APÉRITIF:
It’s finally here, peak *autumn*. Mallomars are back on shelves, the 31 days of Halloween are well underway on ABC Family (sorry, we’ll never call it Freeform), and one of us is currently road tripping with her sister to California through mind-blowing foliage. So without further ado, let’s get into it: Soup Season. Don’t get me wrong, I love summer and cherish the simplicity of wearing minimal clothing and not having to actually cook my food (RIP my tomato plants), but there is nothing better than leaning into Soup Season. It’s officially time to curl up under a cozy blanket, light a seasonally scented candle (or bake a treat that smells like one), and tuck into a big bowl of something warm.
ON THE MENU THIS WEEK:
DINNER PLANS
Curried Lentil Soup: Chances are you already have all the ingredients required to make this curried lentil and coconut soup from absolute Vegetable God, Yotam Ottolenghi. Super simple, very filling, and accidentally vegan, this recipe warms you from the inside out. It’s somewhere between a soup and stew, let’s call it a stoop. I would like to extend a sincere thank you to Mr. Ottolenghi and this recipe for teaching me that cilantro stems are not only edible, but delicious, with arguably even more flavor than the leaves. Keep this recipe in your back pocket all stoop season long. -CK
Chicken and Rice Soup: I simply love a recipe that I can doctor so many ways without sacrificing the final product. I’ve made this quick chicken soup without the sweet potatoes, with brown rice instead of jasmine, with handfuls of tuscan kale tossed in at the end, with chicken breast (just take them out a little earlier!). However many of these substitutions I make, I always, always, serve each bowl of it with a glug of sesame oil. -GS
Concord Grape Tart: Is this dinner? Probably not. But I feel compelled to share because concord grapes are only in season for a short, blissful moment. One of the best things I cooked in all of last year was a grape-y riff on the incredible King chef and British angel Clare de Boer’s Bakewell Tart. Lofty statement, but I mean it. If you think you don’t like frangipane, sorry but you probably do! It’s the thing that makes nearly everything you get in French pastry shops delicious! In lieu of Clare’s cranberry sauce I subbed in some concord grapes that I — and this is a technical term — mushed down with a little water to loosen and then strained through a sieve to remove the big seeds. This year, I intend on making a similar mush to use in every fruity dessert I make, starting with these Oat Bars and this Pantry Crumb Cake. Everyone kvetches over Strawberry Season, Tomato Season, Stone Fruit Season, but I would like to formally nominate Grape Season. -CK
SO YOU WANT YOUR KITCHEN TO SMELL LIKE A YANKEE CANDLE
Gingerbread: My best friend’s mom found a very random recipe card for ginger cookies from a very famous coffeehouse that I will not be naming here. I can’t give up ALL of my secrets! I will share what actually matters, which is the recipe for these coffee-infused, crunchy sugar-coated cookies. One batch makes maybe fifty of them, so feel free to halve it for a normal night’s amount of what we call The Ginger Cookies.
Fill a bowl with ¾ cup of turbinado sugar (but any big, crunchy sugar will do). In another bowl or stand mixer, beat together 3 sticks of butter and 2 cups of sugar together until they’re light and fluffy (~4 minutes). Beat in 2 eggs and ½ cup of molasses until the mixture is smooth and uniform (1 minute). In another bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of ground coffee, 4 teaspoons of ground ginger, 2 teaspoons of baking soda, 1½ teaspoons of cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of cloves, ¾ teaspoon of salt, and 4 cups of flour. Slowly add those dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir just until the dough comes together. Roll the dough into balls (golf ball-sized) and roll each one in the bowl of crunchy sugar. Bake them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes (until they’re crackly in the center and a little firm around the edges). Eat one warm, eat one the next day, eat two with a big scoop of coffee ice cream sandwiched in between.
Pumpkin Spice: Say what you will about pumpkin, but for me, it scratches an itch when the temperature drops. And let’s be real, it’s just a vehicle for warming spices more than anything else. No complaints, though. If you find yourself seeking the simple pleasures of a pumpkin treat, I love this pumpkin bread recipe. It’s soft and dense, actually pumpkin-y (vs. pumpkin spice-y), and not too sweet because of the fresh ginger and grassy olive oil. I skip the maple butter, as well as the pumpkin seeds on top, but add a teaspoon of cinnamon to the tablespoon of sugar before sprinkling it over the bread batter. I also frequent Smitten Kitchen’s pumpkin bread, which makes an obscene amount of batter equivalent to one monster loaf, or four (!) sizable mini loaves. It uses the whole damn can of pumpkin (love you, Deb) and is aggressively spiced with cinnamon and ginger. I nix the cloves because I firmly believe no one actually likes cloves, and instead put even more cinnamon. P.S. If you’ve never tried real cinnamon (like this one from Burlap & Barrel) please do; you may just reenact my favorite TikTok.
Mulled Wine: And a recipe submission from Zach Vitale, retoucher and baker, who wants everyone to know about this olive oil cake recipe. It’s his “all-time favorite cake,” and is also dairy free, meaning our dearest Court can eat it with no consequences. He says good olive oil, like this one from Wonder Valley, is a must, but that the Vin Santo can be substituted for any “dry/sweet white dessert wine.” Just “don't use red wine, it will color the batter.” Most importantly, Zach says whenever he makes this cake, “the scents of the wine simmering with the raisins, the fresh rosemary, the brightness of the oranges, toasting of the pine nuts, etc. are really invigorating and soothing and a full-on sensory adventure.”
Choose your fighter.
TAKEOUT:
Some real candles we love! Catch me in the Anthropologie candle section spending a large chunk of my paycheck on candles with names like “Hot Moss” and “Chewed Tobacco”. This Voluspa one is my longtime favorite; it’s warm, slightly musky, and not too sweet (a pet peeve of mine*). I also use this Christmas candle year-round because I’m a JWLC (Jew who loves Christmas) and it’s the perfect scent of fresh cut fir. I also love many from P.F. Candle Co. but my top two are this fig one and this warm, smokey one.
*I, on the other hand, love sweet candles, like this maple hazelnut one, and this one called “Sugared Vanilla” that I used to burn on my desk for so many hours that it made my coworkers nauseous. ❤️
This is finally available again. That is all.
Both Gab and I are gearing up for long drives this week (Gab back to Maine, me on the first leg of The Road Trip), so road snacks are on the brain. We loaded up on no less than $15 worth of Honey Crisp apples and loads of too-salty nuts, but I’m most excited to break into my beloved Bjorn Qorn, which is simply the best popcorn (admittedly too much) money can buy.