The Sassy Squid

Okay, this isn't the prettiest picture, but this was genuinely delicious and I wanted to share it before I made it again (and had the presence of mind to take nicer pictures). 

I love three cup chicken, but a lot of the recipes involve tons of oil or cutting the chicken across the bone into irregular pieces. This recipe from the Omnivore's Cookbook did a great job of making use of readily available chicken wings and a flavorful braise without too much oil. My husband gave it two thumbs up. 

Three Cup Chicken

• 2 lbs chicken wings
• 1/4 cup sesame oil
• 3-inch piece of ginger, thinly sliced
• 16 cloves of garlic, lightly smashed
• 6 dried chili peppers
• 1/3 cup Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 3 tbsp brown sugar, packed
• 1 bunch Thai basil, stems removed

For Thanksgiving, I made this trio of dips from Indian-ish that were as easy as tossing things into a blender and turning it on. We took them to my in-laws' (we had both been quarantining) where they went down a treat with my mother-in-law's freshly baked rosemary bread. 

My favorite dip out of the three was the lima bean and basil dip, which intrigued me as soon as I read that frozen lima beans were involved. I have never bought frozen lima beans in my life, but in they went in my shopping cart as soon as I saw the recipe. The dip is soooo delicious--like a thick creamy pesto. The next day I put it on a turkey and cheese sandwich, and it made the sandwich amazing. I can think of a million uses for this dip and will definitely be making it again. 

Lima Bean and Basil Dip

(Recipe from Indian-ish)

• 10 oz frozen or cooked lima beans (1 1/4 cups)
• 8 large fresh basil leaves 
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice (from about half a lime)

Is there anyone in this world who doesn't like butter chicken? Okay, maybe my husband. He had it once at a restaurant, wasn't a fan, and now won't touch it again. I may or may not have told him this was just an Indian chicken curry, and he ate it without complaints and got seconds. (If he's reading this: sorry, hon!)

This is a really nice recipe from MyHeartBeets, which is my favorite Indian food blog. I've since gotten her excellent cookbook, Indian Food Under Pressure, which also includes this easy Instant Pot recipe. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Instant Pot Butter Chicken

(Recipe very slightly adapted from Indian Food Under Pressure)

•  2 tbsp ghee
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp minced ginger
• 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into quarters
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1 15-oz can tomato sauce
• 2 green bell peppers, chopped in large pieces (I left this out)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk
• Pinch of dried fenugreek leaves (I left this out)

As classic and comforting as snickerdoodles are, I often get bored with them. Enter these cardamom currant snickerdoodles from Food52, which are fragrant with just the right amount of cardamom and just the right amount of tang because of the currants. I don't even really like soft cookies, but I love these. Last Christmas, I brought them into work and my attending was skeptical, but after one bite, quickly grabbed three more. This year my mother-in-law and I included them in our joint cookie boxes that we sent to family. They really are so good!

Cardamom Currant Snickerdoodles

(Recipe from Food52 Baking)

• 3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup plus 3 tbsp (235 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup (110 grams) packed brown sugar
• 2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground cardamom (make sure it's fragrant and not too old)
• 1 cup (225 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (75 grams) dried currants

For Thanksgiving, my mother-in-law and I teamed up to create two pies--a pumpkin pie and a Dutch apple pie. With one remaining small pie crust, 3 pears that happened to be lying around, and a little wedge of Brie that she dug out of her freezer, I threw together this little galette. It was a delicious little appetizer, but could also double as a dessert and cheese course, as it's both sweet and savory. I recommend brushing the galette at the end with some warmed up apricot jam, which I did not do as my mother-in-law didn't have any at her house, but would have really made this even better. 

Pear and Brie Galette

(Loosely adapted from Baking with the Good Hair)

• 1 prepared pie crust
• About 1.5 oz brie cheese, thinly sliced
• 3 Bartlett pears, thinly sliced
• Sparkling or demerara sugar
• Apricot jam (optional)

A couple of months ago (I know, I'm really behind), I cooked my way through Indian-ish (cookbook review to follow!), and this dish was one of our favorites. It's as simple as can be--you throw the fish in an Indian pickle mixture to marinate, and then pan-fry it a couple of hours later. It did require a trip to the Indian store to buy mango achar, but it was so worth it. The pan-fried fish was tender and flavorful with beautiful caramelized, crispy edges. The caramelized onions on top were a brilliant idea as well. I imagine this would be amazing as part of a fish taco/burrito or in a sandwich. Will make again next time we have tilapia!

