the salad, even though on its own it tasted too lemony (to my tastes) I could see adding some extra anchovy or parm next time. All in all, yummy!

  • anya_sf on August 15, 2022

    Used 5 oz bag baby kale and 24 oz pre-cut broccoli florets for convenience. Cooked the broccoli in 2 batches so the water would return to the boil faster; only cooked 2.5-3 min as some florets were quite small. Made 1/2 the dressing and didn't need all of it. Only added 2.5 Tbsp extra lemon juice as that tasted right to me; I suggest adding it to taste. 3 people ate nearly all of this for dinner with 1 egg each but extra croutons (Samin Nosrat's recipe) and baked chicken breast on the side. Delicious.

• Homemade chicken stock

  • anya_sf on August 19, 2022

    Same recipe as Ina's other books

• Maine lobster stew

  • anya_sf on May 03, 2021

    I couldn't bring myself to make this as written - so much butter and cream! I used 3 8-oz lobster tails for 2/3 recipe, but with "just" 6 Tbsp butter total, 1 c half-and-half in lieu of 1 of the cups of cream, and the whole can of tomatoes. Chilled the stock for just 8 hours. Accidentally added the lobster meat, etc., to the milk mixture initially, but it was fine. The stew was absolutely delicious and plenty rich, serving 3 for dinner with lots of bread to mop up the delicious broth.

• Toasted croutons

  • anya_sf on August 29, 2021

    Good, basic crouton recipe.

• Seared tuna & avocado rolls

  • bwhip on March 04, 2023

    These were really tasty, and pretty easy to prepare. Great flavors, we enjoyed these very much, and we’ll make them again.

  • anya_sf on November 13, 2021

    I made 1/2 the tuna mixture for 2 rolls, filling them fuller than intended since we had them for dinner. Most of the mixture fit and we had the extra over salad. Really tasty! Not too spicy for my son.

• Chipotle mayonnaise

  • anya_sf on November 11, 2021

    Fantastic flavor. Great with the tuna and avocado rolls, but would also make a wonderful sauce for fries (especially sweet potato fries), onion rings, burgers, etc. The recipe makes much more than needed for the sandwiches.

• Lobster BLTs

  • anya_sf on September 16, 2021

    These sandwiches were good, but using ample dressing as directed, that and the bacon overpowered the lobster. They were also tricky to assemble and eat. I suggest cutting them into quarters. Next time I would layer the ingredients differently, as follows: mashed avocado on bottom slice of bread, lettuce, tomato (2-3 very thin slices), bacon, lobster, top slice of bread spread with dressing or perhaps lemony mayo.

• Baked raclette

  • SpatulaCity on January 13, 2023

    Yum! Was only serving two people, so halved the recipe and served in one 10” skillet. Delicious! Accidentally doubled the wine, but it made for a delicious sauce to dip the bread in. Only browned the sausage which took just a couple of minutes, so it was still tender. The fresh thyme on top is wonderful. Really enjoyed this!

  • averythingcooks on September 23, 2024

    I used fingerlings & thyme from the garden but had to use Emmenthal as I've seen raclette cheese here only once (last Christmas?) and never again. We also had some kielbasa to finish off so I fried/crisped up slices of that but we did agree that the spicier chorizo called for would be better. I pan fried sliced red & yellow sweet peppers in the kielbasa pan to add some extra flavour & pops of colour to the dish and this was a nice little dinner beside a simple green salad.

  • kateiscoooking on September 30, 2022

    YUM! We had some chicken apple sausages in the freezer to use up so those went in instead of chorizo. Still fabulous!

  • hungrykitty on February 22, 2025

    This is so good! Definitely recommend using chorizo — there isn’t much else going on to flavor the dish so the spices in the sausage are really important to making the dish flavorful. I saw another note where someone said the recipe was too salty as written. Note that Ina uses Diamond Crystal kosher salt in her recipes which is much less salty by volume than Morton’s. If you’re using Morton’s, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipes when cooking Barefoot Contessa recipes.

  • dbuhler on February 08, 2024

    We really enjoyed this, but I made quite a few changes so I won't rate the recipe. I used smoked sausage instead of the chorizo and I substituted beef broth for the wine. I also used gruyère cheese instead of raclette because I couldn't find any, and I used baby potatoes instead of fingerling since that's what I had on hand. I will definitely make these again and make those same changes next time. Crust bread is a must!

  • anya_sf on January 30, 2021

    My fingerling potatoes were more floury than expected and fell apart somewhat upon slicing and mixing, but still tasted good. Next time I would brown the chorizo less as it became rather chewy. I made the mistake of following Ina's instruction to add 1 tsp Kosher salt to the potato/sausage mixture; with the other salty ingredients, the extra salt was not needed and made the raclette almost too salty to eat. Without the extra salt, this dish would have been much more enjoyable.

• Green salad vinaigrette

  • anya_sf on January 30, 2021

    An excellent classic French vinaigrette. Recipe makes enough dressing for over twice the quantity of greens.

  • dbuhler on February 08, 2024

    Sadly, this dressing isn't for me. I really wanted to love it but the flavor just didn't sit well with me and I can't quite put my finger on why...perhaps my vinegar was to blame?

  • krista_fcgy12 on February 16, 2026

    Excellent! Light & refreshing with ingredients I always have on hand. Will be making this on repeat!

  • SpatulaCity on January 13, 2023

    Delicious! Think I accidentally doubled the garlic, but it was still a fantastic dressing that I’ll have on repeat

  • ellencooks on March 01, 2024

    Need more acid in the dressing but otherwise good!

• Caesar salad dressing

  • anya_sf on August 15, 2022

    This is the same recipe as in Make It Ahead but with 2 yolks instead of 1. I made 1/2 recipe in a blender, since that handles the smaller volume better than a processor. That was still more dressing than needed for the broccoli and kale salad. Good flavor. I used some of it to coat chicken breasts, which I then sprinkled with bread crumbs and baked; the chicken turned out flavorful and moist.

