It’s no secret that Bon Appétit editors cook a lot for work. So it should come as no surprise that we cook a lot during our off hours too. Here are the recipes we’re whipping up this month to get dinner on the table, entertain our friends, satisfy a sweet tooth, use up leftovers, and everything in between. For even more staff favorites, click here.
January 31
After working alongside Test Kitchen buddy Shilpa Uskokovic for several years now, I have created an internal rolodex of best-ever recipes by her. (She is completely unaware I am writing this.) At the top of my list is her Gochujang-Butter-Braised Tofu, a banger I have cooked countless times. It takes only a handful of ingredients and comes together in 20 minutes. The tender tofu, swimming in the spicy, glossy sauce, is pure comfort. I typically serve it over rice, but most recently served it over noodles. —Jesse Szewczyk, senior Test Kitchen editor
One of my favorite cookies is cookbook author Michelle Polzine’s Grated Shortbread With Rose Jam. But I hardly ever make it with rose jam. First, the cookie: It’s a fairly simple shortbread recipe, shot through with a bit of cardamom. The dough gets separated into two disks and frozen; this can be done weeks in advance, making it perfect for last-minute bakes. The frozen dough is grated into a quarter-sheet pan, with a layer of the jam separating the two halves. While rose is delicious, it can be hard to find in the average U.S. supermarket, and is a bit of an acquired taste. To date, I’ve used raspberry, guava, apricot, even once with a chocolate spread. Each time the cookies have been received with adoration. —Joe Sevier, senior editor, SEO & Cooking
As soon as I saw snow was on the forecast this past weekend, my mind knew that some form of chili would be on deck. I was in the mood for one featuring ground beef, where it cooks down so much it almost becomes a sauce, something you’d find slapped between two burger buns, or piled high on a baked potato, even a hot dog. That’s when I remembered former BA staffer Kendra Vaculin’s excellent Coney Island Hot Dog topper. Even though this was a recipe meant to see long summer days, I knew it could get me through the coldest of winter ones. I tweaked it slightly by adding some white beans I had on hand to fill it out. I enjoy mine with corn chips, heaps of sour cream, and shredded cheese. —Hana Asbrink, deputy food editor
A recipe I always keep in my back pocket is this Peruvian-Style Roast Chicken With Tangy Green Sauce. My boyfriend, who has family in Peru and goes back often, can’t get enough. When we make it together, we take some liberties: using bone-in chicken thighs instead of the whole roasted bird, and adding a splash of soy sauce to the cumin-paprika spice mixture, which multiplies the savoriness. The green sauce is creamy, zesty, and great on just about anything. Salmon, roasted potatoes, but best of all: yuca fries. —Nina Moskowitz, associate editor, cooking
After the holidays, then getting married in France, I’ve hit the winter blues hard. In need of an emotional revival, I went to the kitchen and reached for a jar of harissa. Harissa has long been one of my favorite ingredients because of its complex spices and warming heat. Each brand tastes a little different—food director Chris Morocco swears by NY Shuk. This week, I used it to whip up Claire Saffitz’s Sheet Pan Chicken Meatballs With Tomatoes and Chickpeas for a feel-good dinner. And for the rest of the jar, I can turn to these recipes to thaw my seasonal ennui. —Carly Westerfield, associate manager, audience strategy
January 23
I like to take advantage of winter, when mussels, clams, and scallops are in their prime. I’ve been making one of my favorite pasta dishes, spaghetti alla vongole, sans pasta and just the vongole. Skipping the noodles makes this dish speedy and doable for a midweek dinner, plus the clams get to shine. Take a page from our well-rated recipe on Epicurious and zero in on step two. If you want it extra saucy, double the wine, just make sure you have some crusty bread on hand for dipping. —Hana Asbrink, deputy food editor
If you too are a toppings maximalist, let me direct you to my favorite snow day dinner: Kendra Vaculin’s Baked Sweet Potato Chaat. Each bite is creamy, tangy, spicy, and crunchy all at once. Sweet potatoes and chickpeas roast together in the oven while you chop up the herbs, red onion, jalapẽno, and citrus, and gather up yogurt, fried onions, chaat masala, and pomegranate seeds. When the oven timer dings, you get to top each potato to your heart’s content. I like to eat mine out of a large “blate” and reload my toppings at least once. —Kelsey Jane Youngman, senior service editor
When it’s bone-achingly cold outside, there’s only one thing I want to eat: shepherd’s pie. I went with the very straightforward recipe from NYT Cooking. I liked that it called for half beef and half lamb (okay, we’re doing a shepherd’s pie–cottage pie combination here). I went extra heavy on the tomato paste, added a shake or two of Worcestershire, and used more beef and lamb than called for because I am a growing boy. Did my mashed potato layer brown perfectly? No, it did not, but the nice thing about shepherd’s pie is that even when a few steps go wrong, it’s still pretty great. —Sam Stone, staff writer
