Ingredients

• 1 small rabbit, about 3 pounds, cut into 6 to 8 pieces
• Salt and pepper
• 3 tablespoons lard or vegetable oil
• 1 cup all-purpose flour for dredging rabbit, plus 2 tablespoons for sauce
• 1 large onion, diced (about 2 cups)
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 ½ cups chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
• 2 thyme branches
• 12 sage leaves
• ½ cup crème fraîche
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon chopped capers
• ¼ cup thinly sliced chives
• 1 pound cooked pappardelle pasta or wide egg noodles, for serving (optional)

Preparation

Lay rabbit pieces on a baking sheet and season each piece generously with salt and pepper. (If you are using a pepper mill, adjust it for coarse grind.)

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Put a deep, heavy-bottomed, oven-safe saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add lard or oil.

Put 1 cup flour on a wide plate. Dip seasoned rabbit pieces in flour and dust off excess. Gently set them in the hot oil in one layer without crowding; work in batches if necessary. Adjust heat to keep them from browning too quickly. Cook for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side until nicely browned.

Remove browned rabbit from pan and set aside. Add diced onion to fat remaining in pan. Keep heat brisk and cook onions until softened and lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 to 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Sprinkle onions with 2 tablespoons flour and stir until well incorporated, then cook for a minute or so, until mixture starts to smell toasty. Add wine and 1 cup broth, whisking as the sauce thickens. Whisk in remaining broth and the whole-grain mustard and bring to a simmer. Taste for salt and adjust.

Return browned rabbit pieces to the sauce. Add thyme and sage. Cover pot and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until meat is fork tender. (Alternatively, simmer over low heat, covered, on the stove top, for about the same amount of time.)

Using tongs, remove rabbit pieces from sauce, set aside, and keep warm. Put saucepan over medium heat and bring contents to a simmer. Whisk in crème fraîche, Dijon mustard and capers and simmer until somewhat thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste sauce and adjust.

Transfer rabbit to a warmed serving bowl and ladle the sauce over. Sprinkle generously with chives and a little freshly ground pepper. Accompany with noodles if desired.

David Tanis, New York Times

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large rosemary sprig
• 1 fennel bulb—cored and finely diced, stems finely chopped
• 1 quart heavy cream
• 2 small leeks, white and pale green parts only, thinly sliced
• Eight 1-inch-thick slices of brown bread
• 1 cup frozen baby peas, thawed
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 1/2 dozen shucked oysters, with their liquor
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced chives

Preparations

In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the rosemary over low heat. Remove from the heat and let the rosemary butter cool to room temperature; discard the rosemary.

In a large saucepan, combine the chopped fennel stems with the cream and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Strain the cream and discard the chopped fennel stems. Return the cream to the saucepan. Add the diced fennel and simmer over moderate heat until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the leeks and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°. Brush the bread with the rosemary butter and arrange on a baking sheet. Bake the bread for about 8 minutes, until lightly toasted.

Bring the cream back to a boil. Stir in the peas, lemon zest and lemon juice. Remove from the heat and stir in the oysters and their liquor. Let the stew stand for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.

Ladle the stew into bowls and stand a piece of toast in each bowl. Garnish with the chives and serve.

Food & Wine

Ingredients

• 1 medium eggplant (1 pound)
• Salt
• 3 ½ pounds bone-in chicken pieces
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 6 cloves
• 6 green cardamom pods
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 ½ cups long-grain rice, rinsed well and drained
• 1 small onion, cut into large wedges
• Vegetable or olive oil, as needed
• 3 to 5 medium carrots, 2-or-3-inch pieces
• 1 medium potato, 1/2-inch slices
• ½ medium-head cauliflower, in florets
• ¾ cup broken vermicelli noodles (see note)
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon Goya Sazón seasoning (optional)
• 3 garlic cloves, grated
• ⅓ cup pine nuts
• Plain yogurt, for serving (optional)
• Chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, lemon juice and olive oil, for serving (optional)

Preparation

Cut the eggplant into 1/2-inch-thick half-moons. Season well with salt, and let sit 30 minutes. Place the chicken in a large pot (a 10-inch, 5-quart size is ideal), and season well with salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper, ground cumin, cloves, cardamom pods and bay leaves (ideally, do this the day before). Pour 3 cups of boiling water over the rice. Soak for 10 minutes, then drain well.

To the chicken, add the onion wedges, 1 tablespoon salt and 4 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, covered, over high heat, then turn down to a simmer, and cook for 20 minutes. Drain the chicken, keeping the broth and discarding the onion and spices.

