A Very Slight Shift
A slow roasted pork choose your own adventure, my kids' favorite salmon, honey pizza, and chicken parm.
It feels like we’re right on the edge of spring, walking that ridgeline between frigid and thawing. My brain hasn’t switched to spring food yet, it’s still too cold for peas and asparagus, but it’s nice to have some warmth seeping in.
A few quick housekeeping things: if you’ve already subscribed, and especially if you’ve upgraded to paid, THANK YOU. It’s been about six weeks of paid posts, so I’m making this one free. Cook everything! Send it around to everyone you know who could use a little dinner support. Below is a calendar of the recipes I’ve published so far so you can refer back and see what’s been posted each week. I know Substack is a little cumbersome to switch to paid, but if you do, you’ll have access to everything. Lastly, if you like this newsletter, please consider hearting (❤️) it at the bottom, it helps spread the word. Thank you thank you thank you. Now let’s get cooking…
Make Ahead: Slow Roasted Pork Choose Your Own Adventure
This slow roasted pork is a revelation. It’s real magic is that it can be anything. Above, it’s the topping for another rice bowl, but it shines just as bright as a taco with some avocado and salsa, in a lettuce cup, as a filling for empanadas, mixed with barbecue sauce for sandwiches, the list goes on. It takes about five minutes of prep and then a long, slow hang in the oven, and it comes out perfect every time. It keeps well for three or four days in the fridge and up to a couple of months in the freezer. It’s also kind of a cheater Momofuku bo Ssam. Rather than seasoning the meat 24 hours in advance and cooking the pork whole, I cut it into smaller pieces and season just before cooking (less planning required), so you wind up with a better meat to crust ratio. It cooks more quickly, and none of the pork is dry. Really, it’s great, give it a go.
Quick: Go-To Salmon, Rice, and Stir Fry
I’m sorry, I didn’t get a picture of this once it was cooked (ravenous children), but this is my most standard salmon. My husband prefers the sesame crusted version, so sometimes I make both (yay for happy customers). My stir fries are always a wing it situation, throwing in whatever’s in the fridge with a little garlic and ginger (I’m loving TJ’s frozen ginger cubes) and a dash of soy sauce and sesame oil at the end. The only trick is adding the vegetables in the reverse order of how fast they cook.
Wild Card: Chicken Parmesan
Pizza chicken for the win. My favorite part about this recipe is that you can make the chicken cutlets whenever and then just top with sauce and cheese when you’re 15 minutes out.
Sheet Pan: Honey Pizza (aka Flabreads with Cheese, Honey, and Thyme)
I hesistated to include this recipe for Honey Pizza, aka Olive Oil Flatbreads with Honey and Thyme, since in my mind it’s not really a complete dinner on its own. It always feels like it needs something else to go with it and for us that’s usually a soup like above (recipe posted last week) or a hearty salad. I get that if you’re putting the effort into making something, you want it to be a full meal. I say serve it with whatever is easy—soup from the freezer, chicken nuggets, some salami and olives and carrot sticks. You could also make it a little heartier by topping it with some prosciutto and arugula after it’s baked. All that said, it’s so delicious. My daughter asked for it the other day and I have a rule that if someone in my family specifically requests something (reasonable) for dinner, I’ll make it—it helps relieve ME of the mental load of dinner. I left off the thyme here because my girls demanded it, but it’s better with it, its earthiness is such a nice complement to the honey.