Achari Fish 

(Recipe from Indian-ish by Priya Krishna)

• 1/2 cup mango achar packed in oil (I used Mother's Recipe brand, which Priya recommends)
• 4 tilapia fillets (1/2 lb each)
• 4 tsp and 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
• Kosher salt
• 1 large red onion, sliced into thin rings

I know, I know, the last installment of Cooking the Book featured Chrissy Teigen's first cookbook. And here we go again with her second. At the risk of sounding repetitive, it was just too much fun cooking from Cravings 1. Cravings 2 has the same charm, and before I knew it, I had cooked my way through quite a few recipes. But how do they stack up compared to the recipes from the first book? 

Pepper's Garlicky Bacon Scramble: 4/5 stars. Chrissy claims to have eaten this her whole life. Well this is proof that she must be blessed with a metabolism from the gods, because this sure is a decadent way to start the morning. I guess I'm not used to cooking my eggs with this much bacon fat, since I felt like the flavors were a bit muted as a result, but the garlic was a great addition. Overall, a decent recipe for eggs.

Cheesy Spicy Breakfast Hash: 3/5 stars. This was a total gutbomb. Very greasy, cheesy, and sinful. The potatoes never really crisped up, and the finished dish was literally dripping in oil. After I ate it, I could actually feel the acid reflux coming on. Cut down the amount of oil by half, and this would be much better. 

Salted Maple Granola: 5/5 stars. I've written about my love for this granola and shared the recipe on this blog already. This is the best granola my husband and I have ever had. If you make one recipe from this book, it has to be this one. This went in my heirloom recipe notebook. 

Roasted Butternut Squash and Pomegranate Salad with Garlicky Honey-Dijon Dressing: 5/5 stars. Even though I deviated quite a bit from the recipe, I can still say this is such a good salad. Chrissy really knows how to make salads you actually want to eat. The honey dijon dressing recipe is brilliant, and is my go-to salad dressing now. The dressing went in my heirloom recipe notebook. 

Tangy Herb and Sesame Slaw: 4/5 stars. While this isn't something I would necessarily make again in a hurry, it was good for what it was--a light, refreshing, crunchy slaw. Since my husband hates mayo, I always appreciate a non-mayo-based slaw. This one won't weigh you down, and it pairs well with the BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches in this same book.

Pulled BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches with Pineapple Slaw: 5/5 stars. Sweet, tender, barbecuey chicken. I mean, how can this be bad? This is a nice alternative to pulled pork, and we'd definitely make it again. I did not make the pineapple slaw. 

Kung Pao Roasted Broccoli: 3/5 stars. As someone who makes roasted broccoli on the regular, I was excited to try this, but I found it too aggressively salty to be a side dish. My husband didn't hate it, but I wasn't really a fan and would not make it again. 

Pad Thai Carbonara: 2/5 stars. I was so excited about this dish that I actually made it right when the cookbook came out. I can't even describe what made us hate it besides that we found the overall taste unpleasant. My husband refused to eat more than a few bites. I mustered up the effort to finish two bowls, but most of it ended up going in the trash. Sorry, Chrissy. 

Thai Fishcakes with Spicy Peanut Sauce: 3/5 stars. I have always wanted to make Thai fishcakes, and this recipe was really accessible. It ended up being fine, but I would have liked it to have a bit more flavor (more salt and more curry paste). The spicy peanut sauce really saved it

Red Chicken Curry: 4/5 stars. I've made a lot of Thai red curry dishes over the years. This was somewhere in the middle for me--not the best, but not bad either. My husband said this was just alright for him, but I would say it was better than just alright. 

Chicken and Dumplings: 4/5 stars. Similar to the red chicken curry, I've made a lot of renditions of chicken and dumplings. This was somewhere in the middle for me. I do have to say that the chicken was amazingly silky tender, and the technique of making a broth while simultaneously cooking the chicken for the chicken and dumplings is smart. I wanted a little bit more flavor in the end result, and the dumplings didn't have the texture I was looking for, so this was just 4 stars for me. 

Simple Skillet Broken Lasagna: 5/5 stars. This was a lot of work for something labeled as simple. However, the lasagna was very tasty, and the leftovers were even better.

Shake & Bake Chicken with Hot Honey: 3/5 stars. I had such high hopes for this, but the breading and chicken weren't as flavorful as I had hoped. I didn't feel like the hot honey added a whole lot either. This is the rare dish that my husband liked a lot more than I did.

Twitter's (and Uncle Mike's) Banana Bread: 4/5 stars. I made this even before the cookbook came out, when Chrissy's banana escapades were unfolding on Twitter. With the vanilla pudding mix and loads of chocolate chips and shredded coconut inside, it's an extremely decadent, very moist banana cake (I wouldn't even call it banana bread), perfect for people who don't normally like banana bread. It's over-the-top and classic Chrissy. My husband and I prefer regular banana bread, but we wouldn't turn this down either. 

