Here’s what our editors and writers are making in their own kitchens.
Zoë Burnett / BuzzFeed
1. Nigella Lawson’s Chicken and Pea Traybake
Bobbi Lin / food52.com
I have high standards for dinner recipes. I want them to come together in about an hour (including my slow prep, as I watch TV), use the least number of dishes possible, and still be stunningly delicious so I can look forward to dinner as much on day four as I do on day two. (The struggles of cooking for one.)
This recipe delivers. You just dump frozen peas and haphazardly-sliced leeks on a roasting pan, mix 'em up with garlic, vermouth (this is key!), olive oil, and herbs of your choice, top with chicken thighs, and pop the whole thing in the oven. Forty five minutes later, you have a glorious, caramelized feast of veggies and chicken — trust me, you haven't tasted peas until you've tried caramelized peas. Who knew?
The recipe actually calls for another 30-minute bake after the initial 45 minutes, but in my 400-degree oven, neither the chicken nor the peas and leeks needed any more time. Was that because I baked the recipe in halves, once on Monday and again on Wednesday, or that the pan was stoneware and slightly smaller than required, or some combo of those? Probably. Maybe the extra 30 minutes would've made more caramelized peas, but honestly I'm too impatient to know. And I still devoured every last little pea, night after night. — Natalie Brown
Get the recipe here.
2. Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble
Marie Telling / BuzzFeed
There is no fruit combo I love more than rhubarb with strawberries. It's so synonymous with spring for me that just thinking about it brings me joy. Every year, once rhubarb and strawberry season kicks in, I make sure to bake at least one thing with both fruits.
This year I didn't feel like baking a whole cake or a pie, so I picked this crumble from Smitten Kitchen. The fruit filling is easy enough: Just chop the rhubarb and strawberries, and mix them with some lemon juice, sugar, and cornstarch. The topping is a pretty classic crumble: a mix of flour, sugar, and butter. Pop the whole thing in the oven for about 45 minutes and it's ready.
I made a quick whipped cream to go with it, but it'd be really good with a scoop of ice cream too. It was just as delicious straight out of the oven as it was cold, the next day. — Marie Telling
Get the recipe here.
3. Cavolo Nero Sauce
Jesse Szewczyk / BuzzFeed
One of the very first dates my boyfriend and I went on was to an Italian restaurant called Mercato Osteria & Enoteca. It was about an hour from my campus and located inside a small house in the sleepy town of Redhook, New York. He was in pastry school and I was in culinary school, so our dates always centered around food. The meal was good, with standard plates of mozzarella, pastas, and bread — but the one thing that stuck out to us was this vibrant green sauce served with gnudi. It looked almost like a creamy pesto, but it tasted insanely savory — as if it was made with mushrooms or cheese. The texture was velvety and perfectly smooth — we couldn't stop talking about it the whole drive home.
Years later, I came across the exact recipe online for the sauce, so I made it for our anniversary. Turns out, it's actually made with kale, dried porcini mushrooms, butter, onion, and stock — that's it! I went ahead and made it and served it over pasta, and my boyfriend and I once again fell in love with it. To this day, it's our favorite sauce and we make it every few months. — Jesse Szewczyk
Get the recipe here.
4. Vegetable Bimbimbap
Hannah Loewentheil / BuzzFeed
Bibimbap is one of my favorite things to order when I go out for Korean food, but I've never thought to make it at home mostly because it always seemed intimidating. But when I finally gave it a try, I was shocked at how easy it was.
I made a quick batch of pickled carrots and cucumbers (ready in 15 minutes), while I sautéed spinach and mushrooms in sesame oil. Then I put everything on a bed of brown rice with a fried egg and Sriracha on top. It was SO good, especially when you stir the egg into the rice. I'll definitely be making this recipe again when I'm craving a more adventurous dinner than my typical roast chicken or pasta routine. — Hannah Loewentheil
Get the recipe here.
