Creamy Sesame Turmeric Dip by Alison Roman

The creamiest dip that I ever did eat, in fact. This largely simple spread includes three creamy ingredients: cream cheese, sour cream, and tahini. Not only that, but we’re instructed to combine them in a food processor, which gives a dense whipped cream effect. 

The other step involves heating olive oil and sesame seeds in a skillet until toasted and fragrant. Once removed from heat, add ground turmeric and swirl to combine. Pour the mixture onto the fluffy creamy goodness that awaits in a serving bowl.  

I served the dip alongside almond crackers, pita crackers, and sugar snap peas. Next time I’ll also throw in radishes and carrots. The dip practically begged me for a wider veggie display. (For those of you wondering, TJ’s now sells vegan cream cheese and sour cream. Which means everyone can eat this dip!)

133 recipes cooked, 92 to go.

Pistachio-Plum Crisp by Alison Roman

I like pistachios, and I really like plums. Sadly, I didn’t care for this dessert. 

The pistachio topping was a little too wet and the pistachio flavor too overpowering. The plums became nice and jammy, but their flavor was too sweet for me. It needed to rely on the natural sugar more, and added sugar less. Normally with a fruity dessert, I’d say layer on the ice cream, but that would have made an already overly sweet dessert even sweeter. 

The assembly is rather simple, like any fruit cobbler. The fruit is tossed with corn starch, sugar, and your acid of choice. The topping consists of butter, flour, sugar, spices, and nuts, then gets scattered on top of the fruit to bake. I love simplicity, but I’d prefer to use my plums differently.

Next plum season, I’ll opt for just making Alison’s Torn Plum Browned Butter Cake like five times in a row. That cake is incredible. Seriously, go make it.

132 recipes cooked, 93 to go.

Sungold Pasta with Lemony Shellfish, Garlic, and Pistachios by Alison Roman

Since starting this project, I tend to think about food in terms “Before Alison” or “After Alison.” Before Alison, seafood pasta wasn’t on my radar at all. After Alison, I crave it all the time. I look for it on restaurant menus. I approached this recipe with great anticipation. And it mostly lived up to my expectations. 

This recipe requires a lot of multitasking, so the more you can prepare ahead of time, the less stressful the cooking process will be. I suggest slicing the garlic and fennel, and scrubbing and soaking the clams ahead of time. If you don’t already have toasted pistachios on hand, toast those first, too. The last thing you’ll want to do is wait for them to toast while your pasta is getting cold. 

In a large skillet, I first sauteed the fennel bulb and garlic, letting them become tender. Then came the spices, toasted briefly, and a pound of tomatoes. No Sungold’s at the grocery store, but I did find Sungold look-alikes which did the job well. (Yes, even vegetables have doppelgangers!) The tomatoes needed time to heat through and break down into a jammy sauce. At around the eight-minute mark, I started gently breaking them down with the back of my wooden spoon. Next, I added white wine and let it simmer and reduce. That’s four different steps, and we’re only halfway through the recipe! 

The clams need to steam in the sauce for a few minutes until they’re only slightly opened before the shrimp can join. The clams continue to open while their shrimpy partners cook and turn opaque. I’m always surprised at how little effort this seafood takes to cook! 

Instead of adding the pasta to the skillet (I used TJ’s GF brown rice spaghetti), Alison recommends coating the noodles with sauce in a giant serving bowl instead. Heed her advice! I chose to dump the pasta into my saucy skillet, only to quickly realize that there was absolutely no room to toss everything together. I quickly poured the meal into a wide serving bowl and proceeded to mix it from there. The final step involves a good sprinkling of toasted, chopped pistachios for a nutty finish. 

I really enjoyed this pasta. Jordan, not as much. He told me afterward that he could take or leave the seafood, and would enjoy the pasta with just the fennel and tomato sauce. I personally liked the added protein, but I see what he means. The seafood didn’t feel instrumental to the dish. More of an afterthought. If push came to shove, I think I’d prefer Alison’s other seafood pasta from Dining In, Clam Pasta with Chorizo and Walnuts. And that’s surprising, given my affinity for tomatoes. 

131 recipes cooked, 94 to go.

Summer Squash with Basil, Parmesan, and Toasted Buckwheat by Alison Roman

It may surprise you that this entire plate of squash was eaten by four people in one sitting. It may surprise you that I’ve been craving this dish ever since I made it. It may also surprise you that lemon juice and a dash of fish sauce (yes, fish sauce) are all that’s needed to make seemingly flavorless summer squash taste irresistibly fresh. A sprinkling of parmesan, chives, basil, and toasted pistachios don’t hurt either. 

And that’s exactly what this dish involves – thinly sliced squash (about two large ones) tossed in lemon juice and a teaspoon of fish sauce, arranged with style (or not) on a large serving platter, topped with parmesan, finely chopped chives, basil, and toasted pistachios. I chose to sub the buckwheat groats (an Alison classic) because I already had toasted and chopped pistachios on hand. If you’re considering skipping the fish sauce, don’t. It adds a very subtle complexity that lemon juice alone won’t provide. No one asked, “is there fish sauce in this?” But just, “how did you make the squash taste so good?”

A future summer go-to if I ever had one.  

130 recipes cooked, 95 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.