I had to cook most of the food for my book club’s January meeting and my wife thought something spicy would match the satanic themes of the mid horror novel we read. So I went back to this chili from The Pub at North Coast Brewing Co. in Fort Bragg, California. I started making my own version of this recipe over 15 years ago, with little tweaks here and there. I keep all the ingredients and add a pound of chopped tomatillos, a couple of chopped serrano chiles, a can of black beans for extra body, and some dark brown sugar to taste (it ends too hot without it). I also cook it overnight on low in a slow cooker instead of just the measly hour recommended here. The results are not only an incredible depth of flavor, but pork shoulder that practically dissolves in your mouth. —Noah Kaufman, senior commerce editor
On Friday nights I try to make something special for me and my kids—usually it’s Persian food, because that’s what I grew up eating on Shabbat with my family. A standard meal is usually Ghormeh Sabzi, khoresh, or kebab koobideh, which I serve with saffron rice and potato tahdig. Vegetable sides sometimes include eggplant or a simple tomato-cucumber salad, but this past Friday I tried this Roasted Cauliflower Salad With Feta and Dates. The salad is superbly easy to throw together: Roast cauliflower with slivered red onion and slabs of feta on a baking sheet, then toss it together with toasted pistachios, torn dates, greens, and a lively red wine and honey dressing. My kids don’t love arugula, so I subbed in baby spinach; you could also bulk it out with a grain like bulgur wheat or quinoa. Vibrant, nutty, and sweet, I’ve already made it again. —Andrea Strong, contributing writer and editor
January 16
After a day of cooking in the Test Kitchen, I need something simple for dinner. I’m an admirer of Rosie Kellet’s recipes (her cookbook In for Dinner is a real winner), and loved making her miso butter soup. It starts with cooked rice, topped with a knob of butter. Then ladle over hot miso broth. I just mix white miso into chicken stock—absolutely not traditional, but it does the trick for those short on time. Finally, toppings! A jammy egg, which I happened to have from the other day (silken tofu straight from the package would be great too) and a scoop of kimchi. One could stop there, but since I had them, I added sliced radish and scallion, plus a shake of toasted sesame seeds. —Rebecca Firkser, Test Kitchen editor
I call them Baby Pancakes: one banana, one egg, a few spoonfuls of multigrain cereal, a pinch of baking powder, a sprinkle of ground cinnamon. Mix together with a fork, dollop in a hot, oil-slicked skillet, forming little cakes the size of a little fist. Adapted from 101 Before One, they are soft and mushy and extremely gobbleable, even if you have no teeth. My son loves them. —Emma Laperruque, director of cooking
While my colleague Jesse Szewczyk had an unlucky week (his social video shoot for Homemade Bagels had to be rescheduled), mine was lucky (he sent me home with the dough he’d already prepped). One man’s trash is another man’s treasure! And with his help, the process couldn’t have been easier for me to complete on a lazy Sunday. I cut the dough into 12 equal portions, shaped them on a work surface, let them, and poked holes in the center. Then I boiled the bagels in water mixed with baking soda and sugar (no lye here) and showered them with a few different seasonings: poppy seeds, za’taar, sea salt, and, my favorite, furikake. —Nina Moskowitz, associate editor, cooking
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For a last-minute dessert, for an easy breakfast pastry, or for 3 p.m., because you deserve it: These are the times to make my colleague Shilpa Uskokovic’s Easy-Fancy Pear Galette. The recipe features frozen puff pastry and canned pears (essentially poached pears without the work). Beneath the pears is a hidden layer of almond cream, made not from blitzing nuts in a machine, but just by whisking almond flour with eggs, sugar, and a few other pantry essentials. It’s equally delicious warm, topped with melting vanilla ice cream, as it is placed on a bed of honey-sweetened Greek yogurt. And a slice eaten out of hand as you head out the door? You may never buy a coffee shop almond croissant again. —Joe Sevier, senior editor, cooking and SEO
January 9
I had some potatoes leftover from my holiday cooking, so I decided to make associate cooking editor Nina Moskowitz’s Classic Potato Latkes. I’ve tried many recipes, and these are the crispiest version imaginable. Potato starch is what ensures golden edges (with an audible crunch!) and a fluffy center. Sour cream and applesauce are traditional accompaniments but you can sub in Greek yogurt or your favorite chutney, add some chili crisp or hot sauce, or serve them alongside your morning eggs. —Jaia Clingham-David, former research fellow
It seems like the internet is caught in an Ina Garten loop right now—her Brownie Pudding has reached true virality. After watching video after video with my sibling, we were peculiarly craving a dessert we’d never had before, so, naturally, we had to make it. Scribbling down adjustments on a sticky note, we corrected the yield to serve two. Instead of using an electric mixer to beat the egg and sugar together until pale (a step that guarantees a soufflé-like crackle), we whisked by hand, taking turns when one of us got a cramp. A little flour, cocoa powder, and butter later, and it was ready for the water bath and oven. Crisp, gooey, and molten, the recipe was absolutely worth the hype. —Nina Moskowitz, associate editor, cooking