5. Homemade English Muffins
Pierce Abernathy / BuzzFeed
English muffins are a super nostalgic food for me. Anytime I was sick or hungry after school, I would toast up an English muffin and slather it with peanut butter and jelly. I don’t think there is a better bread for the classic combination.
I first saw this recipe as a video from Bon Appetit on YouTube. I've been trying to build my skills as a home baker/bread maker and thought this would be great to add to my repertoire.
Of course, I started the recipe before making sure I had every ingredient, so I had to substitute the buttermilk for the same amount of milk + a little lemon juice. I also ended up using a coarse polenta-like cornmeal for dusting,which actually perfectly complemented the pillowy center of the muffins.
What I love about this recipe is that it doesn't require an oven. You cook them right on your stove top. I used a cast iron, but a griddle works the best. The dough is super wet and a little tough to work with, so I'd definitely recommend using a metal spatula to carefully transfer the proofed dough onto the griddle. Once on the heat, they are ready in no time.
Store-bought English muffins are nothing compared to fresh ones right off the griddle. These are great with butter, jam, eggs, but of course the best topping is peanut butter and jelly. This recipe satisfied all my nostalgic cravings and I will definitely make it again. — Pierce Abernathy
Get the recipe here.
6. Chewy Black Licorice Chocolate Brownies
Jesse Szewczyk / BuzzFeed
I came across this brownie recipe several months ago and saved it. As a black licorice and chocolate lover, I knew I had to make them. The only thing holding me back is that the recipe calls for licorice root powder — which I didn't have. But luckily, during a trip to my favorite spice store, I randomly saw it and remembered the recipe — so I picked it up.
Now a warning: this recipe is not for black licorice haters. The flavor is aggressive, and if you don't truly love the flavor, you probably won't love these brownies. But if you love licorice, you're in for a treat. The flavor blends with the dark chocolate beautifully and makes the most delicious brownies I have ever had.
I actually gave one of these brownies to my coworker Michelle (a black licorice lover) and she said it was the best black licorice dessert she has ever had. So if you love the flavor, I would 100% recommend. — Jesse Szewczyk
Get the recipe here.
7. Chickpea and Fennel Ratatouille
Ciera Velarde / BuzzFeed
I'm always doing tray bakes as my meal prep for the week, so when I found this recipe for ratatouille that you can prepare completely in the oven, I was instantly intrigued. Even though the recipe calls for certain vegetables, you can pretty much use any vegetables you have on hand; I added mushrooms, for example, and when I make this again, I will probably leave out the fennel because the licorice taste just wasn't for me.
The only super essential vegetable in this recipe is the Roma tomatoes because the water that comes out of them when cooking becomes the sauce. I did make a few changes to the recipe to pump up the flavor: When drizzling the oil on the vegetables before cooking, I also drizzled some balsamic vinegar on them to add some acidity. And when I added the chickpeas to the tray, I also added a half cup of dry red wine, which brought out all the flavors in the best way possible.
The recipe says it makes four servings, but I ended up with about six servings, so I was able to eat this throughout the entire week! The chickpeas give a good amount of protein, and you can serve this with quinoa, whole wheat pasta, or rice to make it more substantial. If you're looking for a new vegan staple to add to your meal plan routine or just want a yummy, plant-based meal that will fill you up, this is a perfect recipe to try out. — Ciera Velarde
Get the recipe here.
8. Pasta all’Arrabbiata
Marie Telling / BuzzFeed
When I sent the above picture to my mom (yes, I often send pictures of my meals to my mom and she loves it), she made fun of me and said that this was just a plain bowl of pasta with tomato sauce. She was wrong.
First of all, there is nothing wrong with a plain bowl of pasta with red sauce. Second, there is nothing plain about this bowl. Pasta all’arrabbiata is chili-spiked and brings in the kind of heat you don't necessarily expect from an Italian dish.
I modified the recipe a little, halving the tomato paste (1/2 cup seemed like a lot) and using one and half teaspoon of red pepper flakes instead half a teaspoon of crushed red peppers. Oh, and I also added a teaspoon of harissa at the end (sue me, Italy) because I wanted an extra kick. It was delicious and will be part of my dinner rotation from now on. — Marie Telling
Get the recipe here.
