Recipe: Cuban-Style Black Beans

Cuban-Style Black Beans
Food & Wine Magazine, Sep 2025, p. 48
5 stars

Tasty!!! Best black beans we've made and will probably make from now on.

Ingredients: black beans, white onion, green bell pepper, tomato paste, bay leaves, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, dry white wine, ground cumin, dried oregano, Kosher salt, black pepper, water

Tips/Notes:

• Used 2 cans of black beans beans instead of dry
• Did not add 5 cups of water -- instead, use liquid in cans of beans and don't add more than 1/4 c of water
• Used 1 white onion instead of 2
• Used 1 large green bell pepper instead of 2
• Used 1 bay leaf instead of 4
• Used 3 garlic cloves instead of 4
• Used 1 tsp of Kosher salt altogether (don't add the salt at the end in step 4 (the 2 tsp) -- it had plenty of salt!)
• Added red pepper for heat

Recipe: Bob's Steak & Chop House Glazed Carrot

Bob's Steak & Chop House Glazed Carrot
Texas Monthly, month/year?, p.92

4.8 stars

I found this recipe in my stack (I pull out recipes from magazines) but don't know which month/year of Texas Monthly it was published. However, I did find the recipe on another site if you Google it (it's on DirectAccessRecipes.com which looks like a semi-legit site).

Ingredients: carrots, fresh orange juice, light brown sugar, ground cinnamon, corn starch, water

Tips:

• Roast the carrots
• Make 1/3 of the glaze next time -- it was a lot even for 8 carrots!

Recipe: Creamy Polenta with Artichokes Agrodolce

Creamy Polenta with Artichokes Agrodolce

Food & Wine Magazine, May 2024, p.52
4.8 stars

I loved this dish but thegrandcruman did not as he didn't like the artichokes and vinegar-y-ness to it. I think it's restaurant-worthy with all of its really great flavors. If anything, the polenta itself was super flavorful!

Ingredients: quick-cooking polenta, fennel, marinated artichoke hearts, Castelvetrano olives, raisins, dry white wine, sherry vinegar, water, whole milk, butter, shallots, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, sugar, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips/Notes:

• Minced instead of slicing the garlic
• Used regular raisins that we had on hand
• Shorted the salt (1/2 tsp instead of 3/4 tsp) in the vegetable mixture and also shorted it in the polenta
• Added olives when serving as thegrandcruman isn't a fan of olives
• Forgot to add the mint leaves and red pepper for garnish

Recipe: Orange, Currant and Pine Nut Couscous

 

Orange, Currant and Pine Nut Couscous

Emeril 20-40-60 Fresh Food Fast, p. 48
5 stars

A really great side -- we had this with salmon, steamed broccoli and a Chardonnay. A DELICIOUS MEAL!

Ingredients: couscous, carrots, dried currants, red onion or shallot, orange, orange zest, pine nuts or walnuts, mint or parsley, extra-virgin olive oil, salt, white pepper, water

Notes/Tips:

• Because the couscous takes 10 min to cook, we started cooking the couscous for 5 min, then added the carrots, red onion, etc. We didn't follow the recipe (the steam method).
• Tripled the amount of carrots
• Used 1/2 tsp of salt instead of 3/4 tsp
• Used dried blueberries since we had them on hand
• Used both walnuts and pine nuts -- added them upon serving vs. mixing them in (didn't want to make them soggy)
• Also added the orange segments upon serving

Recipe: Zucchini Quesadilla with Spicy Salsa Roja

Zucchini Quesadilla with Spicy Salsa Roja
Food and Wine Magazine, Mar 2014, p. 99
Quesadilla: 0 stars
Spicy Salsa Roja: 4.7 stars

The zucchini quesadilla isn't good -- the Monterey Jack gets completely lost; the zucchini needs to be cooked a little and has no flavor. The salsa, however, is good and SPICY!

Spicy Salsa Roja Ingredients: tomatoes, small onion, garlic, dried arbol chiles, chipotle chile in adobo, apple cider vinegar, canola oil, sugar, salt

Recipe: Baked Shells with Gremolata Breadcrumbs

Baked Shells with Gremolata Breadcrumbs

Food & Wine Magazine, Nov 2021 p. 48

4.8 stars

We love mac 'n cheese! We've tried a number of recipes -- this one looked "different" because of the amount of half and half (3.5 cups!!!), fontina as one of the cheeses and the amount of seasoning like onion powder, garlic powder, white pepper and nutmeg. It turned out delicious... it's definitely is not low calorie!!!

I preferred the mac & cheese without the gremolata breadcrumbs on top which made it a little to garlicky for me.