• Tomato & goat cheese crostata

  • anya_sf on May 11, 2021

    I used 2 heirloom tomatoes and 2 regular ones (sold on the vine). Maybe that's why this turned out a little juicy, but fortunately the juice didn't drip onto the oven floor and the crust did not get soggy. I didn't have basil or chives for the garnish, so just sprinkled with extra thyme. This was delicious and 3 of us ate it all for dinner.

  • ginger2212 on October 23, 2021

    My crust was a little too crumbly for my liking when rolling out but this came out SO delicious. Perfect combination and lovely summertime lunch or dinner.

  • SpatulaCity on August 26, 2024

    Tasty and a beautiful presentation! Got a lot of ooohs and ahhs at a recent picnic. To avoid a soggy mess, I drained the tomato slices on paper towels before assembling. Next time I’d probably add more herbs to the mix or do something to give it a little kick. But as is it’s a pleasant summer dish

• Tuscan turkey roulade

  • anya_sf on November 13, 2021

    I made 1/2 recipe using a half turkey breast (3 lbs), which I butterflied for easier filling and rolling. The roulade was fairly easy to assemble. I accidentally baked it for the full amount of time, so the temp was 175 F, but the turkey was still fairly moist. It was a bit too salty, especially with the pan juices, so I'd use less salt next time, but otherwise it was delicious. With the long baking time, easy slicing, and elegant appearance, this is a great dinner party option.

• Cheesy chicken enchiladas

  • stef on November 21, 2021

    I added some sauce to the chicken instead of spreading on to each tortilla.added more goat cheese than recommended and we really tasted the cheese Used mozzarella cheese instead of cheddar. Avocado and sour cream add a lot to the dish. Will repeat.

  • SpatulaCity on March 25, 2024

    What in the Hamptons is this? :) A different take on enchiladas for sure, though the results were tasty. My husband loved the goat cheese, but me, not so much. I’d make them again for him, but otherwise would seek out a more traditional recipe.

  • anya_sf on December 14, 2020

    I used a whole poblano pepper and rotisserie chicken. Ina doesn't say how much chicken; I used both breasts and a thigh. There was enough filling for 10 tortillas, which I barely managed to cram into the 9x13 dish. I don't know why Ina calls for only 7 tortillas, except that's how many comfortably fit in the pan (and not sure how 7 enchiladas serve 6 people - which lucky person gets 2??) There was plenty of sauce and cheddar, and I just used less goat cheese in each. The enchiladas were really tasty, especially with lots of sour cream. I couldn't really taste the goat cheese; could omit or maybe sub sour cream or crema.

  • kelsey_sytpic on April 21, 2026

    Just okay. Not a fan of the goat cheese as a filling. Sauce was otherwise pretty yummy.

• Seared salmon with spicy red pepper aioli

  • Zosia on January 18, 2021

    Excellent cooking technique for the salmon and the aioli was very good, spicy but not overwhelmingly so as the lime juice and red peppers tempered the chile's effect somewhat. One-third of the recipe made a generous amount for 3 servings of salmon.

  • anya_sf on February 09, 2021

    Agreed that the cooking technique is excellent, yielding crispy skin and moist salmon. I roasted the salmon fillets (closer to 8 oz each) for 5 minutes and let sit 5 minutes. Half the aioli (prepared in the mini processor) was more than enough for 3 servings. It was quite tasty and surprisingly not too spicy for my son.

  • Soulkitchenjen on December 07, 2022

    Absolutely delicious. The sauce was used on the whole plate. That being said, there was wayyy too much sauce.

  • Happykikkers on March 02, 2025

    Good dish! I like this way of searing the salmon. Next time I’ll buy skinless (which she does ask for) so it gets a nice sear on both sides.

• Baked cod with garlic & herb Ritz crumbs

  • cadfael on February 06, 2026

    This is a favourite I make about once a quarter. Always good

  • cadfael on June 02, 2021

    We really enjoyed this recipe and have made three times so far.

  • cadfael on July 29, 2022

    I love this recipe because it is tasty, simple to prepare and great for when dinner has to timed, as in having guests. Gives you ability to prepare most ahead and pop into oven when the time is right. Very good flavour, and the quality of the wine fish and other ingredients make a difference. I’ve baked many times.

  • KarinaFrancis on May 31, 2021

    Yum!! We used monkfish fillets which were a little thin so I followed Zosia's advice and skipped the prebake and they were perfectly cooked in 15 mins. We used (limited edition) black pepper ritz for the topping, I'd like to think it made a difference but probably didn't. This is the kind of dish that makes cooking fish approachable for people like me that are scared of messing it up.

  • julesamomof2 on July 12, 2021

    Another delicious recipe from Ina that was easy to make - everyone raved about how delicious and buttery the fish tasted, probably due to the Ritz topping. Served with the lemon mashed potatoes from the same book, along with broccolini.

  • Zosia on February 02, 2021

    Delicious! My cod fillets were on the thinner side so I skipped the pre-bake step. The fish was nicely done in 15 minutes. I replaced the butter with olive oil, reduced the oil amount overall and used about half the salt, which was still a little too much for the topping as Ritz crackers are so very salty.

  • SpatulaCity on April 04, 2024

    I was worried that there would be too much salt due to the ritz crackers, so only added 1/2 teaspoon salt to the crumbs mix, and barely sprinkled any salt on the fish itself. I had a thick fillet, and next time I’d sprinkle more on the fish! While the crumbs had great flavor the fish itself could have used it. This was an easy and fast recipe, and the bits of crumbs that fell into the wine and lemon sauce were sooooo good.

  • anya_sf on October 19, 2020

    Since I couldn't find fresh cod, I substituted Alaskan halibut. I was concerned about both the amount of salt and relatively long cooking time, especially since halibut dries out so easily, but I made sure to get very thick fish fillets and they turned out perfectly. The topping was super flavorful. Served over rice to soak up the sauce, but actually it was mostly absorbed by the crumbs that fell off the fish.

