Three Things

Baking brands the pros love, a simple poached salmon dinner, the best cookbooks of the season.

Greetings eaters and readers! What’s for dinner this week? The kids will all be home from college as of tomorrow, and I’m cueing up some matzoh ball soup for our first official homecoming meal. I also hit H Mart to pick up ingredients for the chili oil wontons on the cover of The Woks of Life cookbook — how amazing do they look? — and I’m thinking that might be a good project for the weekend. Here are your Three Things…

photo: Susan Spungen

1. Before You Make All Those Holiday Cookies…

Unlike the staples I cook with — Trader Joe’s 100% Greek Kalamata Olive Oil, my Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, Grey Poupon Dijon, etc. — I somehow, after all these years, don’t have the same kind of brand loyalty to the staples I bake with. So I thought this year, in anticipation of all the holiday cookie swapping, I’d ask two baking pros, Dorie Greenspan and Cheryl Day, what brands of flour, butter, and chocolate they order in bulk or reach for at their Main Street supermarket. Greenspan, a legend in the food writing world, is the author of, most recently Baking with Dorie (and the all-things baking Substack newsletter, xoxoDorie); and Cheryl Day is the James Beard-Award winning owner of Savannah’s Back in the Day Bakery and author of, most recently Cheryl Day's Treasury of Southern Baking. Not surprisingly their preferences mostly lined up. As Greenspan says, "Rather than saying “best” ingredient, I think of these as my favorites, since when it comes to flavor, we’ve all got our idea of “best." Head over to Dinner: A Love Story for their picks.

P.S. A Special Guest!

As long as we’re on the topic of holiday baking, I’m thrilled to announce that Susan Spungen, the “Babe Ruth of Cookies,” the woman behind countless holiday covers and collections for Gourmet, Bon Appetit and The New York Times over the past decade or two, will be joining us on Friday for an all-things holiday baking hotline. She’ll be taking your questions between 11:00am ET and 2:00pm ET on Friday, December 16 (I’ll remind you, don’t worry) and I for one will be asking Is it OK to give your Twice-Baked Pecan Shortbread shown above to everyone I know? (She also writes a wonderful substack newsletter, Susanality, where you can get that recipe.) Reminder that hotlines are for subscribers only. See you on Friday!

2. Dinner of the Week: Poached Salmon with Lentils

You know what’s really good and also really easy? Poached salmon. Last week, I tossed and flaked a filet into my old reliable lentil salad. Here’s the how-to:

Lentil Salad with Poached Salmon

First poach your salmon: Add 6 cups of water to a large, deep, straight-sided skillet or heavy pot. Add half an onion, a few carrots, one stalk of celery, a generous pinch of salt and three or four grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer and add 1 1/2 pounds salmon (cut into three or four pieces) The water should just cover the fish. Simmer about 5 minutes, until just cooked through. Remove and let cool.

1 1/2 cups brown or French lentils
2 1/2 – 3 cups liquid (vegetable stock, chicken stock, beef stock, water, or any combination of them) or enough to cover lentils by about an inch
1 bunch scallions (white and light green parts), minced (or red onion, which is all I had)
3 tablespoons chopped bell pepper, any color, I like red (or more to taste)
1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
fresh thyme, dill, or finely chopped parsley
1 1/2 pounds poached salmon, flaked (see instructions above)
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
little less than 1/4 cup vinegar (I used white balsamic, but you can use tarragon, red wine, regular balsamic)
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper

In a medium pot, boil lentils in broth-water combo, then reduce heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes. While lentils are cooking, make your dressing by whisking together mustard, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. When lentils are tender, but still holding their shape (taste a few to determine tenderness) drain in a colander. Toss lentils while warm with scallions, carrot, pepper, herbs, salmon and vinaigrette.

Protein Swaps: Instead of poached salmon, try two links cooked, crumbled sweet Italian sausages, fried eggs or 7-minute eggs drizzled with chili oil.

3. Best Cookbooks of the Season

Under the category of “Nice Work if You Can Get it” I had the privilege of cooking my way through some of the best cookbooks of the season — you can read about my favorites over on Cup of Jo, keeping in mind, of course, that cookbooks make great holiday gifts.

So would this one!

Also just a quick reminder that the 2022 Dinner: A Love Story Holiday Gift Guide is ready for you. In keeping with tradition, I focused on gifts for the eaters and readers in your life — aka moms, dads, sisters, sons, daughters, parents, brothers, teachers, besties, the friend who has everything, the coworker whose name you plucked from the Secret Santa cap. Everyone. Check it out and cross a few off the list.

Like what you’ve read on the Dinner: A Love Story Newsletter? Think a friend might also? Consider a gift subscription — just press this little orange button.

Have a great week!

Jenny