Time is the enemy of most cooks, and like many people I often use weekends to prepare larger meals for the rest of the week. On a Sunday afternoon that’s relatively unscheduled, I’ll prepare and then squirrel away portions of soups, stews, and pasta sauce for days when I don’t have the time or inclination to stand in front of the stove.
Finding inspiration can be challenging, though, and while huge batches of spaghetti sauce and chili are great, sometimes it’s nice to have something fresher and livelier. That’s one of the reasons I’m so enjoying the new cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen, “The Complete Make-Ahead Cookbook.”
There are a lot of reasons to love America’s Test Kitchen cookbooks. Recipes are straightforward and easy to follow, and the steps are methodical and concise. What I particularly love is how the authors identify what can make dishes both shine and fail, and how they’ve used technique and theory in the development of their recipes. This book is a great choice for those who are also short on time for cooking.
I found myself being pleased over and over by small but thoughtful details throughout the book. Its introduction includes not only information about the best equipment for cooking, but also friendly and essential directions about properly storing, refrigerating, and freezing foods for later use. The recipes themselves also offer guidelines for how to best reheat dishes for serving. Each chapter provides an index, with recipes where the active time is 30 minutes or less being labeled as “Easy,” and recipes that can be frozen labeled as “Freeze It” (and both are color coded!). The photography in the book is gorgeous, and virtually every recipe has its own photograph, yet allowing the recipe to take center stage on the page.
As one would hope, the recipes are really why you’re here. While you can find recipe standbys like baked ziti with Italian sausage and a slew of different types of chilis, there are also options for toothsome whole grain salads, roasted meats, and icebox pies. Recipes also often offer variations, letting you play with the makeup of the recipes and further stretching the already prodigious number of dishes which appear in the book.
Both the book itself and the individual recipes are well-conceived and nicely presented, and cooking theory and science are nicely baked into the writing. America’s Test Kitchen has produced a number of cookbooks, but this particular volume is a godsend for those who don’t feel like cooking every night of the week and value variety in their diet.
Egyptian Barley Salad
Why This Recipe Works
We set out to create a vibrant pearl barley salad with a balance of sweetness, tang, and nuttiness. First, we had to find a consistent cooking method for the barley. We turned to what we call the “pasta method,” in which we simply boil the grains until tender. Inspired by the flavors of Egypt, we incorporated toasty pistachios, tangy pomegranate molasses, and bright cilantro, all balanced by warm spices and golden raisins. Salty feta cheese, pungent scallions, and pomegranate seeds adorned the dish for a colorful composed salad with dynamic flavors and textures. But when making this salad’s dressing ahead, we found that the pomegranate molasses’s brightness was muted a bit. So, we made a little more dressing than we would typically need for this salad; the extra dressing gave us leeway to dress more heavily when reviving the salad from refrigerator storage. If you can’t find pomegranate molasses, substitute 30 ml* (2 tablespoons) of lemon juice, 10 ml (2 teaspoons) of mild molasses, and 5 ml (1 teaspoon) of honey. Do not substitute hulled barley or hull-less barley in this recipe. If using quick-cooking or presteamed barley (read the ingredient list on the package to determine this), you will need to decrease the barley cooking time in step 1.
Metric conversions by The Cook’s Cook
Ingredients
- •355 ml (1½ cups) pearl barley
- •Salt and pepper
- •45 ml (3 tablespoons) extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving
- •30 ml (2 tablespoons) pomegranate molasses
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) lemon juice
- •2.5 ml (½ teaspoon) ground cinnamon
- •1.2 ml (¼ teaspoon) ground cumin
- •118 ml (½ cup) coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
- •71 ml (⅓ cup) golden raisins
- •59 ml (¼ cup) shelled pistachios, toasted and chopped coarse
- •85 grams (3 ounces) feta cheese, cut into ½-inch cubes (¾ cup)
- •6 scallions, green parts only, sliced thin
- •118 ml (½ cup) pomegranate seeds
Preparation
1. Bring 3.7 liters (4 quarts) water to boil in Dutch oven. Add barley and 15 ml (1 tablespoon) salt, return to boil, and cook until tender, 20 to 40 minutes. Drain barley, spread in rimmed baking sheet, and let cool for 15 minutes.
2. Whisk oil, pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, cinnamon, cumin, and 2.5 ml (½ teaspoon) salt together in large bowl.
3. Add barley, cilantro, raisins, and pistachios and gently toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spread barley salad evenly on serving platter and arrange feta, scallions, and pomegranate seeds in separate diagonal rows on top. Drizzle with extra oil and serve.
Sausage and White Beans with Mustard Greens
Why This Recipe Works
This rich, stew-like dish combines meaty sausage, creamy white beans, and fresh greens. Sweet Italian sausage, which is very flavorful and easy to get, was a good starting point. Browning the sausage deepened its flavor and rendered the fat, which we used to sauté onion, garlic, and thyme. We added a healthy splash of white wine before adding the chicken broth, tomatoes, and beans. Using canned cannellini beans eliminated an overnight soak. For the greens, we enjoyed the peppery spice of mustard greens, which we gently wilted before braising them. To finish, a sprinkle of cheesy bread crumbs and parsley added pleasant crunch and freshness. You can substitute kale for the mustard greens.
Metric conversions by The Cook’s Cook
Ingredients
- •2 slices hearty white sandwich bread
- •60 ml (¼ cup) extra-virgin olive oil
- •60 ml (¼ cup) grated Parmesan cheese
- •Salt and pepper
- •.5 kg (1 pound) hot or sweet Italian sausage
- •1 onion, chopped fine
- •30 grams (2 tablespoons) minced fresh or 10 grams (2 teaspoons) dried thyme
- •6 garlic cloves, minced
- •120 ml (½ cup) dry white wine
- •411 grams (14.5-ounces) canned diced tomatoes, drained with juice reserved
- •30 ml (1½ cups) chicken broth
- •425 grams (15 ounces) canned cannellini beans, rinsed
- •340 grams (12 ounces) mustard greens, stemmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
- •30 grams (2 tablespoons) minced fresh parsley
Preparation
1. Pulse bread in food processor until finely ground, 10 to 15 pulses. Heat 30 grams (2 tablespoons) oil in a 30 cm (12-inch) nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add bread crumbs and cook, stirring constantly, until crumbs begin to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add Parmesan and cook, stirring constantly, until crumbs are golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste.
2. Prick sausages with fork in several places. Heat 15 grams (1 tablespoon) oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown sausages well on all sides, about 8 minutes; transfer to plate.
3. Heat remaining 15 grams (1 tablespoon) oil in now-empty pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and 2.5 grams (¼ teaspoon) salt and cook until softened and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in thyme and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in wine and reserved tomato juice, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until nearly evaporated, about 5 minutes. Stir in broth, beans, and tomatoes and bring to simmer.
Stir in mustard greens and cook until slightly wilted, about 1 minute. Place sausages on top of greens. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until greens are wilted and reduced in volume by about half, about 10 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to medium-low, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until sausages are cooked through and greens are tender, about 15 minutes.
Off heat, mash portion of beans against side of pot with back of spoon to thicken sauce. Serve, sprinkling individual portions with bread crumbs and parsley.