Heat 1/2 inch of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering hot, then fry the carrots, in batches if necessary, turning occasionally until browned, about 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels, then season lightly with salt. Repeat with the potato, about 3 minutes per side. Repeat with the cauliflower, about 7 minutes per batch. Finally, press the eggplant with paper towel until dry, then fry the eggplant in one layer until browned, about 4 minutes per batch. Drain on paper towels, but don’t season. (If the eggplant is too oily, press on it with paper towels.)

Pour out the oil, keeping 2 1/2 tablespoons in the pan. Heat it over medium-high heat and add the vermicelli, stirring until browned, about 2 minutes. Add the drained rice and cook, stirring, to dry it out, about 4 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, the turmeric, cinnamon, allspice, ground cloves, Sazón and garlic, and cook, stirring, until very fragrant.

Place the chicken back in the pot, skin side down. Place the vegetables on top, then rice. Pour in 4 cups of the chicken broth. Press down on the rice; add more broth or water if needed to bring the liquid barely to the level of the rice. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat, then turn it down to medium low. After 10 minutes, carefully stir just the rice to evenly combine the harder rice on top. Repeat after another 10 minutes. After a total of 30 minutes, the rice should be cooked, but not soft, and the liquid should be absorbed.

Place a very large serving dish on top of the pot, then, protecting your hands (and maybe with a partner), invert the pot onto the dish in one smooth motion. If there is liquid seeping out, spoon it out or soak it up with paper towels. Let the pot rest at least 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a small pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Fry the pine nuts, stirring constantly, until browned, about 1 minute. Drain on paper towels.

Lift off the pot to reveal the maqluba, and scatter the pine nuts all over. Serve with yogurt and chopped tomatoes, cucumbers and parsley on the side, seasoned with lemon, salt and olive oil.

New York Times

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter
• ½ cup finely chopped onions
• 1 ½ cups arborio rice
• ½ cup dry white wine or dry vermouth
• 3 to 3 ½ cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 ounce dried porcini, broken into bits
• 1 cup frozen peas
• ½ cup grated Parmesan, plus more to pass at the table
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, for garnish

Preparation

Heat the oil in a 2 1/2-quart or larger pressure cooker. Add the onions, and cook over high heat for 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in the rice, taking care to coat it with the oil. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

Stir in the wine. Cook over high heat until the rice has absorbed the wine, about 30 seconds. Stir in 3 cups of the broth and the porcini, taking care to scrape up any rice that might be sticking to the bottom of the cooker.

Lock the lid in place. Over high heat, bring to high pressure. Reduce the heat just enough to maintain high pressure, and cook for 4 minutes. Turn off the heat. Quick-release the pressure by setting the cooker under cold running water. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow the steam to escape.

Set the cooker over medium-high heat, and stir vigorously. The risotto will look fairly soupy at this point. Boil while stirring every minute or so, until the mixture thickens and the rice is tender but still chewy, 1 to 4 minutes. Stir in the peas when the rice is almost done. (If the mixture becomes dry before the rice is done, stir in the extra ½ cup of broth. The finished risotto should be slightly runny; it will continue to thicken as it sits on the plate.)

Turn off the heat. Stir in the Parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with a little parsley. Pass extra Parmesan at the table.

New York Times

Ingredients

• 3 green onions (we’ll use only the green parts)
• 1 inch ginger
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 lb. (907 g) pork belly block
• Water for cooking pork belly
• 4 boiled eggs
• ¼ cup (60 ml) sake
• ½ cup (120 ml) water
• ½ cup (120 ml) mirin
• ½ cup (120 ml) soy sauce
• ¼ cup (50 g) sugar

Preparation

We will only use the green parts of the green onions (use the white parts in miso soup to go with this dish). Cut the green parts in half. Peel the ginger and slice it thinly.

On the pressure cooker, press the “Sauté” button on your Instant Pot and heat the oil. Cook the pork belly. You can skip this part to cut down the cooking time, but this process will render more fat and make the dish tastier.

Pour water to cover the meat, then add the green onions and sliced ginger. Cover and lock the lid. Make sure the steam release handle points at “sealing” and not “venting”. Press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button on the Instant Pot to stop cooking. Press the “meat/Stew” button to switch to the pressure cooking mode. Cook under pressure for 35 minutes. If you’re using a stove-top pressure cooker, you won’t have the buttons to press. Just cook on high heat until high pressure is reached. Then reduce the heat to low to maintain high pressure for about 30 minutes.

When it is finished cooking, the Instant Pot will switch automatically to a “Keep Warm” mode. Slide the steam release handle to the “Venting” position to let out steam until the float valve drops down, OR let the pressure release naturally (takes about 15 mins). Unlock the lid and drain the cooking water and discard the green onion and ginger. Rinse the pork belly under warm water.

