Readers often ask what tools I use in my kitchen. I recently discovered kit.com, which makes it easy to curate products into easy-to-use lists. So here’s my first kit, a collection of the countertop appliances that have earned their precious square inches by being rock-solid workhorses for years.
Homemade Vanilla Wafers – Recipe

These homemade vanilla wafers, courtesy of my friend Nick at ChefSteps, might not look like the Nabisco variety, but with a ton of vanilla bean seeds, they taste about 1000x better. Click through below for the full recipe.
Vanilla Wafers
Pomme Rösti

Growing up in Kentucky, I’ve always been crazy about hashbrowns, specifically Waffle House hashbrowns. They are the kind made with shredded potatoes, fried in a thin layer so that they have a very high ratio of crispy crust to creamy interior. Now, I prefer them scattered, smothered, and covered, which means tossed on the grill …
Watercress Puree – Recipe

This easy method for making a silky smooth watercress puree can be used for other greens from spinach to sorrel. The vibrant green color looks gorgeous on any plate. Click on the card below to get the full recipe.
Watercress Purée
Chanterelle Tostadas – Recipe

Notice anything different around here? Yep, I decided it was time to give the site a more modern look, so the textured blue background is gone in favor of lots of white space, and the navigation menu at the top stays in place so you can find your way around without so much scrolling. Let …
Beet (!) Tartare Redux – Recipe

Years ago, I posted a recipe for a very simple beet tartare. Then a couple weeks ago, the ChefSteps team was working on some distinctly non-vegetarian tartares and I challenged them to upgrade my beet version. Needless to say, Ben crushed it. I had the painful chore of tasting many different versions as he dialed it …
Review: Punjab Sweets

Thali with Bhindi, Chana, Mattar Paneer and a Gulab Jamun
Iqbal and Gurmit Dha and their daughter Harpreet Giil have done something terrible, and I’ll never forgive them. Their vegetarian restaurant, Punjab Sweets, offers my favorite Indian snacks, entrees, and sweets. And it isn’t in walking distance of my house. I find this to …