Ingredients: pasta shells, fontina cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, half-and-half, whole milk, flour, panko, extra-virgin olive oil, unsalted butter, parsley, lemon, garlic, onion powder, garlic powder, white pepper, nutmeg, black pepper, Kosher salt

Tips:

• Zested lemon instead of mincing lemon peel strips
• Added the salt and black pepper when mixing in the onion powder, garlic powder, white pepper and nutmeg

Recipe: Garlic & Herb Swirl Bread

Garlic & Herb Swirl Bread
Better Homes & Gardens, Dec 2021, p. 171
4.7 stars

This is only the second bread recipe I've ever made, and it turned out pretty well! It was focaccia-like in texture. While there were a number of steps to make this, the most work was planning ahead and chopping up all of the herbs. Otherwise, it was actually pretty easy to make.

Despite all of the butter in it, it wasn't buttery and it actually needed butter at the table. The herb flavors also mellowed out as I thought the herbs would be overwhelming.

Looks impressive if I can say so myself!

Ingredients: all-purpose flour, active dry yeast, eggs, milk, butter, sugar, Parmesan cheese, oil-packed dried tomatoes, basil, thyme, oregano, garlic, red pepper

Recipe: Creamy Polenta with Burst Cherry Tomato-and-Red Wine Ragout

Creamy Polenta with Burst Cherry Tomato-and-Red Wine Ragout

Food and Wine Magazine, Feb 2021, p.82

5 stars

Lovely side dish (and not just because I love polenta) that's restaurant-worthy. We had this with some leftover brisket. 

Polenta Ingredients: uncooked coarse-ground polenta, whole milk, water, garlic, thyme, Kosher salt, black pepper

Ragout Ingredients: cherry tomatoes, kale, dry red wine, garlic, red pepper, basil, butter, lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips:

• The polenta was a bit salty. Recommend 1.5 tsp of Kosher salt instead of 1 Tbsp in the polenta.
• If making this for a dinner party, double the amount of ragout.

Recipe: Roasted Cherry Tomato Caprese

Roasted Cherry Tomato Caprese

Bon Appetit Magazine, Nov 2017, p.44

4.7 stars

We had this for Easter dinner along with steak and wine -- a lovely meal!

Ingredients: cherry tomatoes, fresh buffalo or cow mozzarella, thyme, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, flaky sea salt; Country-style bread brushed with oil and toasted

Tips:

• Instead of fresh buffalo or cow mozzarella, we used... BURRRRATA!!!!!!

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Chive Pesto

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Chive Pesto

Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2011, p. 54

4.7 stars

I liked the chive pesto, but blog contributor the grandcruman thought the potatoes were better without it. It was a refreshing take on regular roasted potatoes and went nicely with the salmon it accompanied. As you can see, we did not use fingerling potatoes as the grocery store was out of them, but Yukon Gold potatoes substituted nicely.

Ingredients: fingerling potatoes, chives, parsley, slivered almonds or walnuts or pine nuts, garlic, lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips:

• Made 1/6 of the pesto recipe since we were limited on the amount of chives on hand

Recipe: Crispy Skillet Latke with Kale

Crispy Skillet Latke with Kale

Food & Wine Magazine, Dec 2020, p. 64

5 stars

Best latkes we've made as these were incredibly flavorful. Loved the balsamic vinegar in the kale -- and the chives, lemon zest and sour cream just made this an overall yummy dish. We served this with gruyere bread from Central Market as well as a side salad.

Ingredients: russet potatoes, yellow onion, kale, red onion, eggs, panko, chives, lemon zest, black pepper, balsamic vinegar, vegetable oil, water, Kosher salt; creme fraiche (optional)

Tips:

• Used the food processor grater instead of a box grater
• Added another egg since we had a bit more potato than what was called for
• Used sour cream instead of creme fraiche since we had sour cream on hand

Recipe: Cauliflower and Cheese with Spicy Breadcrumbs

 

Cauliflower and Cheese with Spicy Breadcrumbs

HalfBakedHarvest.com

4.9 stars

We had this wonderful side dish with steak and the Charred Focaccia and Steak Salad (without the steak in the salad). The flavors were so unique -- I'd not had a dish like this with flavors of smoked paprika, chipotle chili, gouda, cheddar, thyme, oregano and prosciutto. We loved it and will definitely be making it again. It's not a hard dish to make at all...and is relatively quick!

Ingredients: cauliflower, ciabatta or sourdough bread, prosciutto, smoked paprika, oregano, red pepper flakes, salted butter, flour, whole milk, cheddar cheese, gouda cheese, thyme, chipotle chili powder, onion powder, extra virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, pepper

Tips:

• The cauliflower head was more than 3 cups -- maybe 5 cups. I made 1.5x the amount of cheese sauce which actually wasn't needed in the end.
• Used panko breadcrumbs and toasted it on the side in a pan with the extra virgin olive oil, oregano and salt
• The prosciutto didn't crumble (didn't want to overcook/bake it) so chopped it up

Recipe: Steve's Layered Cornbread

Steve's Layered Cornbread

Martha Stewart Living Magazine, Nov 2020, p.70

5 stars

It's Thanksgiving week! Instead of "regular" rolls or cornbread, try this super EASY and incredibly delicious recipe.  It's beyond flavorful, and once you've made this, you won't go back to regular 'ol cornbread.