Put the pork belly back in the Instant Pot and add water, sake, mirin, soy sauce, and sugar. Mix the seasonings a little bit and add the boiled eggs. Press the “Sauté” button on the Instant Pot and press “Adjust” once to increase the heat. Bring it to simmer to let the alcohol evaporate. Once the alcohol smell is gone, press “Keep Warm/Cancel” button to turn off the Sauté mode. Cover and lock the lid. Make sure the steam release handle points at “sealing” and not “venting”. Press the “meat/Stew” button to turn on the pressure cooking mode. Press the “minus” button to decrease the cooking time from the preset 35 minutes to 10 minutes.

When it is finished cooking, the Instant Pot will switch automatically to a “Keep Warm” mode. Slide the steam release handle to the “Venting” position to let out steam until the float valve drops down and unlock the lid. If you have time (this is optional), press the “Sauté” button and simmer on low heat until the liquid in the cooker has reduced by half.

Serve the rice in a (donburi) bowl and pour the sauce on top. Place the pork belly and egg (add blanched green vegetable if you have any). Pour additional sauce over the meat and serve immediately.

Just One Cookbook

Ingredients

• pork belly
• 1 cup warm water (105-115°F), divided
• 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 3 tablespoons sugar plus a pinch
• 2 tablespoons nonfat dried milk
• 3 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• Canola oil for greasing and brushing
• hoisin sauce; thinly sliced cucumber; chopped scallions cucumber scallions (for serving)

Preparation

Stir together 1/4 cup warm water with yeast and pinch of sugar. Let stand until foamy, 5 to 10 minutes. (If mixture doesn’t foam, start over with new yeast.) Whisk in dried milk and remaining 3/4 cup warm water.

Stir together flour and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar in a bowl, then stir in yeast mixture (do not add baking powder yet) with a fork until a dough forms. Knead dough with your hands in bowl until all of flour is incorporated. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and knead, dusting surface and hands with just enough flour to keep dough from sticking, until dough is elastic and smooth but still soft, about 5 minutes. Form dough into a ball.

Put dough in an oiled large bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let dough rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled, about 2 hours.

Punch down dough, then transfer to a lightly floured surface and flatten slightly into a disk. Sprinkle baking powder over center of dough, then gather edges of dough and pinch to seal in baking powder. Knead dough with just enough flour to keep dough from sticking until baking powder is incorporated, about 5 minutes. Return dough to bowl and cover with plastic wrap, then let dough stand 30 minutes.

Cut 16 (3- by 2-inch) pieces of wax paper.

Form dough into a 16-inch-long log. Cut into 16 equal pieces, then lightly dust with flour and loosely cover with plastic wrap. Roll out 1 piece of dough into a 6- by 3-inch oval, lightly dusting surface, your hands, and rolling pin. Pat oval between your palms to remove excess flour, then brush half of oval lightly with oil and fold in half crosswise (do not pinch). Place bun on a piece of wax paper on a large baking sheet and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Make more buns with remaining dough, then let stand, loosely covered, until slightly risen, about 30 minutes.

Set a large steamer rack inside skillet (or wok) and add enough water to reach within 1/2 inch of bottom of rack, then bring to a boil. Carefully place 5 to 7 buns (still on wax paper) in steamer rack (do not let buns touch). Cover tightly and steam over high heat until buns are puffed and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer buns to a plate with tongs, then discard wax paper and wrap buns in kitchen towels (not terry cloth) to keep warm. Steam remaining buns in 2 batches, adding boiling-hot water to skillet as needed.

Return buns (still wrapped in towels) to steamer rack in skillet and keep warm (off heat), covered.

Brush bottom half of each bun with hoisin sauce, then sandwich with 2 or 3 pork slices and some cucumber and scallions.

Gourmet, October 2007

Ingredients

• ½ pound ground pork, not too lean
• ½ pound fresh shrimp, peeled, deveined and roughly chopped in 1/4-inch pieces
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon sweet rice wine, such as Shaoxing rice wine (or use sherry)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon spicy Chinese bean paste, also called chili bean sauce (or use chile paste)
• 2 serrano chiles, finely chopped
• 1 ½ cups chopped Chinese garlic chives (or use 3/4 cup chopped scallions, green and white parts)
• 36 wonton skins, about 3 by 3 inches, available at Asian markets and many grocery stores
• 1 small egg, beaten
• Cornstarch for dusting
• 8 ounces baby spinach leaves
• ½ cup chopped cilantro
• 8 cups good chicken broth, hot, salted to taste
• Red pepper oil (optional)

Preparation

Put pork and shrimp in a chilled mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper and mix briefly with chopsticks, wet hands or wooden spoons. Add rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, bean paste, serrano chiles and garlic chives. Mix well to incorporate. Pan-fry a small flat patty in a small amount of oil to check seasoning; taste and adjust. Transfer mixture to a small container, cover and chill at least 30 minutes, or longer if you have time, up to 24 hours.

