Tomatoey pasta & a muesli bar obsession

Seven cookbook ideas for Christmas 🎄

Hello!

It’s such a lovely time to be in Tasmania — there are roadside peony stands, boxes of just-picked berries at the market and so much sunlight.

I moved last month, into a house with lemons, figs and plums growing in the yard and an ice cream truck that loops the streets on Saturdays. It’s all very nice! Still to come: trying the fruit mince pies from all the bakeries in town.

In this edition there are a bunch of tomatoey pasta recipes (my favourite) that are perfect for summer nights. Plus, chocolate granola and my cookbook highlights for end-of-year gifting. But first…

Batches and batches of cookie dough oat bars

I am happier when there’s a stash of Molly Yeh’s cookie dough oat bars* in the fridge. They remind me of my favourite Uncle Toby’s muesli bars from school and look just like them too. 

Made with coconut oil, the bars firm up in the fridge, so there’s no baking (just a little toasting of the oats pre-blitz). And they really do taste like cookie dough. I’m someone who becomes hungry quickly and often, so these are extra handy to have on hand. They’d make a sweet gift for new parents too! 

* to make the original version of this recipe, opt for hemp seeds, honey and coconut oil in the blog version.

Tomato and garlic confit pasta

Pretty much all the prep this recipe needs.

This is an excellent recipe for the weekend — it’s luxurious to eat and takes care of itself in the oven. Time (and thyme) are key! The only downside is it feeds two, so next time I’ll double the recipe for leftovers. 

It reminded me of this burst cherry tomato pasta, which is a speedy (15 minute!) stove-top version. 

I’m also a fan of Heidi Sze’s version of linguini with slow roasted tomatoes, which is great for a crowd, super flavourful, and somehow uses hardly any oil. 

Yet another ace orzo recipe

I immediately bookmarked this recipe after Eric Kim posted to say it was a recent favourite he’d developed. It’s chicken and orzo with sundried tomatoes, basil and feta (NYT Cooking gift link). I made it for a weeknight dinner and can also see myself bringing it to a picnic or Christmas lunch because who doesn’t love a pasta salad?  

The chicken, feta and tomato in this dish are all chopped to the same size, making every spoonful reliably great.

Something simple and good

Tony made this brown rice bowl for me when I was getting over a bug. It was exactly what I wanted to eat and inspired by Jenny Rosenstrach’s teriyaki brussel sprout bowl. 

Dinner sandwiches, because December

If you love a kimchi toastie, you should try Eric Kim’s kimchi sandwiches. Make or buy some milk bread and make these while it’s soft and fresh, using kimchi, mayo, some sesame oil and a pinch of sugar. I ate this in the sun and felt very fulfilled. 

I’ve also been experimenting with miso and cheese toasties, which taste a bit like cheese and Vegemite. Go easy on the miso, add a bit of kewpie mayo and later, some crunchy lettuce post-toast. 

Chocolate granola for munching and gifting

I’ve been making the laziest version of this chocolate and coconut granola for a while and it always works out and cheers me up in the morning. I skip the blender step and use cacao powder in place of cocoa. I haven’t made it with chocolate pieces yet, it’s very much a choose-your-own adventure recipe for me. I never know what to bring to people’s houses at this time of year but love the idea of bringing something special for breakfast the next day.

Cookbooks to gift this Christmas 

If you’re thinking of gifting yourself or someone else a cookbook this December, my favourites include:

Home is Where the Eggs are by Molly Yeh

I’m so glad Molly has a new cookbook because my copy of her first, Molly on the Range, is falling apart. The recipes in her new book are very weeknight-friendly, yet with so much colour, flavour and fun. It’s perfect for the back-to-normal-ish period of juggling work and life outside of the house and the only cookbook that travelled in my overnight bag when we moved.

Highlights so far: the cookie dough oat bars, tomatoey parmesan beans (so very easy), the crispy coconut rice with prawns. 

So keen to try: the single! chocolate! cupcake!

Get it for: chocolate chip lovers, parents who love to bake, as a housewarming gift for anyone making a house a home. 

Simply Genius from Food52, edited by Kristen Migalore 

I ordered this book knowing just three things about it: the hype around this choc chip cookie recipe, Hetty Lui McKinnon’s bok choy sheet-pan dinner contribution, and the fact that it’s part of the long-running Genius Recipes column. I’ve learnt so much about cooking from this column over the years. It routinely features new-to-me names, as well as Nigella Lawson, Samin Nosrat and Dorie Greenspan. This book is filled with delicious, doable recipes, covering breakfast, snacks, dinner and dessert. It also features handy illustrations demonstrating essential techniques, from testing a cake or chicken for doneness (I’m forever stressed out by this).

Get it for: anyone with a NYT Cooking subscription, plus those learning to cook. Smitten Kitchen Keepers by Deb Perelman would be good too!

Genius recipes I’ve made recently: Many, many batches of this pad thai (an awesome rec from Highly Enthused), olive oil granola, crispy, caramelised Korean chickpeas. 

Tenderheart by Hetty Lui McKinnon

Hetty’s latest book will easily supply more than a year’s worth of dinner inspiration. Her all-veggie cookbook is named in honour of her late father and she shares memories of their gustatory life together and photos too. I’ve especially enjoyed Hetty’s two most recent books that explore her life and identity. There’s also a lovely surprise of seeing favourite family dishes in this book, from dofu fa, a sweet tofu dessert that my mum always orders at yum cha, to the pea and egg drop soup I had many nights as a kid.

The first recipe I tried: Tomatoey beans with cheesy kale dumplings. Easy enough for a weeknight and so comforting. The dumplings are just like the ones in her smoky tomato soup recipe.

Can’t wait to make: The soy-butter bok choy spaghetti.

Get it for: Hetty fans, anyone looking for delicious weeknight dinner inspo or wanting to eat less meat. For super Hetty fans, the latest issue of her Peddler magazine is a good bet.

I’ve also loved Claire Saffitz’s latest What’s for Dessert (I was mesmerised by her chocolate coupe demo!), A Year of Miracles by Ella Risbridger (the way she writes about food makes me feel like I could deviate from the recipe and rustle up something great from what I have), Around the Table by Julia Busuttil Nishimura (how does she always know exactly what I want to make and eat?!). And if I had one cookbook on my Christmas list it would be The Woks of Life by the Leung family. 

One last note before I sign off for the year — don’t forget libraries have excellent cookbook collections! I love to reserve the new releases.

Catch you in 2023! 🥳