That's What Jenni Said

Made these this morning and they were a big hit. Will never make home fries any other way again. Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated . And as noted in CI, whatever modifications or additions you make, DO NOT leave out the baking soda. It’s what coaxes the perfect texture out of the potatoes. Serves 2   1.5 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and diced 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1.5 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced kosher salt and pepper Pinch cayenne pepper 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 1/2 small onion, diced 3 tablespoons minced fresh chives Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place rimmed baking sheet on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. Bring water to boil in Dutch oven or large pot over high heat. Add potatoes and baking soda. Return to boil and cook for 1 minute. Drain potatoes. Return potatoes to pot and shake pot occasionally, until any surface moisture has evaporated, about 1-2 minutes. Add butter, 3/4 teaspoons salt, and cayenne; mix with rubber spatula until potatoes...

  Saturdays are Soup Suppers at our home. We often experiment with new recipes on these days. Tonight we tried our hand at Persian Noodle Soup, or Ash-e Reshteh. I used two differing recipes as inspiration- one from Saveur Magazine and the other from Najmieh Batmanglij’s A Taste of Persia cookbook. My adapted recipe combining the best of both follows below. Serves 4. About 45 minutes to prepare. olive oil 3 small onions, peeled and thinly sliced 5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced 1/2 cup white wine 1 can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed 1 can small white beans, drained and rinsed 1 cup small green lentils, rinsed 6 cups chicken broth 1 teaspoon ground turmeric 1 T dried dill weed 1 /4 pound ground beef 1/2 tsp cinnamon 2 cups dried egg noodles 1 T dried mint leaves, crushed Plain Greek Yogurt salt and pepper In a large dutch oven heat 2 T oil over medium heat. Add 2/3rds of the sliced onion (salt them lightly) and fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and...