“Maple-roasted tofu” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: Before Lockdown, a million or maybe a bazillion years ago, I was trying to be Vegan Before 6. I tried to be vegan for the first few weeks of lockdown but it was just too much fo my brain to compute, so I gave up. But as things are easing, I am testing the waters of Veganism again. Hence this recipe with tofu and squash. This is a great little recipe, packed full of flavours, easier than it looks (from the recipe) to cook. And everyone except Miles loved it. However, he confided in me that he would consider trying a tomato. SO THERE’S THAT. Next up. AUBERGINE.

“Sweet Garlic Chicken” from Dinner”

Kirstin: It’s Sunday night. Which calls for another roast chicken recipe. Again, Melissa Clark comes up with the goods. I was worried about our slightly larger bird not cooking through if was merely splayed, so I spatchcocked ours. Also theI loved the addition of olives, chilli and lemon juice.

“Smoky Paprika chicken with crispy chickpeas, roasted lemon and baby kale” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: I’ve been eyeing this recipe up for a while. For a long while, truth be told. Roast a chicken. Twenty minutes before the end of cooking, add some chickpeas (With two kinds of paprika) to the pan. And then some kale. Genius. Although of course I changed it slightly. Because lockdown. And also because I couldn’t be bothered with all the boiling a lemon faffing in the original recipe. Instead, I added a preserved lemon and that worked really well. Also I didn’t use kale. Because I am not a fan. Instead I used spinach.

The results were spectacular! And I definitely plan to make this one again. Although I am not sure when because I’m trying (as you know) a different roast chicken recipe every week. But I can see this one becoming a firm favourite.

“Roasted sumac chicken with plums” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: This is a relatively new recipe for me. I am not certain what made me try it because as I am sure you all remember how I feel about fruit and meat. But at some point I thought I would give it a try. And I am SO glad I did. Because it turns out plums and sumac and allspice and cinnamon and honey make a wonderful combination. Try it. Honestly. You will not be disappointed.

Our Verdict: “Dinner, Changing the Game”

Kirstin: I just want Melissa Clark to move in to my house and cook with me. With all the jalepenos

Maureen: I could see how that would work. She would be fun to cook with and I also think her attitude would be, “Don’t stress. It’s just dinner.”

Kirstin: All the sticky tabs I use to mark the recipes I want to make are no longer relevant because I just want to make everything.

Maureen: Every time I open the book I find something else I want to make. I feel bad because due to a variety of factors, I wasn’t able to post everything I made. But there were no disasters, which is always the sign of an excellent cookbook.

Kirstin: She is so good at flavour combinations. Everything is so tasty.

Maureen: But they were all made with easily sourced ingredients. Other than my experience with daikon radishes, though enough people told me they thought I’d easily be able to find them in London. I still haven’t seen them in any of the greengrocers or supermarkets I use regularly, but I’ve not given up hope.

Kirstin: I’ve loved this book so much that I’ve already given four copies away.

Maureen: If that’s not a sign of a good book, I don’t know what is. The thing I loved about this book is that it was all attainable deliciousness. It’s not overly cheffy in that it involves multiple steps and multiple bowls. They were all pretty straightforward, but absolutely delicious, which is all you really want, in the end.

Kirstin: I think this is my favourite book ever.

Maureen: High praise indeed.

Kirstin: You know how much I love Gwyneth Paltrow and Bill Granger. They do lovely Italian and Asian dishes, which is what we love most in our house. But Melissa Clark does those dishes so much better than they do.

Maureen: This is a very, very, very good book. I don’t know if it’s my favourite cookbook ever, but I don’t know what that would be. That’s going to take some thought.

Kirstin: This cookbook is just the business. Everything has tasted so amazing. It’s made me really get back into the kitchen and enjoy being back in the kitchen.

