| Good Saturday morning, all. Last week, I kicked off the newsletter by sharing some of my favorite recent shopping finds, including the oversize jar of pistachio cream from Costco that at least a few of you were seduced into buying as well. In addition to the folks asking what to do with all that lovely green spread (eat it with a spoon is my favorite solution), I heard from other readers who told me about some of their grocery store discoveries. Inspired by our recipe for Yachae Bibimbap (Roasted Vegetable Bibimbap), JoAnne R. snagged some gochujang at the local supermarket. "I'd never had Korean food and it looked like an easy way to try something new." Of course, we have more ideas for how to use the fermented soybean and chile pepper paste, including with steak, pork and chicken wings. Benita G. is into another Korean specialty, kimbap, the stuffed seaweed and rice rolls. After initially buying them frozen at Trader Joe's, "I was wandering Costco and found them in a large frozen package. Ah, how good life can be." Jeanne B. came across speculoos cookies at Aldi. "They were the simplest, most charming flavor I had tasted in years." That led to cookie butter, which is made with the spiced wafers, and a whole world opened up. (Grab a jar, then check out my Cookie Butter Puppy Chow.) While we're on the topic of Aldi, Hara M. loves their no-sugar-added peanut butter and chocolate gelato, as well as Kroger's Asian-style salad mix, which is "perfect for a quick stir-fry." But because I contain multitudes, let's talk about why you might want to replicate a store-bought staple at home. Jarred marinara sauce is popular for numerous reasons, including its versatility and convenience. One problem: the sodium. We try to be mindful of this in our recipes. So when Joe Yonan realized the numbers might be skewing high for his outstanding Italian Eggplant Rollatini, featuring thin slices of eggplant stuffed with cheese and baked in tomato sauce, we got to thinking about ways to cut back. A homemade marinara was the most obvious answer. And the most obvious recipe was Rao's Marinara Sauce, from the brand that not only won our taste test but also has published several cookbooks. As luck would have it, the from-scratch sauce yielded the exact same amount as one 24-ounce jar of the store-bought ingredient — with half the sodium. This is a great option to have in your back pocket for any time you're looking at a recipe that calls for premade marinara. You can even make a double batch to use some now and freeze the rest for later. Aaron Hutcherson was also feeling inspired by la dolce vita when he set about working on his riff on Chicken Marsala, an Italian American favorite. It features pan-fried cutlets and mushrooms in a savory sauce highlighting the fortified wine. Pancetta and the fat rendered from it bring satisfying porky flavor, while a bright hit of lemon juice at the end cuts through the richness. If you prefer your protein with something lighter and greener, have a look at the Seared Grouper With Peanut Salsa that Ellie Krieger shared from Washington-based chef and cookbook author Eric Adjepong. The herb-packed salsa that tops the grouper fillets takes its cues from the Ghanaian tradition of using peanuts in a variety of dishes, and it would make an excellent topper to any other firm white fish you like, as well as simply seasoned chicken, pork or tofu. Speaking of fresh herbs, in this week's live chat, we got a great question about how to substitute them for each other. Have your own burning cooking inquiry? Send it along for next week's chat that Aaron and I will host Wednesday at noon Eastern, then be sure to join once we get started. Until next week, happy cooking. | 
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