To prepare wontons, remove a few wonton skins from package and lay them on dry work surface. Put 1 teaspoon filling in the center of each square skin. Paint edges of square lightly with egg. Gently fold one side over the other, pinching edges together. You should a have a folded rectangle. Now pull the lower corners in toward each other and pinch together to make the traditional curved wonton shape. Place wontons 1 inch apart on a baking sheet or platter. Dust lightly with cornstarch and refrigerate, uncovered, until ready to cook.

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, put a small handful of spinach leaves and about 2 tablespoons cilantro in each person’s deep wide soup bowl. When water is boiling, drop about 10 wontons into pot and cook for 2 minutes. Remove with wire bamboo spider (or a large fine-meshed sieve with a handle) and divide among bowls. Repeat with remaining wontons. Pour about 1 1/2 cups hot broth over each serving. Drizzle with red pepper oil if desired.

New York Times

Ingredients

• Salt
• 1 ½ cups finely grated pecorino Romano, plus more for dusting completed dish
• 1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper, plus more for finishing the dish
• ¾ pound tonnarelli or other long pasta like linguine or spaghetti
• Good olive oil

Preparation

Put a pot of salted water on to boil. In a large bowl, combine the cheeses and black pepper; mash with just enough cold water to make a thick paste. Spread the paste evenly in the bowl.

Once the water is boiling, add the pasta. The second before it is perfectly cooked (taste it frequently once it begins to soften), use tongs to quickly transfer it to the bowl, reserving a cup or so of the cooking water.

Stir vigorously to coat the pasta, adding a teaspoon or two of olive oil and a bit of the pasta cooking water to thin the sauce if necessary. The sauce should cling to the pasta and be creamy but not watery.

Plate and dust each dish with additional pecorino and pepper. Serve immediately.

Mark Bittman, NYT

Ingredients

• 4 cups sugar snap peas
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup parmeggiano reggiano (parmesan) cheese
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 pound penne rigate
• 1 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup pignoli nuts
• 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon fresh spearmint
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation

Prep the sugar snap peas, pulling the string off the side. Then blanch them in salted boiling water for a minute (basically, you get the water boiling, you add the peas to the water, once it starts boiling again, you can fish them out). Refresh them in a bowl of salted ice water. Cut them up in halves or thirds, depending on their size (1/2" size is good). Reserve 1.5 cups of the prepped peas. The rest will go in the pesto.

Put a large pot of salted water on high heat on the stove for the pasta.

Heat the butter and 1 tbsp of the olive oil together in a heavy bottomed pan. Add the garlic clove to the heated butter and oil until it gets a nice lightly toasted color. You can pull it out now and reserve it. Add the sliced onions and the crushed red pepper and cook on medium heat until they are caramelized. This takes a little while (as much as 20 min) so be patient, young grasshopper.

While you are waiting on the onions to caramelize, you can start work on your pesto. If you have a hunk of parmesan, cut it into smaller pieces and blitz it in the food processor. Make sure you have a cup. Next you can blitz the pine nuts.

Once the onions are finished caramelizing, you can pull them off the heat so they cool slightly. Then you can add the onions, the cooked garlic clove, and the non-reserved peas (i.e., the majority of them) to the food processor with the pine nuts. Go ahead and add in stages if the food processor is getting too full. Pulse for the first few times to get it started and then hold down the button. You can add the olive oil through the hole in the top to keep the mixture wet and moving. When all the ingredients are processed, it should be grainy and wet, but will never be totally smooth. That’s ok.

Once the water is boiling, drop the pasta and cook according to package directions.

Do a chiffonade of the mint – this means you stack the mint leaves together and roll them up like a little cigar. Then you cut them up cross-wise as thinly as possible.

When the pasta is ready, reserve a ladleful of pasta water. Drain the pasta and put it back in the pot you cooked it in. Add the pesto, a few tablespoons at a time, tossing to combine. If it is too dry, add the reserved pasta water, a little at a time. Once you have the right pesto-pasta ratio (this is up to you), taste to see if it needs more salt and pepper and add as necessary. Toss in the reserved peas and the mint. This is good at room temperature too, so you can make it ahead of time.

JORJ, Food52

Ingredients

• 2 bunches mustard greens
• 6 italian sausages
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed
• grated parmesan
• lemon

Preparation

Rinse and chop the mustard greens. Brown the sausages, very thoroughly, with a tiny bit of olive oil over medium-high heat. They do not, however, need to be fully cooked. Add the garlic and sautee for around 30 seconds. Add the greens in batches, cooking them down. Add around 1/2 cup of water (if the greens haven’t produced enough of their own liquid) and reduce the heat. Cover and simmer for around ten minutes, until the greens are fully cooked. Serve with parmesan and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Epicurious, modified