Half of the recipes this week are brought to you by friends. And I love that. It shows how much cooking and talking about food is a love language.
The tofu recipe was inspired by my friend (and RR subscriber!) Kendall, who suggested I make this when we were chit chatting about dinner plans while on jury duty together last year. Side note: we both absolutely loved jury duty. Ate it up. It’s surprisingly patriotic, and the woman who runs the whole ordeal--Mayumi--is famously funny and engaging. It’s also so organized.
The roasted cabbage recipe is inspired by friend and subscriber, Cassie, who TBH should be running this show because she is a meal-planning Queen and chef. Thanks for the idea, Cass!
And finally the birthday cake is inspired by Carolyn, who is celebrating her birthday this week. HBD, Carol!
✨ Inspo ingredients for the week: rice, sesame oil, parmesan, and crusty bread ✨
DINNERS
Roasted Cabbage with Walnuts and Parmesan | Chicken Skewers | Bread
Spring Beans with Lemon | Bread
Tofu with Peanut Sauce | Crunchy Cucumber Salad
Kimchi Fried Rice | Crunchy Cucumber Salad
LUNCH
Chicken Caesar Salad
DESSERT
Confetti Cake
DRINK
Earl Grey Martini
Notes:
With the crusty bread, buy a loaf at the beginning of the week and then use it for dinner with the cabbage, as croutons for the lunch salad, and then again for dinner with the white beans.
When making the tofu with peanut ginger sauce, be sure to make an extra cup or two of rice so that you can have the Kimchi Fried Rice the next day (it’s best with day-old rice!). No longer than a day though since old rice can make you sick.
The crunchy cucumber salad serves about 6-8 people and can be eaten on both the tofu and kimchi nights.
For the cocktail, I use caffeine-free Earl Grey because despite the espresso martini trend you can’t catch me drinking caffeine at 7 p.m.
Cabbage with walnuts and parmesan
| Smitten Kitchen
My friends know that I like to pick “foods of the year.” There’s been the Year of the Pretzel, where I was very into soft pretzels, pretzel buns, etc. There was also the Year of the Hot Dog, where--likely because of the Timbers--I ate an obscene amount of hot dogs.
In 2023, things were decidedly more healthy. It was the year of tofu and roasted cabbage. I first ate roasted cabbage when my friend Cassie cooked up a variation of this dish when she was staying at our house over the holidays. My mind was blown. It’s meaty and flavorful and easily absorbs whatever dressing you put on it (sometimes a little too well).
Here’s a recipe that’s available on Smitten Kitchen’s website, but is adapted from Joshua McFadden’s Six Seasons Cookbook, which is an absolute must-have if you like cooking seasonally. I put off buying it for a long time, and, once I did, could not believe why I waited so long.
I recommend pairing the roasted cabbage with chicken. This week I’m going to get a rotisserie chicken and use the leftovers for chicken caesar salad for lunches throughout the week.
Spring Beans with Lemon
| a newsletterAlison Roman just can’t miss. The reason I love this recipe so much is because a) it contains white beans and b) it’s really begging for a farmer’s market trip. The recipe calls for ingredients like green garlic and fava beans and garlic shoots, which are a little harder to find at the grocery store, but readily available at any market this time of year. But don’t worry: she offers a few alternatives if going to the farmer’s market isn’t in the cards. Pair this with the bread you ate the night before with the roasted cabbage!
Tofu with Peanut Sauce
I used to not like tofu, but Kendall changed my mind with this recipe. So when another subscriber and family friend, Nancy, asked for tofu recipes this week, I knew this was the one to share. Hope you like it, Nancy!
INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons creamy unsalted, unsweetened peanut butter (not a big deal if there’s salt. I just use Adam’s brand)
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 to 4 tablespoons warm water
1 package of extra firm or firm tofu (I like the brand Ota!)
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, whisk all of the ingredients except the water together with a fork. Then add the water slowly until you get your desired texture. I like this on the thicker side so that it really sticks to the tofu. Serve over rice over room-temperature tofu that you’ve pat dry and cut into squares. You can also pan fry the tofu if you prefer. Make sure to make extra rice if you want to make the Kimchi Fried Rice recipe the next day.
Note: you can also just use Bachan’s Japanese BBQ Sauce instead of the sugar and soy sauce.
Crunchy Cucumber Salad
Gregory Gourdet | Everybody’s Table
Everyone’s Table is a phenomenal cookbook. Every single recipe I’ve made tastes restaurant quality. Although I’ve never made this cucumber salad before, I’m sure it will be tasty. The recipe calls for making your own chili paste, but I’m too lazy to do that.
INGREDIENTS
3 lbs Persian cucumbers, quartered and cut
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
½ cup chile paste (not sauce) like gochujang or sambal
¼ cup coconut aminos (aka soy sauce)
¼ cup toasted sesame oil
4 medium garlic cloves, finely minced
Handful of cilantro
¼ cup sesame seeds, toated (optional, I’m sure)
DIRECTIONS
Combine the cucumbers and salt in a bowl and let sit for 15 minutes.
Combine the rest of the ingredients in another bowl.
Drain the cucumbers and add to the dressing. Let sit in the fridge for another 15 minutes.
Sprinkle with cilantro and sesame seeds.
Kimchi Fried Rice
Francis Lam | New York Times
Once you make kimchi fried rice, you’ll unlock your new favorite weeknight meal. I make this on a regular basis because it’s fast, filling, and very good. Traditionally, this is made with Spam, but I buy thick-cut (about ¼ -½ inch thick) ham from the butcher/deli. If you’re vegetarian, you could make this without ham and be fine. If you don’t have a subscription to the New York Times, no worries. This is a very traditional, low-key recipe that you can find anywhere on the Internet.
Confetti Cake
Claire Saffitz | Dessert Person
Like I said in the intro, it’s my friend (and subscriber #1!!) Carolyn’s birthday this week so I’m making her this Confetti Cake. I chose this recipe because I will always have a soft spot for festive, sprinkled cakes.
Earl Grey Martini
I promised an egg-white based cocktail this week, and this is a good one. I made this a few times the way it’s called for in the recipe, but let me help you learn from my mistakes: whenever you’re making a drink with egg-whites, the key to perfect foam is actually the “reverse dry shake.” You basically shake all of the ingredients + ice together without the egg white. Strain the liquid out to get rid of the ice and then pour it back into the cocktail shaker to shake again for another 30 seconds, but this time with the egg white. Then serve.
