| Good Saturday morning, everyone. I'm happy to be back in your inboxes. Thanks again to assistant recipes editor Olga Massov for covering for me during my last summer hurrah. My son and I spent a glorious week in Maine — my husband and I switch off years in which we each do a special one-on-one trip with the kid — and, of course, I made sure we got to sample the region's culinary delights, including lobster rolls, Whoopie pies, doughnuts, Moxie soda (my son is a lifelong fan now) and everything blueberry (soda, ice cream, French toast, even pizza). Maine, and Portland in particular, is awash in spectacular bakeries, including many with lines routinely out the door. I didn't hit up quite as many spots as I wanted to (even a sweets-loving third grader has his limits), though I can pass on my recommendations for Tandem Coffee, Holy Donut and Yuri's Desserts in Portland, as well as Dot's Market in Lincolnville. As soon as I got home, all I wanted to eat was a giant pile of vegetables to recover from the feasting. And sure enough, Aaron Hutcherson had me covered with his Gochujang Eggplant Stir-Fry. I love stir-fries with several types of vegetables, but I appreciate how this one puts eggplant front and center. It's flavored primarily with gochujang, the fermented soybean and chile paste that carries the dish, along with a few standard aromatics. It can be on the table in 20 minutes, ideal for busy weeknights. Ellie Krieger also hit the 20-minute mark with her Tuna Melt Quesadillas, a clever and nostalgic mash-up of two favorite dishes. The riff on the diner classic swaps out bread for a crisp, golden tortilla and nixes the mayo entirely, though you can serve the quesadillas with Greek yogurt or sour cream. Ellie packs in the vegetables, too, in the form of spinach, onion, carrot and celery. When you think of jerk chicken, you're probably not considering it as a weeknight meal. Traditional Jamaican jerk often involves marinating the meat, then cooking it low and slow. In Jerk-Spiced Chicken Thighs With Pickled Pineapple, recipe developer Ben Weiner took inspiration by applying an aromatic jerk spice blend to bone-in, skin-on thighs, which are seared over low heat in a cast-iron skillet, then finished in the oven. The recipe features the tropical fruit brined in vinegar with jalapeño, as well as sautéed and roasted until it's sweet, soft and practically caramelized. Speaking of pineapple, the Jungle Bird Cocktail uses the fruit's juice, plus a wedge or leaves for garnish. This "aperitiki" drink brings together two drink cultures — Tiki and Italian aperitivo — in a tropical drink with a pleasantly bitter edge, thanks to Campari and blackstrap rum. You bet it would pair beautifully with the jerk-spiced chicken. How else can we inspire you to get in the kitchen and make your cooking easier and more enjoyable? Aaron and I are here to help in our weekly live cooking chat Wednesday at noon Eastern. Send along your questions now, then be back at your keyboard when we kick things off in real time. Until next week, happy cooking. |
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