9. Savory Cauliflower Cake
Marie Telling / BuzzFeed
I was looking for something to cook last Sunday and thought this Yotam Ottolenghi recipe could be a fun project. Plus, I knew it would last me a few days, which is always a win when you're trying to save time and money.
The process is quite involved and takes a little while, so I wouldn't make this for a quick weeknight dinner. You have to soften the cauliflower florets in boiling water for about 15 minutes, and cook the onions and rosemary in some olive oil until translucent. Then, you basically make a savory cake batter, mixing eggs, flour, and baking powder with the onions, cauliflower, some parmesan, basil, and turmeric. You pour the mixture into a sesame-seeds coated cake pan, top the cake with onion rings, and bake for 45 minutes.
The result is like the love child between a savory bread and a Spanish tortilla. On top of being super delicious, it's very practical — cut a slice, wrap it in foil, and you can take it to work for lunch, or bring it for a picnic (no cutlery required!). It also tastes better the next day, so it's the perfect meal prep recipe. — Marie Telling
Get the recipe here.
10. Brownie Crinkle Cookies
Jesse Szewczyk / BuzzFeed
Edd (the creator of this recipe) was teasing photos of these cookies for weeks before he published the recipe. Every time I saw them on Instagram, they always made me envious. The tops were perfectly shiny, beautifully crinkled — I knew I needed to make them. So the moment the recipe went up, I made them.
The batter isn't that hard to make. You basically melt some chocolate, then add a few ingredients to it to make a soft dough. (The dough will be really soft, but this is OK.) The trick at this point it to work fast and bake them all at once. This is what gives them their shiny top and brownie-like texture. Once baked, they become beautifully chewy and (IMO) even better than brownies. — Jesse Szewczyk
Get the recipe here.
11. Tequila Mockingbird co*cktail
Dasani Sparkling
I go to a lot of amazing events, but it’s very rare that I am so impressed with something that I actually reach out to the hosts and ask for the recipe — but I did with this co*cktail. I love margaritas so when someone does one right, I want to know how!
This “Tequila Mockingbird” co*cktail was the perfect combo of salty, tart, and not too sweet. It was a Dasani event, so they topped the whole thing off with Dasani’s Sparkling Pear Kiwi which added a really nice flavor and some even nicer bubbles, but you could probably use something else and get a great result too. It was SO yummy! — Elena Garcia
Here's the recipe:
TEQUILA MOCKINGBIRD
.5 oz Ginger Syrup
.5 oz Lime Juice
.5 oz Pineapple
.5 oz Velvet Falernum
1 oz Tequila
1 Dash Boston Bitters
DASANI Sparkling Pear Kiwi (or similar)
Shake, then fold in sparkling beverage, and pour into a salted rim glass over ice.
12. Malfatti with Pancetta and Cherry Tomatoes
Jesse Szewczyk / BuzzFeed
I love pasta/carbs/dumplings — basically anything starchy. If I could eat one thing for the rest of my life, that would be it: Give me all the gnocchi, spaghetti, and agnolotti I can handle.
So when I saw this recipe for malfatti (which is a dumpling I have never heard of) I was intrigued. Turns out, malfatti is just a fancy word for rustic cheese gnocchi. To make it, you just mix up some ricotta, grated parmesan, an egg, and some flour — then roll it into a log and cut it into pieces. Boil them until they float, and that's it! The easiest gnocchi I've ever made!
This recipe tosses them in a light sauce made with cherry tomatoes, pancetta, and grated parmesan. I went ahead and added some torn basil because I has some growing, but it's totally fine without. It was the perfect dinner for this warm-but-still-chilly weather — filling yet fresh. Next time I think I'll toss them in a vodka sauce — or even a pesto — or eat them by themselves. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ — Jesse Szewczyk
Get the recipe here.