Ingredients: corn oil, fine yellow cornmeal, whole milk, cream-style corn, cheddar cheese, shredded cooked chicken, cilantro, pickled jalapenos, eggs, baking soda, Kosher salt

Tips

• Used vegetable oil instead of corn oil
• Used fine white cornmeal instead of fine yellow cornmeal
• Used Rotisserie shredded chicken
• Used sharp cheddar cheese
• The cilantro didn't impart much flavor in the cornbread but it's nice to include for color
• The pickled jalapenos added a spicy, flavor (a wow!) to the dish. Only used 1/4 c (or less!) and chopped them up
• Didn't think it needed salsa served on the side

Recipe: Leek and Potato Galettes

Leek and Potato Galettes

Edible Dallas & Fort Worth, Spring 2017, p. 24

4.6 stars

These galettes were so flavorful even without the two sauces. It's a great side dish that reminded me of latkes. Instead of making small patties (the recipe says it makes 30 3" galettes), we made half the recipe and it resulted in two large pan-sized patties.

Ingredients: red-skinned potatoes, leeks, cilantro, shallot, jalapeno, lime, Greek or full-fat yogurt, flour, canola oil olive oil, sea salt, pepper

Recipe: Heirloom Tomato BLT Tart

 

Heirloom Tomato BLT Tart

Today Show

5 Stars

I was watching The Today Show and saw the New York Times food editor (or maybe critic?) make this. It looked so easy, and I thought it was a great way for us to use up the puff pastry we've had in our freezer.

It was so good but messy (because of the super flaky puff pastry). It would be great for an appetizer at a dinner party. Next time, we may try this but using Tyler Florence's pizza dough recipe.

Ingredients: puff pastry, baby lettuces or arugula, heirloom tomatoes, bacon, mascarpone or creme fraiche, grated Parmesan, light brown sugar, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, black pepper, flaky sea salt

Recipe: Fried-Bread Panzanella with Ricotta and Herbs

 

Fried-Bread Panzanella with Ricotta and Herbs

Bon Appetit Magazine, Sept 2018

4.5 stars

Super easy weeknight recipe. Went really well with fried chicken! 

Ingredients: sourdough bread, ricotta, heirloom tomatoes, basil, parsley, shallot, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, red-wine vinegar, flaky sea salt, black pepper

Notes:

• Didn't fry the bread. Toasted and buttered it instead.

• Added fresh mozzarella.

Recipe: Grilled Carrots with Avocado and Mint

Grilled Carrots with Avocado and Mint
Bon Appetit Magazine, June/July 2020, p. 22
5 stars for me/2.5 stars for the grandcruman

This is a little embarrassing. I thought this was a taco recipe from looking at the image on the recipe. It's actually a SIDE DISH, but hey, it worked for us as vegetarian tacos! I really liked the flavors but blog non-contributor the grandcruman wasn't a huge fan, thus the difference in ratings above. We often have all of these ingredients (except for ginger) on hand so this is a great lunch that I can make... for me!

Ingredients: carrots, avocados, mint leaves, serrano chile, ginger, cumin seeds, lemon juice, honey, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt

Recipe: Quick-Pickled Vegetables

Quick-Pickled Vegetables

I found this recipe and am including it here for reference for when we need it

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp Kosher salt
• 1 cup thinly sliced vegetables

• Whisk the unseasoned rice vinegar, sugar and Kosher salt together until the sugar and salt are dissolved.
• Add vegetables and let sit, squeezing gently with your hands occasionally to help them pickle more quickly for about 10 minutes.
• Vegetables can be pickled 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Recipe: Salsa de Arbol

Salsa de Arbol
Bon Appetit Magazine, p. 58
4.5 stars

There's fresh, bright non-roasted salsa and then there's fresh roasted salsa with a deeper flavor like this recipe. It's so easy to make and the ingredients are items we (can) always have on hand.

Ingredients: can of diced fire-roasted tomatoes, dried chiles de arbol, lime juice, extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, Kosher salt

Tips:

• Add jalapeno!

(Find recipe under: Entree - Pork Volcanes al Pastor)

Recipe: Spicy-Sweet Sambal Pork Noodles and Blistered Green Beans with Fried Shallots

Spicy-Sweet Sambal Pork Noodles
Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2020, p. 30
5 stars

Ingredients: ramen or spaghetti, ground pork, ginger, tomato paste, basil, hot chili paste (sambal oelek), garlic, soy sauce, unseasoned rice vinegar, sugar, butter, extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt

Blistered Green Beans with Fried Shallots
Bon Appetit Magazine, May 2020, p.74
5 stars

Ingredients: green beans, oyster sauce, shallot, garlic, lemongrass, ginger, vegetable oil, Kosher salt

I loved this meal so much! Packed with flavor and relatively easy to make.
The noodles were like an Asian bolognese, and the the green been dish is now a new favorite to add as a side for the other Asian dishes we make.

Notes:

• The noodles were pretty spicy but we halved the overall recipe and forgot to half the sambal oelek.
• This meal would be great with a side of simple tofu.