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Yee Haw! Cowboy Caviar
cowboy caviar |dailywaffle Ever get the feeling we’re all making the same 100 recipes in slightly different ways? I make a black bean salad periodically that’s just a thrown together mix of black beans, corn, red onion, tomato, sometimes cucumber and avocado with lime, cumin and olive oil, and a little salt and pepper. A few states over, it’s got black-eyed peas, jalapeno and cilantro and they call it Cowboy Caviar.  Call it what you want, this salad doubles as a rustic salsa, and it’s spot on for those of us getting our vegetable on, for those watching football and for general New Year’s good luck.
Happy New Year!
New Year’s Eve.  You can track your life through New Year’s Eves: Childhood: Pass out on the couch before the ball drops. Teens: Party with your friends, it’s the last hurrah for Winter Break. College: Pass out on someone’s couch (hopefully), did the ball drop? Adulthood: Pay for an overpriced prix fixe dinner with a champagne toast OR party…
Cooking from ‘Jerusalem’: Roasted Butternut & Red Onion w/ Tahini & Za’atar
  ottolenghi jerusalem butternut onion After one last sip of champagne, we’re collectively about to lay down the cheesy appetizers and cookies that sustained us through December and trade them in for big bowls of salad, platefuls of roasted vegetables and after work trips to the gym.  If that transition seems tough, there’s hardly a book better than Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi’s Jerusalem to inspire you. Currently ranked #57 on Amazon’s bestseller list, it’s clearly a book a lot of us got for Christmas and Hanukkah. Everything, and I mean everything, in this book looks fantastic.  Even vegetables I don’t usually care much for, like eggplant and okra, are enticingly photographed.  Not knowing where exactly to start, I took Emmy’s (of Emmy Cooks) advice and started with the roasted butternut squash and red onion with tahini and za’atar. Spoiler alert: It’s DELICIOUS.
Quick Hit: Betty’s But Better – Cinnamon-Chipotle Snickerdoodles
betty's but better snickerdoodles dailywaffle I've mentioned before that Betty Crocker's Snickerdoodles are a mainstay of my holiday baking repertoire. It's a cookie I've loved since I was a kid and it's one of Wolf's favorites, too.  While he was in NYC this weekend, sending me jealous-making photos from Momofuku Noodle Bar and Il Laboratorio del Gelato, I was in the kitchen whipping up these cookies. (Good man, he brought me some Milk Bar cookies). With just a quick tweak, you get the cinnamon you're expecting in a snickerdoodle, but with a slow building smoky heat from the chipotle.  Two additional changes I do make to the original recipe -- add 1/2 t. vanilla and up the salt to 1/2 t. as well. Betty's, but one better.
Almost Grandma’s Tamale Pie
  If you think back about eating at your grandparents’ house, do you associate certain foods with the dishes they were served in? In my grandma’s kitchen, there were two things that were made in a big white Corningware baking dish.  You know the one, square ceramic with a blue cornflower design on the side.  There was the dish I’d like to forget but can’t – tuna casserole with a potato chip topping. And there was tamale pie.
Meatless Monday: Chunky Vegetarian Chili
I’m a convert to Texas chili, having grown up on a chili powder version with kidney beans.  The upside is when we want a meaty chili, nothing but a bowl of red will do, and I’ll toast and soak the chiles. When the day calls for a vegetarian version, I can go straight for this chili without losing face and without a drop of geographical guilt.
Salad Inspiration: Arugula, Radicchio & Honeycrisps w/ White Balsamic
With just a few days to go until the Big Meal, we’re keeping things light around here (previous Twinkie post notwithstanding). I spent Sunday morning picking up a few last things, including the turkey, and then the spent most of the afternoon in the kitchen. It’s just not the holidays unless there’s Chex Mix. Last night's dinner was a relatively simply affair – Sriracha Sloppy Joes and this arugula, radicchio and honeycrisp apple salad.
Hostess, Thanks for the Memories
I’ve never thought of myself as a real junk food junkie.  Yeah, I can give you an opinion on Cool Ranch versus Nacho-flavored Doritos. I can rank-order candy bars. We eat our fair share of sweets and treats around here, it’s just not usually of the Hostess variety. So when news broke on Friday that Hostess was shutting down, why did I go out before work in search of Twinkies, Hostess cupcakes and Donette Gems? For better or worse, that junk is part of my childhood, and likely yours, too.