  • kateiscoooking on November 21, 2020

    I'm not a fan of any other buttery crackers so I used all panko. Otherwise followed the recipe. 5* for sure. The fish was cooked perfectly and the seasoning was spot on. Next time I'll make twice as much so we've got leftovers for fish sandwiches the next day!

  • anya_sf on December 20, 2020

    Made again but couldn't find any thick white fish, so used salmon. Delicious that way too!

  • stef on November 17, 2020

    I made this with ingredients on hand. Tilapia instead of cod, sage instead of parsley and dry vermouth instead of white wine. Otherwise used the rest of the ingredients in the recipe. It turned out delicious and fish was nice and flaky. A definite repeat.

  • Lepa on October 18, 2020

    This is easy, flavorful and delicious. Be sure to give an extra squeeze of lemon before eating this fish, as it really makes the flavors pop. We ate it with the lemon potatoes from the book and it was an excellent combination.

  • Kag2020 on November 06, 2020

    Excellent flavor but try not to get too many crumbs in the sauce; the crumbs absorb the sauce and the panko really expands in the liquid. Also my cod was relatively thick and needed an extra three minutes in the oven.

  • Nkrieda78 on July 25, 2021

    This is good, it didn’t completely overwhelm me with awesomeness but it is definitely a solid dinner choice and something I was able to get on the table with sides in about 30 min after I thawed my fish.

  • Plumberful on November 22, 2022

    I made this dish exactly as written and wow! I think it’s perfection. My husband and I both loved it and although it’s very simple to make, I think it’s a company-worthy dish. Ina does it again! This will go into regular rotation!

  • Plumberful on January 04, 2026

    This baked cod dish is simple to make and definitely qualifies as “comfort food” made with fresh cod from our local fish market. I keep Ritz crackers on hand, just for this dish. This is probably my husband’s favorite fish recipe!

  • julie_o94mq6 on May 05, 2026

    Easy weeknight option for a tasty, healthy dinner! Tried it with grouper and cod and it was a hit, in the dinner rotation now!

  • KarenNC on April 07, 2026

    Very good. Used Barramundi instead of cod.

  • christina_3s9i4q on June 08, 2026

    I halved the recipe. It was cooked perfectly top had its crumble texture but no crunch per-se but it tasted very bland! It needs more flavor whether lemon juice added on top or more herbs.

• Shellfish & chorizo stew

  • anya_sf on February 19, 2021

    Husband gave this 5 stars. Definitely have lots of bread to dip in the delicious broth. I might use a tad less salt next time as it was right on the edge for me. 3 of us finished it all.

  • bktravels on March 02, 2021

    Definitely 5 stars. This was delicious!! We cut the recipe in half for 2 and it was the perfect amount. We did eat lots of crusty baguette with it, though, to sop up the sauce. The recipe is very easy, but it does take time, since things are added in sequence to the pot with 5 to 10 minutes between additions.

• Brussels sprouts pizza carbonara

  • anya_sf on October 25, 2020

    I used homemade pizza dough (from The Best Recipe). Shaping the pizzas into 8"x12" rectangles enabled them to fit better on the parchment, which I dusted with semolina. Rather than have leftover bechamel, I used it all on the pizzas, which worked fine with the size pizzas I made. Didn't bother measuring the cheese, just grated some directly on each pizza. Pre-diced (1/4") pancetta worked, just needed to cook it a bit longer. Instructions were slightly confusing on whether the pizzas should be baked all together ("position 2 racks in the oven") or one sheet at a time ("bake", then "repeat with remaining pizzas"). I baked them all together, carefully rotating halfway through. The pizzas were delicious and served 4 generously for dinner.

  • Abchmiel on March 09, 2026

    Halved the recipe and used a dough that served two! Came out delicious!

  • Rlancto on June 06, 2026

    This is a simple recipe and the prep overall is not that difficult. The egg yolks folded into the bechamel does evoke that carbonara taste.

• Shrimp & linguine fra diavolo

  • anya_sf on November 05, 2020

    Using Rao's arrabbiata sauce, this was very quick and easy. The sauce had a kick, so I omitted the red pepper flakes (to keep my son happy). Cooking method ensured the shrimp were not overcooked. The flavorful sauce did overpower the taste of the shrimp, which made my son happy, as he doesn't love shrimp (I don't know what is wrong with him).

  • stef on November 19, 2020

    Made this with the Arrabbiata sauce recipe in this book. Shrimp had a nice crunch to them. Next time I will sprinkle the toasted panko crumbs on individual servings. Not too spicy for us.

  • Kinhawaii on November 08, 2020

    We loved this too - but had Rao’s marinara sauce. We don’t like it very spicy so additional red pepper flakes were enough. Delicious!

  • Rinshin on February 13, 2025

    Very good. Besides shrimp, this recipe uses only onion, garlic, and white wine for the sauce, so the quality of the arrabbiata sauce is important. I used Delizie di Calabria Arrabbiata Pasta Sauce brand with mild spiciness. To enhance the umami flavor, I added about an inch of anchovy paste and a teaspoon of uni sauce. While shrimp works well, other seafood should pair nicely with this sauce too. I omitted the panko topping and, although Italians might not approve, I used Parmesan instead because I prefer cheese with tomato-based sauces. Great weeknight meal with a simple green salad. Took less than 45 minutes from start to finish.

  • christopher_l6hth4 on March 02, 2026

    If using Rao's you can cut back or eliminate the red pepper flakes. Rao's has a pretty good kick.

  • megan_b5otez on April 08, 2026

    This was amazing!! I doubled the panko

  • BrendaD1962 on August 29, 2021

    Another winner from Ina. I’m not fond of crumbs on pasta so I left them off, but otherwise followed the recipe. This turned out exceptionally well and it made a lot so my husband and I had plenty of leftovers. We loved it and can’t wait to have it again.

  • Susanbk on April 08, 2023

    Excellent as written. Made her arrabbiata sauce on p. 142 to go with it. Has a pleasant kick - not too much but just enough. We had arrabiata sauce left over, froze it, and enjoyed it a couple of weeks after.