Average Recipe Rating: 3.9/5 stars

Amazingly, this got the exact same average recipe rating as her last cookbook! It's a worthy sequel to the first, full of creative ideas and fun recipes that will make you want to run to your kitchen. There are lots of solid recipes to make in here, and two of the recipes went in my heirloom recipe book. Another great effort by the social media queen.

I'll update this as I continue to cook from it. Here are some recipes I'm looking forward to making next:

• Blueberry Cream Cheese Pancakes
• Popovers with Brie and Blackberry Jam
• Taters, Shrooms, and Peas with Parmesan Cream
• Pepper's Grilled Eggplant with Crispy Shallots
• Spicy Jammy Drummies
• Skillet Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies

Out of all of the great recipes in Chrissy Teigen's second cookbook, this one was our clear favorite. I've never had a granola like this before, and I doubt you have either. It's the perfect addictive balance of sweet and salty, and the maple flavor is so pronounced. I've made a couple of granola recipes since this one, and my husband keeps saying none are as good as this, so I guess this is going to be our standby. 

I've made a couple of changes, including cutting down the sugar and salt a tiny bit since we never have the unsweetened kind of shredded coconut. I also left out the dried fruit, since we tried the granola both with and without, and we both liked it without the dried fruit more. 

Salted Maple Granola

(Adapted from Cravings: Hungry for More by Chrissy Teigen)

• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 2/3 cup sweetened finely shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp kosher salt

My family is northern Chinese, so growing up, we had dumplings just about once a week. Throughout the week, I'd heat them up in the microwave, or my mom would pan-fry them. They were a constant in our fridge, and I never got sick of them. 

Every Chinese family has their own dumpling recipe, but I am convinced that my mom's dumplings are the best. They are meaty from the pork, briny from the shrimp, umami from the oyster sauce, and juicy from napa cabbage. Despite this, I've never been able to get my own dumplings just right. Because my mom never measures things and just adds a little bit of this and a little bit of that to taste, it's exceedingly hard to get a recipe out of her. 

Determined to make dumplings that tasted like hers, I wrote down a list of the ingredients she uses and my eyeballed approximate "measurements." Then I looked up dumpling recipes from 10 different Chinese food blogs and made an Excel sheet to more accurately narrow down the real measurements. I'm happy to report that the crowd-sourced reverse-engineered technique worked. The last time I made dumplings, my husband happily declared that these tasted just like my mom's. 

So without further ado, here is my interpretation of my mom's dumpling recipe. My only word of caution is to adjust the amount of salt to your taste. I like my food on the saltier side, so I tend towards 1 tsp of salt, but start out at 3/4 tsp and try it before stuffing your dumplings. I take a tiny bit of the filling, microwave it for 15 seconds on a plate, then taste it. Keep in mind that even if the filling is a bit too salty now, after being wrapped in dough and boiled, it will be just right. 

My Mom's Dumplings

• 1 to 1 1/4 lbs ground pork
• 1/2 lb shrimp, finely chopped
• 4 leaves Napa cabbage, finely chopped
• 2 large scallions, chopped
• 2-inch piece of ginger, minced
• 1/4 tsp brown pepper
• 4 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3/4 - 1 tsp salt
• 2 packs dumplings wrappers
• Water, for moistening wrappers

My mother-in-law is an amazing pie baker (and just an overall domestic queen in general). When we come over for dinner, we always save room for dessert, because we know she has a pie waiting on the counter. This is the pie she makes most often, and it's turned me into an apple pie convert. I usually find apple pies to be boring, but that heavenly sweet and crunchy streusel on top of this ensures it is anything but boring. 

Marty's Dutch Apple Pie

For the pie:

• 1 prepared pie crust
• 4-5 medium-large apples or 8 small apples (choose apples that are good for baking like Granny Smith, Cortland, or Fuji)
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt

We love pulled pork (we use Tyler Florence's recipe, which I will share next time we make it), but sometimes it's nice to have something healthier. I was sold on these barbecue chicken sandwiches as soon as I saw them in Chrissy Teigen's second cookbook. They're delicious, though I will warn you that the barbecue sauce is a sweeter tomato-based sauce, not the vinegar and mustard sauces that we typically like. 

The recipe calls for a pineapple slaw to be served on top, but we don't like cole slaw on top of our pulled meat sandwiches, and I thought the Tangy Herb and Sesame Slaw that is also in this cookbook would make a good match for the sweetness of this barbecue sauce. For once, I was right ;)

Pulled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

(Recipe from Cravings by Chrissy Teigen)

• 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
• 1 tbsp finely chopped canned chipotle in adobo sauce
• 1 tsp mustard powder
• 6 potato buns