Three Things

Tonight's quick dinner, the winter salad report, another whirlwind New England road trip

Greetings eaters and readers! What’s for dinner tonight? I’m leaning towards Spicy Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Greens (above, page 138 of The Weekday Vegetarians, or here for a similar version) because I haven’t gone food shopping in a while and, as you know, this will forever be my default can-to-table dinner option. In other news, I’ve started watching two promising series — The Last of Us on HBO (think Walking Dead vibes, I’m bonding with the kids over it) and Ramy — I know I’m late to the party here, but Ramy Youssef was so funny on Conan’s podcast that I was finally convinced to queue it up. That’s all I got by way of throat-clearing this week, so here are your Three Things…

1. The Winter Salad Report

When I’m cooking dinner (or writing recipes), my default mode for rounding out the meal with something fresh is to just “add a green salad.” This works fine for most of the year, but what about during the dregs of winter — like now — when it feels like the only available greens are bagged or blah or very much lacking in the flavor department? Here’s what I say to that: Who was the one who decided the base of a salad had to be a green leaf anyway? Instead of defaulting to Bibb or spinach or romaine, what else could we toss with vinaigrette for that reliably bright hit on the plate? Last week, for my Cup of Jo column, I asked three favorite recipe developers — Kay Chun, Hetty McKinnon, and Susan Spungen — to weigh in on this pressing topic. Here are their genius takes on the leafless salad.

Along the same lines, I’ve gotten really into shoving whatever vegetables I’ve got into a 400°F oven soon after breakfast so I have something hearty and healthy waiting for me by lunch time. (Perks of working from home, yes, I know.) Here are three recent winners, including Roasted Eggplant & Tomatoes with Tahini Dressing (above) and…

…Crispy Japanese Sweet Potatoes with Lemon-Yogurt, Scallions, and Dukkah.

2. Whirlwind Road Trip: Providence, R.I.

We had the good fortune to visit our friends Naria and Peter in Providence, R.I. this weekend and even though we were only there for about nine non-sleeping hours, we somehow have lots to report in the eating and feasting and general good-living department (ngl this is a big reason why we love them). We met in the late afternoon at Ceremony, an Asian-inspired coffee and tea house, picked up some snacks and matcha “sipping” hot chocolates to keep us warm while we swung by the hoppin’ local bookstore and strolled around Brown University’s campus. We briefly entertained going out to dinner (Persimmon and New Rivers were the top restaurant contenders, pre-approved by part-time PVD resident and food writer Michael Ruhlman) but ended up at Naria and Peter’s house. If this sounds like some kind of concession, let me assure you it absolutely was not. In their hands, we are always ridiculously well-fed. We kicked off the night with Barr Hill gin-based cocktails (remember our old fave Bee’s Knees?), oysters right from Narragansett Bay (via Fearless Fish) and a delicious spread for crackers that Naria made by tossing chopped raw tuna with minced scallions and a tiny bit of soy sauce. Dinner was David Chang’s legendary Bo Ssam (warning possible paywall; it’s also in his book Momofuku) with a sliced citrus salad (grapefruit and cara caras) topped with chopped olives, pistachios, chilies, oil and sherry vinegar. In the morning, after a wintry walk on Barrington town’s beach (above) and before heading out of town, we grabbed coffee and pastries at Oak Bakeshop, a “Jewish-ish” bakery with excellent coffee, babka, rugelach, even hamentaschen. Whew, that was fun, Providence! Hope to be back soon!

3. Have Cookie Dough, Will Travel

P.S. My only responsibility for the Providence weekend was to bring dessert, so I wrapped a roll of homemade cookie dough in parchment paper and stashed it in a cooler with some local milk for the drive. We sliced-and-baked them during clean-up and sat around the kitchen counter, watching the Giants game and dipping them in the cold milk. (So wholesome, as my daughter later noted.) Originally I planned to bring Jacques Torres chocolate chip cookie dough, like my friend John did for me a few years ago, but I forgot that the dough has to rest for 24 hours before baking, so I just went with my go-to. (You’ll have to scroll down; replace candies with 3.5 ounces total of chopped semi-sweet chocolate.) In my opinion, just about any cookie tastes spectacular when it’s right out of the oven and chased down with milk.

Attn: Subscribers!

This Friday is my second installment of Dinner Parties on Autopilot. I realize I change the name every time I bring it up, but you get the idea: A complete menu, from starters to mains to desserts, including recipes, game plan (when to do what), and shopping lists. Last month’s Menu was the Please Everyone Dinner Party. This one is probably going to the menu I have without a doubt made the most often for guests over the years. It’s an excellent meal to have in the bank. Subscribe if you don’t want to miss out.

Thanks as always for your support!

Jenny