  • kkmatti on January 16, 2025

    Very good recipe. The shrimp is a very subtle background note because the sauce has a strong flavor. We forgot to add the bread crumbs when we served it and it didn't need it.

• Fresh crab & pea risotto

  • Rachaelsb on July 11, 2021

    This was good but don’t think I would make on a regular basis. Saffron added another element of flavor that not sure worked as well as it could. Next time I would use more fennel,

  • pattig on February 18, 2021

    I made this with jarred clam stock as I couldn’t find seafood stock. I used 1/2 the red pepper flakes but might reduce it even more as we are sensitive to the heat as we get older :( Used Costco’s refrigerated crab. I think I stirred too much while adding the stock as it was a bit gluey. It was very good and we ate it for 2+ meals.

  • anya_sf on January 13, 2021

    For the seafood stock, Better than Bouillon lobster base worked well, but very little additional salt was needed. I omitted the red pepper flakes, used powdered saffron (guessed on the quantity), extra fennel, and frozen crabmeat. The risotto was absolutely delicious.

• Spring green spaghetti carbonara

  • anya_sf on February 20, 2021

    I used 16 oz spaghetti and would do so again as there was plenty of sauce and veg. I only had 2 scallions and next time would omit them as I preferred just chives. The amount of pancetta was very generous; this dish would still be very good with less. Hold back on adding all the salt as you might not need it. My family devoured this. In our house this served 4.

  • NJChicaa on May 20, 2023

    We did not like this. I actually had a coworker over for dinner when I made this for the first time and it was so bad that we threw it out and ordered pizza.

  • rachel_q1lg6q on March 28, 2026

    So good! Didn’t have peas and added pancetta on top at the end but it was a hit. Loved the lemon.

• Truffled mac and cheese

  • julesamomof2 on December 24, 2022

    I made 1/2 a recipe as a test run before Christmas dinner and oh boy was this ever good. It dirtied a lot of dishes and took a bit of time to prepare, but Ina says you can assemble it the day before which I will do. This is rich and decadent, certainly not for every day but perfect for the holidays.

  • anya_sf on October 12, 2020

    Rich and delicious! To lighten it ever so slightly, I used less fat to cook the mushrooms and lowfat milk in the sauce. The cheese volume:weight ratios don't match those from Ina's other mac and cheese recipe; I went by weight. I think ~25% less cheese could be used without sacrificing much. The crunchy topping was a delicious contrast to the creamy pasta.

• Spaghetti squash arrabbiata

  • anya_sf on October 20, 2020

    Very hearty and delicious. One tablespoon oil per squash half was more than ample.

  • tarae1204 on March 15, 2022

    Excellent spaghetti squash preparation. Really, the arrabbiata sauce is worth making on its own, too. I used slices of mozzarella from a log which was convenient but I think mozzarella balls would be easier to eat with just a fork.

  • julesamomof2 on January 21, 2024

    This was a WOW dish for me, super flavorful and filling for a vegetarian main. Made as written with the arrabbiata sauce recipe which took it over the top. 5 stars!

  • breakthroughc on December 19, 2022

    Really delicious and my favorite spaghetti squash recipe. I used much less oil for each squash half. I also used sliced fresh mozzarella which is a little unmanagable. Next time if I don’t have the small balls I will chopped it instead of using slices. The servings are quite large, neither my husband or I finished our squash half and we aren’t dainty eaters. Delightful vegetarian main course.

  • ckpeters on February 10, 2021

    Delicious. It is worth making Ina's arrabbiata sauce for this...tons of garlic and all.

  • Plumberful on November 21, 2022

    A simple and delicious Spaghetti Squash dish, which we enjoyed with the last of our local farm market squash. Really nice for a meatless, main and the sauce is a new favorite. I only had fresh mozzarella slices, which were a bit unwieldy! The bocconcini would make a nicer presentation, I think. Will make this again!

• Arrabbiata sauce

  • julesamomof2 on January 21, 2024

    Very good, perfect with the spaghetti squash. Agree with others, I will halve the oil next time. Perfectly seasoned IMO.

  • Zosia on February 21, 2021

    Spicy, garlicky and also very tasty. I reduced both the oil and salt.

  • anya_sf on October 20, 2020

    Although I wanted to use much less oil, I thought I should try the recipe as written first. Next time I'll use about half the oil, which should be enough to saute the garlic cloves without leaving an oil slick on top of the sauce (the oil did get incorporated after simmering). Using half the red pepper flakes, the sauce was zesty rather than spicy, which was what I wanted. Very tasty sauce, just way more oil than I'd prefer. See the outrageous garlic bread recipe for helpful garlic peeling tip.

  • stef on November 19, 2020

    This is a lovely spicy sauce with a hint of fennel taste. Quick to make only simmers for 30 minutes. It makes a lot.

  • averythingcooks on December 14, 2020

    I did use less oil than called for and added torn basil to the food processor with the tomatoes. I then added a parm rind to the simmer and finished with more basil. I will admit to using a lighter hand with the fennel seeds.....but even with that, this is a really good pasta sauce!

  • breakthroughc on December 19, 2022

    I totally agree that you can half the oil. Delicious sauce with the spaghetti squash. I also used less salt. With Ina’s recipes I usually start with half the salt.

• Fresh zucchini with lemon & mint

  • Kitiara121 on October 23, 2023

    I have to agree with everything that anya_sf wrote about. I gave up on the mandoline and just tried to cut the zucchini into thin lengths with minimal success. This is a good side dish option with burgers on the grill or grilled chicken sandwiches during the summer. I'd buy the pre-cut zucchini from the produce department at the store and as previously mentioned, half the vinaigrette is sufficient. Instant side dish with little to no work.

