The start of a new year comes with so much excitement and energy for a clean slate but in my experience (I don’t think I’m alone on this one) that refreshed and revived feeling doesn’t come until spring. TBH, it’s been a rough start with my home, office (and life) in disarray because of the renovation. Cookbooks have always been a source of inspiration for me, I get lost in the words and foot notes of the chef’s and their path to success.
It sounds like a cliché, but I feel it every year–spring is miraculous. To watch as the dreary landscape covered in frost, snow, and mud, transforms into this impossibly fresh and green new world is soul-stirring.
Joshua McFadden, Six Seasons
One of my go-to guides on seasonal cooking is Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden, when I thumbed through the pages and landed on this quote which captures this transitional time. While I’m still a few weeks out from being able to cook, I feel a renewed desire to cook and create from my kitchen, a fresh start for spring.
What to shop for:
Cooking with peak season produce is just better all around: nutritional value, produce travels shorter distances (lesser environmental impact), and flavor potency that makes your job of chef for the day, easier. My goal for these seasonal guides is for you to be able to index back to them next year.
Artichokes
Asparagus
Bitter Greens & Lettuces: Endive, Radicchio, Dandelion, Butter lettuce
Fava Beans, English Peas, Sugar Snap Peas, Pea Shoots
Herbs: Chives, Mint, Sorrel
Leeks, Spring Onions
Nettles
Radishes
Ramps
Pantry & Fridge Staples:
The simplest way to feeling more comfortable in the kitchen is having a well stocked pantry and fridge. When the pang of hunger strikes, friends show up at your door with a bottle of wine, or the excitement (then overwhelm) of hosting a dinner party. Throwing together a lazy-fancy meal feels achievable because things are within arms reach – not another errand.
P.S. I also advise that you should never grocery shop and cook on the same day if possible.
Pantry:
Beans dried & canned: chickpeas, cannellini
Grains: short-grain brown rice, Jasmin or Basmati white rice, couscous, farro
Nut & Seed Butters: almond, peanut, cashew butter, tahini
Oils: extra virgin olive oil, sunflower oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, ghee, sesame oil, toasted sesame oil, chili oil
Vinegars & Acids: apple cider, balsamic, champagne, red wine, sherry, rice wine, coconut amino acid, soy or tamari
Misc: fish sauce, chili crisp, red curry paste, tomato paste, anchovies (I like the paste)
Pasta: spaghetti, penne, fusili or orecchiette, orzo
Peppers: whole tellicherry pepper corns (+grinder), red chili flakes
Salts: fine sea salt, kosher salt, flaky sea salt
Spices: Evermill makes the best spices on the market, I also love their jar system and ease of refills.
Stock: Chicken or Vegetable
Fridge:
Tailor this list to your palette but I have found these to be essential to cooking on the fly, or when I undoubtedly forget something a the grocery store.
Butter: sea salted and unsalted (store extra in the freezer)
Cheeses: parmigiano reggiano, pecorino, gruyere or comte, feta or goat
Creme Fraiche
Citrus: lemons, limes, and/or oranges (they are almost all interchangeable so in a pinch you can swap in
Herbs (pick your favorites): Basil, Chives or Green Onion, Cilantro, Dill, Flat-leaf Parsley
Vegetables (keep it seasonal as best as you can but I typically always have these on hand): leafy greens (arugula, lacinto kale, mixed lettuces or bitter green), broccoli or broccolini, potatoes (fingerling or roasting potatoes, russet)
Freezer:
Bone-in Chicken “quarters” (light or dark)
Ground Lamb, Beef or Pork
Hanger Steaks
Fish Stock (the good stuff from the fish market)
Butter
Pastry Dough
Parmesan Rinds (more on this later)
Leftover pasta water cubes
Lazy-Fancy Recipes
By the power of votes on Instagram you want a weekly recipe, or two. Admittedly, I’ve always felt the need and desire to tackle more complex recipes to inspire and show you that you can do it at home. But after a recent 8hr day in Paris, strolling around solo and disconnected from social media, I realized what we both want is lazy-fancy recipes that satiate in every sense of the word, and why I trademarked the term. This how I felt eating the fanciest grilled cheese I ever had pictured above, with a glass of wine.
Torta Pasqualina
Here’s the thing with cooking seasonally aside from the benefits mentioned earlier in this article: there’s a comfort and deliciousness of coming back to a dish season after season (and abstaining in-between).
For many families this Torta Pasqualina is the signal of spring, it’s a classic Italian savory tart served on Easter. The seasonal greens are mixed with pecorino, parmigiano reggiano, fresh ricotta and eggs are baked into a buttery, flaky pastry crust. But there is no need to wait until spring, I could eat this year round. I love a savory tart for a house full of weekend guests, or it’s an easy meal with a simple green salad, and a crisp glass of wine.
Ingredients
makes 1, 9 inch deep-dish tart
2 balls of basic pastry dough
6 eggs, 1 extra for the egg wash
3 bunches of green chard
1 bunch spinach
1 leek
½ c pecorino romano
½ c parmigiano reggiano
¾ c ricotta cheese, drained of excess water
Equipment: 9-inch deep dish tart tin with removable bottom, food processor (optional)
Method
Preheat the oven to 350º
Butter the tart tin and roll the dough to ¼ in thickness. Press one sheet into the tin and reserve the other sheet to top the tart, trim off the excess dough. Keep the dough/tart chilled until ready to use.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and blanch the green chard and spinach, roughly 2-4 minutes. Strain the greens from the water, and press into a dish towel to remove excess water. Then chop finely.
Rinse and dice the leek and place in a large bowl with the chard, spinach and cheeses. Stir two of the six eggs into the filling. Then spoon the mixture into the chilled tart tin, evenly distributing.
Using the back of a spoon make four deep divots in the filling large enough to hold an egg. Crack one egg into each of the four divots. Then use the second dough sheet to cover the tart. Press the edges into the rim of the tart and trim the excess dough off.
Whisk the extra egg into a small bowl and brush evenly onto the top of the tart.
Bake at 350º for 40-50 minutes, until golden brown and flakey.
Orange Blossom Pistachio Scones (GF)
I love when a recipe fools a person who vows to despise all gluten-free substitutions, and understandably so. I eat everything, but I’m also a 37 year old woman who cares about my body composition, the energy and feeling food gives me (and candidly fitting into my wardrobe). So when I’m out at restaurants or traveling, I indulge. When I’m cooking at home I take mindful steps that support me feeling good – like mastering the gluten-free scone (and cake).
One of the best parts about this recipe is it can be tweaked seasonally, in winter I make Orange Cranberry, for early spring this unique Orange Blossom & Pistachio scone is perfect for an Easter brunch.
Pro-tip: when baking, measuring ingredients on a food scale is more accurate and will result in superior baking, this is even more true for GF baking.
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