We had some friends over for dinner and I made all sorts of dishes. Arguably too many. Crudités with romesco. Cheesy walnut gougères. Double-mushroom galette. A big salad with fresh horseradish grated on top (try this). An oversized crème brûlée. Excellent, each one! But the thing I keep thinking about is the app I added last-minute, when I became convinced there wasn’t enough food. (My husband thought I was joking. I was not.) Oeufs mayonnaise: Boil eggs (I like 10 minutes for a firmer yolk). Peel. Slice in half. Dollop with a mix of mayo and Dijon mustard. Plunk a cornichon on top. Voila! Utterly chic for a gathering, yet easy enough for a desk snack. —Emma Laperruque, director of cooking
New year, new waffle maker! Finally equipped to make my breakfast dreams come true, I set about mixing up food director Chris Morocco’s Yeasted Waffle batter. Tangy buttermilk and instant yeast give the recipe a complex, bready taste, and an overnight rise makes for both a simpler morning and perfectly crisp waffles. My family adds nutmeg to nearly every baked good we make, so I did add a few grates of the warming spice, along with a splash of vanilla extract, to my batter. We went in a butter, syrup, and berries direction (versus Chris’s savory eggs and chili crisp suggestion) and were delighted by the lightly crunchy shell and eggy interior of each waffle. A 10/10 rating for holding pools of salty butter and juicy blueberries without immediately going soggy. —Kelsey Jane Youngman, senior service editor
After over four years of tasting all sorts of chicken recipes in the Test Kitchen, this one from cookbook author Diana Yen is an uncontested favorite. It’s always highly requested by my parents, so we made it as our first home cooked dinner in the new year. The chicken thighs marinate in coconut milk, lime juice, and fish sauce and roast in the same pan with cabbage—this time around, we used a mixture of baby bok choy and kale to empty out the fridge. Delicious at its core, you’ll want to spoon up every last drop of the sauce with rice. But taste aside, it’s worth making alone for the coconutty, aromatic smell that’ll perfume your entire kitchen. —Kate Kassin, editorial operations manager
January 2
Looking at the publication date on food director Chris Morocco’s Loaded Sweet Potatoes made me realize I’ve been making this recipe regularly for seven years. If that isn’t a ringing endorsement! For such a simple list of ingredients (sweet potatoes, lentils, citrus, nuts, feta, cilantro), there is truly outstanding earthy-sweet flavor. Chris uses peanuts, but I’ve made the toasty dressing with walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, almonds, and even sunflower seeds—all are wonderful. —Rebecca Firkser, Test Kitchen editor
Quick, veggie-heavy stir-fries are on constant rotation in my house. I usually improvise one for dinner at least three times a week. But I never thought to add leftover cranberry sauce until senior Test Kitchen editor Jesse Szewczyk, started developing this Sweet-and-Sour Cranberry Chicken Stir-Fry for our Thanksgiving issue. He uses the jellied variety to create a speedy, glossy glaze for green beans and chicken, along with garlic, ginger, and sesame oil to balance out all that tang with grounding savory flavor. Well, folks, it’s a winner. And it took me less than a half hour to make, like every good weeknight dinner should. —Kelsey Jane Youngman, senior service editor
Salad Freak by Jess Damuck is one of my most used cookbooks by far. It is organized intuitively—which is to say, by season. There is burrata with peas and preserved lemon in the spring; charred corn with Halloumi cheese and chili crisp in the summer; kabocha with purple cabbage and fish sauce in the fall; and, the one I fantasize about all year, chicories with citrus and turmeric-tahini in the winter. That’s what I made last weekend, as a feel-good dinner to cap off a day spent eating raclette, raclette, and more raclette with friends. It’s bitter from the crisp leaves (I used endive in lieu of radicchio), full of juicy citrus, and amenable to whatever nuts and seeds you have around (this time, I did toasted pecans and sunflower seeds). A total delight. And one of the rare things that makes me look forward to winter. —Emma Laperruque, associate director of cooking
Whenever somebody asks me what my favorite thing to cook is, my answer is always the same: anything braised. Cozy and hands-off, it’s the perfect technique to call on whenever the temperature drops below freezing. So on a frigid night this week, I made my colleague Shilpa Uskokovic’s Creamy Cider-Braised Chicken and Leeks. Chicken legs are not only a cheap cut of meat, but one that’s prime for slow cooking—after just 40 minutes in the oven, the meat becomes tender and shreddy. Cooked in a tangy-sweet apple cider sauce bolstered with crème fraîche, you’ll want crusty bread for dipping. —Jesse Szewczyk, senior Test Kitchen editor
Looking for a crowd-pleasing dish to make for a holiday party, I turned to deputy food editor Hana Asbrink’s Sticky Chocolate Cake, an amazingly gooey decadence that reminds me of a molten lava cake. The nutty brown butter complements rich cocoa and bittersweet chocolate, creating an impressively complex flavor. Paired with my friend’s batch of coquito, this cake made for a stunning holiday treat. —Jaia Clingham-David, research fellow