  • anya_sf on August 18, 2021

    Trying to julienne zucchini lengthwise with a mandoline was a bit frustrating and precarious. Next time I would try my spiralizer (keep forgetting I have one). I wasn't sure how dry the zucchini needed to get - seemed like it would exude liquid forever - used a lot of paper towels until I just decided it was enough. Half the vinaigrette was sufficient. This was a good, no-cook zucchini option with a nice, bright flavor.

• Charred carrots

  • anya_sf on December 07, 2020

    I was skeptical that the carrots would soften enough before charring too much, but they did, even though some pieces of carrot were twice as thick as others (none thicker than 1/2" though). Delicious seasonings, which could be used with roasted carrots just as easily as broiled - roasting would take longer, but require less tossing.

  • Zosia on February 02, 2021

    Great flavours and the cooking instructions worked well.

• Cheddar & scallion creamed corn

  • averythingcooks on March 14, 2021

    I cut this to 1/3 for the 2 of us and after the puréed portion was added back to pan, I added some diced red onion & chopped hot peppers. At this point, a taste confirmed that it was really good. But the cheeses were prepped so in they went and oh yes - this is over the top delicious!

  • anya_sf on May 02, 2021

    Frozen corn worked just fine. Super tasty!

  • heyksquared on May 10, 2026

    As another commenter said, I also did half a recipe. This was easy and delicious!

  • halfchefc on July 02, 2025

    So I don't buy heavy cream because it always goes bad before I can use it up soo I used Greek yogurt instead with a splash of water and it worked perfectly!!

  • l.clark on August 02, 2025

    Delicious.

  • Abchmiel on March 11, 2026

    Absolutely amazing and so easy! One of my new favorite side dishes, but very rich! I did a 1/2 recipe and used frozen corn.

• Roasted shishito peppers with easy Hollandaise

  • anya_sf on November 02, 2021

    I roasted the peppers at 425 F since I was also roasting something else. They still took 15 minutes to get a nice amount of char, which I assumed was the desired result - the instructions say to roast until tender but bright green, but the photo clearly shows char. Microwave Hollandaise turned out perfectly and was so easy, I will definitely use this method again. The sauce was thick like mayo (as directed), great for dipping. If you want more of a sauce, perhaps just cook it a little less. The peppers were delicious roasted and nice with the Hollandaise. I also roasted some asparagus, which was even better with it.

• Celery root & cauliflower purée

  • anya_sf on October 30, 2020

    This was okay, but I didn't love it. I may have gotten a bad celery root - there were brown veins inside which couldn't be completely removed, and the puree had a slight bitterness and a few stringy bits. Roasted Brussels sprout leaves were tasty on their own and looked nice as a garnish, but became soft and chewy after sitting on the warm puree, so I'd omit them next time.

• Provençal zucchini gratin

  • pvia on November 03, 2020

    Made this last week. Great flavor.

  • anya_sf on October 11, 2020

    The zucchini cooked somewhat unevenly while being sauteed, but in the end that didn't matter. This was really delicious.

  • bwhip on November 03, 2025

    Delightful, we enjoyed this very much. I used Panko bread crumbs, since I didn't have the bread to make regular ones as the recipe had called for.

  • SpatulaCity on March 12, 2024

    Very good. Those little crusty cheesy bits on top? Yum!

  • angela_gnbj4y on February 16, 2026

    Used leek instead of onion (just what we had). Sauce was rich and flavorful. Cut zucchini in 1/2” rounds per Inas directions and they were way too thick/watery. If cut thinner this would have been 10/10.

  • Skamper on January 09, 2023

    Delicious. I made a half batch using yellow squash.

• Emily's English roasted potatoes

  • anya_sf on December 27, 2020

    It seemed like too much oil, but I think it was necessary for proper browning, and surprisingly most of the oil stayed in the pan so the potatoes were not greasy. They were super crispy on the outside and creamy inside, exactly as promised. We loved them.

  • Zosia on January 18, 2021

    They were exactly as advertised and the best I've ever made. I based the amount of oil on the size of the pan I used; 3 tbsp coated it generously and was enough to brown the potatoes with some left over.

  • Rinshin on April 03, 2022

    This was one of the best potato recipes we’ve tasted. Very creamy inside and perfectly crusted on outside. No dryness at all like most baked style potatoes. Can prep ahead and final baking takes about 50-60 min in the oven . Used smoked salt and minced rosemary for finishing. Although I served these with salmon, it would be great with steaks.

  • averythingcooks on May 05, 2022

    I basically echo the comments - wonderfully crispy and still soft inside! I scaled this back to 1/3 which was perfect for the 2 of us and I did go a bit lighter on the oil. Next time I will prep the potatoes to the drying rack stage ahead of time as she suggests. And there will be a next time for sure.

  • heyksquared on February 01, 2026

    These take awhile to prepare, but are so delicious — crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside.

  • dbuhler on January 15, 2024

    These were delicious! I really enjoyed the crisp outside and creamy inside, however, mine didn't get as crisp as the ones pictured in the book. I will cook mine longer next time and see if that helps, but I needed to stop at the 45-minute mark so we could get dinner on the table (I misread the instructions and didn't realize just how long these would take to prepare). Now that I know I will plan ahead accordingly.

• Fresh corn polenta

  • averythingcooks on November 18, 2023

    I used a medium cornmeal and as usual, the texture was fine for us. I love the addition of the fresh corn here and as much as I wanted to add cheddar, we stuck to this version and liked it. The verdict is that I will likely add fresh corn when I can to almost any polenta/grits I make in the future. We served this with saucy, slow cooker BBQ chicken thighs spooned over with a green salad on the side and really enjoyed our dinner.

  • anya_sf on November 25, 2020

    I didn't have enough fine cornmeal, so I supplemented with medium (Bob's Red Mill), which worked. Frozen corn also worked here, as did sour cream in lieu of creme fraiche, and pecorino instead of parmesan. This was my family's favorite polenta recipe thus far - even my polenta-hating son loved it. I made 2/3 recipe and 3 of us finished it all, served with the roasted sausages and peppers.