Maureen: I think it’s made me a better cook overall. I really started to think about what we should have for dinner, what would taste good with it, what extras I could make. Not in an over the top way, but in a more thoughtful way than I usually do, and I put it down to this book.

Kirstin: If I could only have one book on my shelf, it would probably be this one. This is my Desert Island Cookbook.

Overall Grade (A- F):  A* (Maureen)  A***** (Kirstin)
Best recipes:  Korean Bulgogi (Kirstin) There were so many good ones, it was hard to pick one. But maybe the Za’atar Chicken. (Maureen)
Grade for Photography (A-F): Kirstin: A
Any disasters? (Kirstin and Maureen) Absolutely not.
Bookshelf or Charity Shop Donation? High-rotation bookshelf.  Kirstin: This one might have its own bookshelf.
Would you give this to a friend?  (Maureen) Absolutely. (Kirstin) Indeed. I’ve given it away four times already.

“Curried Lentils with Poached Eggs and Garlicky Yoghurt” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: We had this for lunch. Curried lentils and poached eggs. Genius combination. Seriously genius. So don’t feel restricted by the use of the word Dinner in the title of this book.

In other news, did I mention how much I am going to miss cooking from this book?

“Pizza with Broccoli Rabe, Ricotta and Olives” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: We love pizza. We have it every weekend and having played around with the dough recipes, we’ve decided the best one is the Roberta’s recipe from the New York Times. But then that leaves the question of the toppings!

Tom: Nduja know what my favourite topping is?

Kirstin: I knew you were going to say that.

Tom: I’m just trying to do Nduja right thing. Anyway, you were saying…

Kirstin: So I liked the look of this recipe with broccoli, ricotta and olives. Normally we don’t cook the toppings — we just use olives, prosciutto, passata, garlic…

Tom: And Nduja!

Kirstin: Yes, and that. Anyway, this recipe involves cooking the broccoli, garlic and chilli flakes, and then you chop it up and add the olives.

Tom: And then bung that on the pizza, plus ricotta and olive oil. And salt. And a few more chilli flakes. It was fab!

Kirstin: I loved it. I would do that again. Would you?

Tom: Amazingly, yes. Normally I don’t like pizzas without meat, but this was great!

Kirstin: I think I would add some jalapeño. I’m surprised she didn’t.

Tom: Everything is better with more jalapeño!

“Steam Clams with Spring Herbs and Lime” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: This might be my favourite clam recipe ever. I think it was the combination of lime zest, lime and butter in the juice which we mopped up with bread that really made my day. And we cheated by having this for lunch. With a gin and elderflower sherbet because it felt like the thing to do. Gah, I’m sooooooo going to miss this book.

“Harissa Chicken” from “Dinner”

Kirstin: This recipe is featured on the cover of this cookbook. And I have to admit chicken and harissa is a total win in this household. Ella actually told me that she loved the harissa potatoes with this too, so that’s even better. Not as amazing as our favourite harissa chicken recipe from Gwyneth’s book, this is a very yummy and much easier version if you feel need for a little bit of Middle Eastern in the middle of the week. Also make sure to make the yoghurt garnish because it is just wonderful. And spread it on everything.

“Homemade Seedy Crackers” from “Dinner: Changing the Game”

We eat seedy crackers quite a bit, mostly because they are delicious and involve way less guilt than a salty snack. But whether you buy the posh Gail’s brand (£1.69 for 100 grams) or the standard Ryvita thins (£2 for 125g), they work out at £16 to £17 a kilo, not far from a rib of beef. When you do that sort of math, it gives you pause.

But tucked in the back of this month’s book is this recipe for Homemade Seedy Crackers. At last! We can make them ourselves and save our pennies for something else good. Like wine. The recipe is a mixture of spelt and plain flour, baking powder, salt, water, olive oil and seeds. They are a doddle to mix and bake, and probably cost about £2 a kilo. They disappeared quickly. We’re likely to be making these regularly.

Homemade Seedy Crackers FTW.