The Greatest Creamed Greens by Alison Roman

What can I say about creamed greens? Alison speaks of them like they’re classic American food. Like anyone who’s had a steak and a baked potato has also had creamed greens. Apparently every good steakhouse serves them? Either I’ve never been to a proper steakhouse, or my mother’s aversion to cooking anything with excess fat or olive oil has kept me from experiencing the richness of some creamed greens. 

But for a first eating of creamed greens, I’ll say Alisons’ were pretty great. 

The recipe begins with breadcrumbs, as all good recipes tend to do. Crisp up fresh crumbs in oil, salt and pepper to a golden perfection. I might go wild next time and add some Aleppo pepper to the crumbs for a bit more heat. 

Next, bring heavy cream to a simmer and drop in several smashed garlic cloves and a dash of nutmeg (yes, nutmeg). Alison calls for freshly grated nutmeg, but I want to know who, if anyone ever, has made this recipe with fresh nutmeg. Where would one find such a thing? And who has the time? I don’t think she’d mind using ground nutmeg… the title of her other cookbook is “nothing fancy” after all. This creamy deliciousness cooks down to a thicker sauce that truly tastes like Alfredo (even though no cheese is involved!). The whole process took about 20 minutes. 

In the meantime, cook down two bunches of Dino kale. At first, I thought, this is too much kale! But no. It’s perfect. It cooks down so much that you’re left with a medium sized bowl that’s halfway full of them by the end. The key here is to cook them in batches at a medium temp, so they don’t overcrowd or get browned. Once wilted, stir in the cream sauce and creme fraiche. 

Ah, creme fraiche. The golden ingredient of every recipe it’s in. If Alison can claim these are the “greatest” creamed greens, it’s because of this ingredient, which adds a tangy depth without making it all taste even heavier. Creme fraiche is unskippable, so don’t even think about jettison-ing it. A mandatory fancieness. 

164 recipes cooked, 61 to go.

The Best Baked Beans by Alison Roman

According to my taste buds and preferences, these are the best baked beans. But they’re not your typical ketchup-y or brown sugar-y baked beans, and Southerners/Bostonians may have some serious qualms. Note: On my only trip to Boston in 2018, Bostonians were quite snooty to me and I didn’t appreciate their air of superiority. So I don’t particularly care what they have to say about these beans. (I’m speaking, of course, about a certain class of Bostonians, knowing that not all Bostonians fit into this class.) Southerners, you may speak freely about the matter. 

I like all kinds of baked beans, because I love beans, but I like these baked beans the best because they can go with any kind of meal during any season. They’re not barbeque specific, or only perfect for the Superbowl. They can be eaten just as well on a Thursday in August as a Monday in January. They're baked beans for any time of life. For example, I originally planned to save this recipe for the late Fall. But upon returning from vacation in late August, the weather outside being in the high 80’s, I found myself craving warm, baked beans. No sweater-weather needed. These beans were exactly what I had hoped for and scratched all my appetite itches. 

Here’s how I made ‘em. The first step requires cooking the bacon on a skillet over medium heat. You’re looking for fat to render, which takes a while – give or take eight minutes. Thinly sliced onions join the party soon thereafter and become caramelized in the fat over fifteen minutes or so. Garlic and thyme or oregano (I used oregano) jump in to release their fragrance, followed by 3 cans of cannellini beans, a cup of broth (or bean cooking liquid if you’re going the fancy dry bean route) and parmesan. Once seasoned with salt and pepper, the beans are baked with fresh bread crumbs on top until nice and bubbly. The whole process takes little prep, but a good 30 minutes at the stove. 

I ate these beans on their own, with Cholula, with bbq sauce, and with kale and lemon juice. There were enough beans to enjoy for multiple meals, and they made perfectly flexible and flavorful leftovers. The dish is totally customizable, too. Variations I might try in the future include: 

• Use pancetta instead of bacon

• Add red pepper flakes

• Use red onion instead of white onion

• Try a sharper cheese like pecorino

• Top with crumbled Cheeze-its instead of breadcrumbs

129 recipes cooked, 96 to go.

Hibiscus-Roasted Peaches with Brown Sugar Bread Crumbs by Alison Roman

I have a confession to make. I dropped the ball on finding hibiscus flowers. I know it’s a defining feature of the recipe, but I was unable to find it in stores, and I just didn’t plan far enough in advance to order it online. Alison advises that we should be able to find dried hibiscus flowers in our local Caribbean or Jamaican grocery store… just me or do you also not have a Caribbean grocery store nearby? It must be nice to live in Brooklyn. ;)

I imagine that hibiscus flowers would add a pleasant, and for lack of a better word, floral note to the dish. But the peaches were just as delicious on their own. Paired with lemon juice, sugar, and a bit of water, these peaches spend about 30 minutes in the oven, until they start bubbling on the edges and the liquid turns slightly syrupy. The lemon juice is rather prominent in flavor which necessitated the brown sugar bread crumbs to balance the sourness. 