• Puréed potatoes with lemon

  • anya_sf on December 20, 2020

    The potatoes needed about 5 extra minutes to cook. I used a ricer rather than food mill. I couldn't bring myself to use all that butter - was going to use 1 stick (4 oz), but son convinced me to add 1 extra ounce. Whisking potatoes takes a lot of effort, but worked in the end. With less butter, the full amount of milk was just right. Only needed 1 tsp salt at the end. I wouldn't have thought to put lemon zest in potatoes, but they were absolutely delicious.

  • Lepa on October 18, 2020

    I love lemon but was a bit skeptical about lemony mashed potatoes. I should have trusted Ina. It was delicious. This method of making mashed potatoes resulted in an extremely smooth texture, almost liquidy. I only had Russett potatoes so that may have changed the texture a bit. I only used half the milk and that was perfect.

• Outrageous garlic bread

  • averythingcooks on November 09, 2020

    I also made 1/3 of the butter mixture & eyeballed how much baguette we would (ie should) eat - there is leftover butter that WILL get used! I included all of the flavourings with extra red pepper flakes. Perhaps I didn't simmer the garlic long enough but after mashing it, I still had some big pieces so I ran 2 small, sharp knives through it as though I was cutting butter into flour. We both devoured this beside last night's soup!

  • kateiscoooking on December 12, 2020

    Outrageous is the right name. This is fantastic.

  • anya_sf on October 20, 2020

    I made 1/3 of the butter mixture, omitting the red pepper flakes (son doesn't like them). That was a generous amount for a 10" ciabatta. The garlic bread was delicious, although the garlic itself, basically being poached in butter, was much milder than my usual recipe. The boiling water garlic peeling tip was great.

  • jay.moe on January 07, 2021

    I roasted the garlic in a dry pan until it was soft. There was quite a bit of parmesan cheese, which I will cut back on the next time. It was good garlic bread.

  • CaraGulati on February 12, 2023

    Fabulous! I used more garlic than called for and roughly chopped it after smashing. The house smelled amazing!

• Peach almond torte

  • anya_sf on June 13, 2021

    Lacking an 8" springform pan, I used a 9" one, which just fit all the slices from 3 smaller peaches. Baked 45 minutes, but that may have been a few minutes too long as the edges were a bit dry. Very nice cake, good flavor.

  • julesamomof2 on July 12, 2021

    Very good, easy cake. I personally love the peach-almond flavor combination and this one was nice and peachy. I had to bake it a bit longer than 45 minutes to get the center to set (kept putting in back in the oven for a few minutes at a time) and by the time the center was done the edges were a little dry. Still, worth making again with ripe peaches.

• English lemon posset

  • KarinaFrancis on May 14, 2022

    I can’t believe how good and how easy this is! Soft, silky and tangy, so good and dare I say I liked it better than pannacotta!

  • cadfael on July 19, 2025

    A favourite

  • Lepa on May 08, 2022

    This is a delicious and easy dessert, especially when lemons are in season and you have lots to use up! Our guests said it was "very refreshing". I loved this and anticipate making it for dinner parties often.

  • anya_sf on October 14, 2020

    I made 1/2 recipe but cooked in the same size pan, which was good since it nearly boiled over (don't walk away!). Chilled about 9 hrs before serving. Absolutely delicious, similar to pot de creme, but easier.

  • eliza on May 18, 2022

    Really nice dessert and very easy to make. I left out limoncello and put in more lemon juice. Used 35% cream since we don’t have heavy cream available, and it worked well. I also made a half recipe. Great for guests.

  • Kristjudy on November 13, 2020

    This was a lovely recipe. The addition of the limoncello in both the posset and the fruit topping was a delicious addition. This will be made again and again.

  • pmassa on December 21, 2024

    My family demands this every Christmas Eve. It's the perfect refreshment after our heavy prime rib dinner. You do need to be attentive with timing but it is really easy and holds well if made the day before - just add the berries right before serving. I've used frozen strawberries when the fresh ones weren't very good looking and it was fine.

  • Pimlicocook on November 25, 2023

    Velvety smooth and lemony, without too much of an alcoholic kick (enhances rather than overwhelms). Sophisticated and easy to make ahead - perfect for entertaining.

• Milk chocolate Oreo ice cream

  • anya_sf on October 21, 2020

    I made 1/2 recipe using Lindt milk chocolate. Perhaps I should have made a full batch, as the ice cream was gone in a single day - or maybe it's better (for our waistlines) that I didn't. Although it was quite chocolatey and rich, we couldn't stop eating it.

  • kate_reixxl on June 14, 2026

    Delicious!

• Sweetened whipped cream

  • anya_sf on December 21, 2020

    Basic recipe for lightly sweetened whipped cream.

• Bourbon cream cheese frosting

  • anya_sf on October 10, 2020

    Good, basic cream cheese frosting but with bourbon added. The bourbon was definitely noticeable.

• Applesauce cake with bourbon raisins

  • anya_sf on October 10, 2020

    I made 1/2 recipe in an 8" round pan using dark raisins instead of golden; baking time was about 35 minutes. The cake was moist and flavorful. The bourbon was definitely noticeable (at least in the frosting), making this more appealing to adults than children (although my teenage son liked it).

  • kari500 on February 15, 2022

    Delicious! Easy to make. I skipped the clove and halved the nutmeg. I’m not a huge raisin fan but the raisins in this were wonderful. Unlike others here, I didn’t find the bourbon taste very noticeable. My pan wasn’t 2 inches deep, and I regretted it, but it still worked out.

  • cookbookhabit on November 08, 2024

    Excellent even without the raisins and frosting as a quick snacking cake. I used leftover applesauce from the first BC cookbook and while it is sweetened rather than the unsweetened variety called for in this recipe, it didn't take the sweetness over the top.

  • julesamomof2 on January 17, 2022

    Wonderful cake- easy and very moist. I did not measure the bourbon that went into the frosting and it was pretty prominent but still delicious. Definitely going in the fall/winter dessert rotation.

