A weeknight spaghetti with extra oomphWhen we moved in together 20 years ago, my husband brought with him boxes of books, crates of vinyl and a lone preserved lemon in a jar. Back then, preserved lemons were specialty items that were hard to find even in New York City. So he had made his own, and carefully ferried it from his bachelor fridge in Hell’s Kitchen to our place in Brooklyn. I knew from the moment he unpacked it that he was definitely The One. These days you can find preserved lemons in large supermarkets and online. Nargisse Benkabbou puts the salty, fermented citrus to good use in her creamy tomato spaghetti. Seasoned with garlic and tomato paste and enriched with cream, it’s a 25-minute crowd-pleaser with bright umami flavors. Could this dish be The One? There’s only one way to find out. Featured Recipe Creamy Tomato Spaghetti With Preserved LemonMore food for thoughtGinger chicken and rice soup with zucchini: The first zucchinis are hitting farmers’ markets around the country. Early adopters can use them in Yossy Arefi’s light and brothy soup, which is stained yellow by ground turmeric and infused with loads of fresh, zingy ginger. Yossy calls for brown rice, but white rice or even orzo will work just as well; just reduce the cooking time by about 10 minutes. Fideo verde seco (garlic shrimp and cilantro noodles): In this Mexican comfort food classic, thin noodles are toasted in olive oil until golden and nutty, then simmered in a jalapeño, cilantro and spinach salsa until they soften, absorbing all those herby, fresh flavors. Paola Briseño-González adds garlicky shrimp, avocado and crumbled cotija cheese to her version, making for a satisfying meal in shades of pink and green. White bean, feta and quick-pickled celery salad: Velvety soft white beans meet snappy celery in Hetty Lui McKinnon’s tangy, toothsome salad. Pickling the celery for just 15 minutes radically transforms the vegetable, mellowing the texture from stridently crunchy to gently crisp. Tossed with canned beans, red onion, creamy feta and a mound of fresh herbs, Hetty’s salad makes a speedy, refreshing side dish or a light weeknight meal. Panko-crusted pork tenderloin with tahini slaw: Samantha Seneviratne’s hearty recipe resembles schnitzel or Milanese, in that slices of meat are coated with breadcrumbs and fried until golden. But Sam adds minced parsley stems and Dijon to the breading to boost its flavor, and serves the crisp, brawny slabs with a red cabbage slaw dressed with tahini. It’s an adaptable preparation that would also be delightful with fish fillets or chicken cutlets. Death by Chocolate: Dan Pelosi’s bittersweet confection would be a pretty nice way to meet your maker. A fudgy trifle that layers homemade devil’s food cake with chocolate pudding and vanilla whipped cream, it goes a step beyond with a topping of chopped toffee. Simply to die for. Something sweet to finish
You know what else is a guaranteed crowd pleaser? Pizza! You can watch Dakota Johnson and Chris Evans make their own dream pies in the New York Times Cooking kitchen studio in our new video series, The Pizza Interview. What are their topping choices? There’s only one way to find out (by watching the video here). As always, you’ll want to subscribe to access all these smart recipes and so many more (in the realm of tens of thousands more). If you need any technical help, the brilliant people at cookingcare@nytimes.com are there for you. And I’m at hellomelissa@nytimes.com if you want to say hi. That’s all for now. See you on Wednesday.
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