One of the key food lessons from this project entails the power of fresh bread crumbs. Alison loves her fried bread crumbs with various seasonings. They add texture and depth to her dishes, and now I love them too. Whether sauteed in butter or olive oil, seasoned with garlic and pepper flakes, sumac and anchovies, or brown sugar, bread crumbs take a dish to the next level. Bread crumbs fried in butter and brown sugar, and sprinkled with flaky sea salt elevated these peaches, balancing the sourness of lemon juice and giving a rich texture to the softened fruit. 

All that to say, this dessert didn’t take my breath away like some of Alison’s other desserts. But I’m not sure “breath-taking” is what she’s going for. Alison gives us her spin on a classic summer dessert, and I think she just wants to give us a good time. Well, a good time was had. 

113 recipes cooked, 112 to go.

Baked Summer Squash with Cream and Parmesan Bread Crumbs by Alison Roman

Wait... Annie. I thought you were cow’s dairy free? Why did you make this dish with heavy cream and parmesan cheese? 

Thanks for that thoughtful question. I made it and ate it because there are some things worth breaking the rules for. And for me, that list includes creamy baked squash with sourdough, parmesan bread crumbs. A girl’s gotta have standards. This is one of mine. 

First, I prepared the sourdough breadcrumbs. I had the stale ends to an old loaf I’d made a few weeks prior and pulsed them in a food processor until they were not too small, but not too big. (It’s all about precision for me.) Then I combined the crumbs with salt, pepper, aleppo pepper, freshly grated garlic, and a half cup of parmesan cheese. I set this aside. 

The recipe calls for about a pound of summer squash, which for me came down to 2 large-ish zucchinis. The quartered them and laid them in a 2-qt. dish. I poured a cup of heavy cream, some dried oregano (sorry, I didn’t have the bandwidth to buy fresh), and some olive oil. Then I sprinkled the bread crumbs over the top of the zucchini. As the dish bakes, the creamy gets bubbly, the parmesan melts, and the sourdough bread crumbs turn a golden brown. It was worth every bite. 

While squash is especially in season during the summer, it’s also around in the fall. I think this would be a lovely side dish on a night when the weather starts to chill and the leaves start to turn. A marriage of seasons in a baking dish. Or a sign of transition between them. (And a delicious sign at that!)

87 recipes cooked, 138 to go.

Baked Eggs with Chorizo, Chickpeas, and Bread Crumbs by Alison Roman

As I lay in bed this morning, I thought about the day ahead. Admittedly I have very few things to accomplish today – I’m on vacation in Colorado. One item on my short to-do list is making this dish. We already bought all of the ingredients and it’s our last full morning here; today’s the day to do it. But I felt tired and not super jazzed about spending 45 minutes cooking breakfast. I could feel perfectly satisfied with just some eggs and toast. 

And yet, every time I make an Alison recipe that I’m not necessarily in the mood for, it’s as if I can hear her say, “do you trust me?” 

My answer is always “yes.” It’s part of my Rules, and that answer hasn’t led to disappointment yet. 

Well, today’s “yes” was surely rewarded – this meal is amazing. I’ll take you through a brief step by step… 

Diced onion, cumin and chorizo spend the first few minutes together, softening and sharing flavor. This recipe calls for dry chorizo, and try as I did, I couldn’t find it. So I used wet pork chorizo instead. No way of telling if that severely altered anything, but let’s just say that I didn’t notice anything wrong. 

Next, diced fresh tomato joins the pan and cooks until it releases its juices and softens nicely. Then, a can of chickpeas and a bit of water go into the pan to simmer until the liquid reduces substantially. Alison instructs you to break the chickpeas a bit with your spatula, which helps them cook faster and turn out softer for eating purposes. 

Meanwhile, and this is the most ingenious part of the recipe in my opinion, Alison has you make her Spicy Bread Crumbs, which are just fresh bread crumbs fried in oil and aleppo pepper. This step was crucial to the overall texture of the dish. Without the crunchy breadcrumbs, the final thing is a softer, dare I say mushy, mixture that is, yes, delicious, but wanting in variety. Bread crumbs are the answer to this, and therefore cannot be skipped. 

With most of the liquid evaporated, four pockets are created in the pan and an egg fills each one. The pan is supposed to bake in the oven so that the eggs can cook, but none of the pans available in our cabin were oven-safe. Instead, I turned the stove’s heat down to medium-low and covered the pan to steam-cook the eggs. This worked perfectly, and only took about 6 minutes! Before plating I sprinkled the bread crumbs and fresh parsley over the top. 

This breakfast thoroughly exceeded all my expectations. The flavors and textures were vibrant, but not overpowering. It felt filling and satisfying, but not heavy. It paired perfectly with sliced avocado. 

Next time I have someone over for brunch, I will make this – without hesitation. 

75 recipes cooked, 150 to go. (ONE THIRD OF THE WAY TO MY GOAL!)