  • cadfael on July 19, 2025

    A simple favourite cake

  • Kinhawaii on October 26, 2021

    I agree - delicious & moist. I took it out at 45 minutes because I was afraid of drying out the edges. While the tester came out clean I was a little doubtful about the center- it did sink a little but was covered by the frosting & it seemed evenly moist throughout. Thank goodness for frosting!

  • BrendaD1962 on August 29, 2021

    One of our favourite cakes and my daughter’s absolute favourite. It’s incredible and so delicious, with a nice thick layer of cream cheese frosting. I didn’t change a thing in the recipe. We never go wrong with Ina.

• Salted pistachio meringues

  • anya_sf on November 08, 2020

    I made 1/2 recipe using 5 large egg whites. The sugar browned unevenly and started to melt on one side, but still seemed to work in the recipe. Ottolenghi's recipe, on which this is based, does specify that the sugar may start to melt. Although I thought my oven temperature was accurate, the meringues did brown and crack; next time I'd bake them at 225 F, which is the temperature specified in Ottolenghi. The meringues were nice and crisp with soft, marshmallowey centers. The cracks appeared to have bits of caramelized sugar (my mistake?) which actually improved the flavor, as did the salty pistachios. I'm not a meringue fan (too sweet), but these were pretty good; husband and son loved them.

  • AmberBee on December 19, 2021

    These were AMAZING. The caramelized sugar takes it over the top! This is a keeper recipe for sure.

• Berries & jam milkshakes

  • anya_sf on October 15, 2020

    Lowfat milk worked fine here, but I did use Haagen-Dazs ice cream. With the yogurt, the shake tasted more like a smoothie than a milkshake, albeit an indulgent one. I used Bonne Maman intense fruit spread rather than jam, so maybe that made it less sweet. The liqueur wasn't noticeable. Servings were quite large.

• Boston cream pie

  • anya_sf on February 04, 2021

    I made 2/3 recipe using 8" cake pans. The components all turned out well, but assembly was problematic. I made the cake layers and pasty cream one day ahead and chilled them, which I recommend, as the cake firmed up, making it easier to handle. The pastry cream could have been slightly stiffer, as some oozed out of the layers. The biggest issue was the ganache, mostly that there was way too much of it (and unfortunately I poured it all on the cake without thinking), which weighed down the cake, causing the cream to ooze out more and the layers to slip, creating a cream-ganache waterfall down the sides. The flavors were just delicious, though, although the ganache was quite rich. So I'd consider making this again with half the ganache. Or I'd stick with the Cook's Illustrated recipe, but add orange flavorings, as I really enjoyed those additions here.

• Banana rum trifle

  • anya_sf on February 14, 2021

    If you love cream, cream, and more cream, this is the dessert for you. After chilling overnight, the cookies had completely disintegrated, so there was no contrasting texture other than bananas (not much of a contrast). The gingersnaps were unidentifiable and almost tasted like bits of caramel. Ina says not to overlap the cookies, but it should be fine to overlap them somewhat to use more of them relative to cream. The flavor was delicious, but a contrasting texture was needed. No extra whipped cream was necessary on top (and wouldn't have fit in my trifle bowl). This served at least 12.

• Giant crinkled chocolate chip cookies

  • mrsmadam on May 01, 2021

    These are wonderful. Certainly worth the effort of the extra vigilance due to the banging technique. Rave reviews on all fronts.

  • anya_sf on October 12, 2020

    I'd never made pan-banging cookies before and wasn't sure if the 18-20 minute bake time included the first 10 minutes or not - it did; my bake time was 19 minutes total. The cookies spread A LOT; on one of my pans, all 4 cookies merged into one giant one (which we ate first, of course). The texture was great - very chewy inside, crispy edges - but I found the flavor somewhat lacking, maybe due to less brown sugar. A generous sprinkling of salt was needed to enhance the taste. Somehow the chocolate melded with the dough so there weren't melty bits.

  • Running_with_Wools on November 15, 2020

    These were delicious. Mine did not come out quite as giant as the recipe. I was able to make 18 cookies in the one batch. I used a combination of 85% and 60% chocolate. They were scrumptious. Perfect texture and not too sweet. I did not bake for 20 minutes, however. Maybe 15 minutes, total.

  • ldyndiuk on December 21, 2022

    I found these unnecessarily complicated. She has you freeze them in balls and then take them out of the oven every 3 minutes to bang the trays to flatten them. It rather begs the question: why freeze them in balls in the first place? Just don’t freeze them and they’ll spread out. Sure, this results (in some cases) in a slightly different texture, but it’s a huge pain, especially if you only have 2 oven racks and have to do it in batches. I used a large egg rather than extra-large because it’s what I had, and I skipped the gobs of salt on top of the cookies because that is a trendy thing that I don’t like. These have PLENTY of salt in them as it is (and as does everything in this book. She likes her salt!) They were good but I wouldn’t make them again.

• Coffee chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches

  • anya_sf on November 12, 2020

    Super yummy and easy! The coffee-chocolate chip-toffee combination was great, but there are lots of other flavor possibilities.

• White chocolate toffee

  • anya_sf on January 28, 2021

    I made 1/2 recipe in an 8"x8" pan which was still a lot (for us anyway). Ina did not say if the toffee mixture should get completely mixed; mine did not - some butter remained separate no matter how much I stirred. I poured it all in the pan anyway and that issue wasn't noticeable in the final candy. My first batch of white chocolate seized :-( Not Ina's fault, but white chocolate is more sensitive than regular, so be careful. The toffee was initially hard to remove from the pan, but just be willing to break a piece and then it's not bad - she says to break along the score lines, but of course you can't see them, so just break it anywhere. The combination of flavors was quite good, even the ginger, which I don't always like.

• Tuscan baked apples

  • anya_sf on November 19, 2021

    Honeycrisp apples worked OK as a substitute for Macoun (never seen here in California) - after 45 minutes they were soft when pierced, but a little firm (but still possible) to cut with a spoon. I wasn't sure if the slits were supposed to be vertical or horizontal; I made them vertical and the skin didn't explode. I had to microwave the mascarpone in order to mix it, and then chilled the mixture. Vin Santo was pricey, but I wanted to try it; next time I'll use something less expensive. The overall flavor was good, not too sweet. The pan juices (aka wine) appealed more to adults; for kids I'd use more caramel sauce.

• Chocolate-dipped brown sugar shortbread

  • Kinhawaii on November 10, 2022

    I also found these good but on the large size- I prefer them smaller too. As advised I used darker chocolate & melted less. I like the salt with the nuts. They remind me of the Big Island Candies brand chocolate dipped shortbread.

  • averythingcooks on August 31, 2021

    I also made a 1/2 recipe & with 1 oz balls, I got 17 cookies. Brown sugar shortbread is a favourite of mine and these are pretty good but I might try again making the cookies a little smaller - my personal preference is something a little crisper. The milk chocolate is good here (I had extra) and the pecans are lovely...I sprinkled them with fleur de sel before chopping (& I basically had just enough). I can see making these again but I will play around with a smaller cookie size.

  • anya_sf on October 09, 2020

    I weighed 1 oz portions of dough and got 15 cookies from 1/2 recipe. My milk chocolate was rather light - it still tasted good, but darker milk or semi-sweet would have been even better. There was extra chocolate and nuts. The cookies were delicious.

  • robyn_6oitvf on January 28, 2026

    I made these for a Christmas cookie swap and everyone loved them

• Whole-grain breakfast bowl

  • southerncooker on February 10, 2022

    This was delicious. I cooked this though before adding the milk the night before. Next morning I added milk, I used oat milk, and reheated in microwave. Then topped with the raspberries, dates and nuts. I used pecans instead of hazelnuts, and added a drizzle of maple syrup.

  • anya_sf on October 10, 2020

    Check on the porridge as it simmers; mine started cooking too rapidly and the water evaporated and barley started sticking after 20 minutes. The cooked barley had a texture similar to steel-cut oats, which I quite liked. The toppings were really great together. I don't always love dates, but they were good here. Even my porridge-hating husband thought this was pretty good. It takes a long time to make, though, so I won't make it often unless I figure out how to make it ahead.

  • ginger2212 on May 08, 2023

    Great make-ahead breakfast recipe! Endlessly riffable. The texture is wonderful and cozy and filling. I added two scoops of collagen powder for added protein in the morning.

• Breakfast tacos

  • anya_sf on November 06, 2021

    The eggs turned out very creamy, but overly salty; I'd use half the salt and sprinkle on more at the end, if needed. There was a lot of filling, so we needed to eat them with a fork and knife. The amount of cheese was generous - you could certainly use less. Hot sauce perked up the flavors. The tacos were really good overall, but quite filling.

  • adellel on January 17, 2026

    The eggs are so creamy and tasty! You don’t need any additional salt, and this is a lot of eggs. You may have some extra that won’t fit in the tortilla.

• Buckwheat crêpes "complète"

  • anya_sf on September 11, 2021

    I have a fear of making crepes, but these instructions were perfect. A 10" nonstick skillet worked fine for both the crepes and eggs (although I just cooked 2 eggs at a time). There was enough crepe batter for 7 crepes, so don't worry if one of them doesn't turn out. Just delicious!

  • tarae1204 on February 26, 2021

    Good recipe. The crepes were balanced in flavor and I had a good success rate. Helpful to have a second person to fry the eggs if you’re in a rush. I skipped the ham but had creme fraiche and parsley to round out the flavor, texture and appearance and recommend using any herb you have for a little green.

• Creamed spinach & eggs

  • EmilyR on January 03, 2023

    This is a nice creamed spinach, if not a tad too rich, which can be amended. I also needed some extra time for the egg whites.

  • anya_sf on October 22, 2020

    We had this for dinner, so I used 26 oz spinach and 6 eggs (2 each). I didn't need to increase the other ingredients (it was plenty creamy/cheesy), and I'd decrease the salt if using less spinach. The egg whites needed a couple of extra minutes to set. This was delicious with sourdough bread.

• Bacon, egg & cheddar sandwich

  • anya_sf on October 11, 2020

    A tasty, hearty breakfast sandwich. I microwaved the bacon too (cut pieces in half first). Microwaving the eggs worked well to create neat "egg pillows", but actually took longer than cooking the eggs on the stove. But I'd use that method again if I only had a microwave. With the salty bacon and egg mixture, the sandwich didn't need an extra sprinkling of salt at the end.

  • jay.moe on November 28, 2021

    Makes a quick weekday breakfast. I substitute a piece of ham or frozen vegan sausage patty for the bacon. Cooking everything in the microwave takes about as long as toasting the English Muffin.

  • adellel on January 04, 2026

    Doesn’t need any extra salt. It is really so quick and good.

• Waffle iron hash browns

  • stef on January 23, 2021

    My cuisinart waffle maker had to be turned up to #6 in order for the potatoes to brown. Otherwise it was very tasty. To be served with smoke salmon and sour cream next time.

  • anya_sf on September 07, 2021

    Using a regular waffle iron I got 14 hash browns. They were fairly crisp on the outside, although could have been browner, and nicely soft inside. Good flavor. We enjoyed them with eggs.

  • JJ2018 on January 30, 2021

    Really enjoyed these and was impressed how crisp but soft they turned in the waffle maker. Would make again

  • j.va on August 04, 2021

    more of a latke than a hash brown, but very good. I would recommend reducing the onion just a tad, especially if serving as a breakfast dish. Accompanied by sour cream and apple sauce.

• Vanilla cold-brewed iced coffee

  • anya_sf on September 06, 2022

    I used Peet's Baridi Blend, which was recommended for cold brew, and the CoffeeSock. This method varies just slightly from the CoffeeSock package. Made 1/2 recipe but accidentally added 1/2 c extra water; the coffee was plenty strong. Very good, although liquid sweetener dissolves a little more easily.