Call for Genius Recipe Tips (+ More Greatest Hits)

And Nigella's clementine cake, in which whole clementines are used!

Angela Liddon's glo bars

Something with cashew cream!
And these uber good truffles
http://tastespace.wordpress.com/2013/12/14/the-best-chocolate-truffles/

Cathy Whim's Fruit Crisp, from Nostrana in Portland, Oregon.
http://www.oregonlive.com/foodday/index.ssf/2008/06/recipe_detail.html?id=8262&search=&q_dish=Desserts
It's so simple! Do what the restaurant does and put a little almond extract or perhaps amaretto spiked cream on top before serving it quite warm.

Smitten Kitchen's oven-roasted tomatoes http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/08/slow-roasted-tomatoes/ (I do them at 250 and store in oil). They are divine, require only garic, salt, and oil, and can be used on everything. I blend them into sauce, toss into pastas, use on pizza or bruschetta, put on sandwiches, blend into mayos-- they are beautiful and SO EASY.

Marcella Hazan's recipe for cabbage/arborio rice dish. Somewhere between a porridge and a risotto, comforting, simple and absolutely delicious. I cannot stop making it. Molly @ Orangette posted it a while back: http://orangette.blogspot.com/2013/12/approximately-soup.html

Kienow's Bavarian Banana Cake is a favorite in our home and community. Sadly Kienow's closed years ago, but they shared their recipe with The Oregonian, so the cake lives on. http://food52.com/recipes/25822-bavarian-banana-cake

This is my go-to recipe for cut-out sugar cookies. When I was younger, I had went through several sugar cookie recipes, but they wouldn't roll out good, but this one is pretty no-fail. http://www.landolakes.com/recipe/2217/best-ever-butter-cookies

Momofuku's ginger scallion sauce on poached chicken.... or by the spoonful on anything.

David Lebovitz's warm sticky toffee pudding recipe is amazing and fool-proof. It's the perfect desert for this time of the year, or all year if you're a stp glutton like me...

Porchetta stuffed with herbs, garlic and most of all -- and the most distinguishing ingredient -- fennel pollen. It transforms pork roast into something wonderous.

Veggie potato hamburger or black pepper and honey muffins! www.foodstyleforaliving.com

Nigella's My Brown Bread from How to be a Domestic Goddess, Delia Smih's Flaky Fish Pie, Long Fusilli with Roasted Tomatoes by Lidia Bastianich, Beer Braised Short Ribs of Beef by James Villas and my husband's recipe for Shrimps in Whiskey! All so simple and so delicious!

Another one is chicken with sumac. You can just rub chicken parts with sumac salt and pepper before roasting on a bed of onions, or roast it as in this recipe, adapted from Mary Laird Hammady's Lebanese Mountain Cooking: http://alandivack.blogspot.com/2010/03/chicken-with-sumac.html

After boiling an egg, right after being rinsed in cold water, lightly crack it all around. Place a teaspoon thru a crack and under the membrane slightly pushing spoon with the curve of the egg. Once u get the hang of this it's amazing how effortlessly the shell comes off.

When making chicken stew, do like they do in the Philippines with adobo: simmer the chicken first, then broil to brown while you reduce the sauce. No messy browning, and no flabby skin. I use it whenever I stew chicken with skin, but especially in this recipe for Armico, an old Sephardi chicken dish: http://alandivack.blogspot.com/2009/09/armico-sephardi-chicken-dish-for-before.html

Edna Lewis' Chicken Stock.
Simple, fast and delicious!
Pure genius!
Quoting Edna from her book "In Pursuit of Flavor"....
"I do not believe in cooking stock for a long period of time; it loses its good taste."

I agree with Edna!

Just tried Marcella Hazan's Rice and Smothered Cabbage Soup from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, which I found via Orangette and The Wednesday Chef. It was genius given the few ingredients, simplicity of preparation and seriously comforting result. A recipe to share widely and make over and over again this winter.

http://orangette.blogspot.com/2013/12/approximately-soup.html
http://wednesdaychef.typepad.com/the_wednesday_chef/2008/01/marcella-hazans.html

Grown-up Paleo chicken nuggets made with pork rind crust. Quick and easy, and seriously good. Especially when you're craving "naughty" food.

Richard Olney's classic Brussels Sprouts Gratin with cream, bacon and breadcrumbs from Simple French Food (1974). I have been preparing this recipe for nearly 30 years. I have never found a Brussels sprouts recipe that even came close to this ones deliciousness. Converts all Brussels sprouts haters. My children used to beg for this dish (and still do when they come home).

Cranberry relish adapted from James Beard

A genius recipe for a fast, delicious cranberry sauce to brighten up beef, pork or chicken.

Makes about 3-1/2 cups

- 1 lb (4 cups) fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained
- 1 small navel orange, quartered with peel left on
- 3/4 to 1 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons Grand Marnier liquor or bourbon

Equipment: food processor with metal blade

Add half of the cranberries (2 cups) and half of the orange (2 quarters) to food processor. Pulse a few times until mixture is coarsely chopped. Scrape out of food processor into a bowl. Add remaining cranberries and orange pieces to food processor, pulse a few times until coarsely chopped. Return first batch from bowl to food processor. Add ¾ cup sugar and Grand Marnier or bourbon. Pulse three or four times to mix. Taste and add more sugar as desired. (Pulse only once or twice to blend in sugar – you don’t want to pulverize the cranberries.)

Refrigerate in an air-tight container. Can be made several days ahead.

The dried cherry chutney from The New Basics Oookbook by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins is the most requested item every year at our Thanksgiving meal. Simple and cooks perfectly every time in my old-style 700-watt microwave, which is what the recipe calls for (it might need some adjusting for a newer, more powerful microwave). There's a lot of liquid after the 14 minutes of cooking time, but don't cook it longer. It will thicken as it cools because of all the sugar.

I love Marcella Hazan's polenta recipe. It always comes out perfect and is super simple. I finish with butter and lots of freshly grated Parmesan. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Creamy-Polenta-107758

Seasonal comfort food & holiday fare:
Susan Herrmann Loomis, Rouleaux de jambon sec a la feta (prosciutto & feta wrapped in fresh sage leaves, then marinated; great for cocktails & parties)
David Lebovitz, Ginger Cake
Claudia Roden, Tunisian olive oil cake made w blood oranges
Jose Andres, Patatas a la riojana
Lidia Bastianich, Frico with apples and Montasio; though published in her book about Italian-American food, her ribolllita will take you back to Florence in the winter
Deborah Madison's Butternut squash galette w sage and caramelized onions; her lentil minestrone and red-wine braised lentils w root vegetables deserves mention, too, though I'm fond of the omnivore's version of lentils offered by Nigella Lawson.
Hashed Brussels Sprouts in first Union Square Cafe cookbook
Anthony Bourdain's Moules Normandes
And if you've got a lot of time on your hands, Lynne Rosetto Kasper's Lasagne of the Dukes of Ferrara

I'm still enamored with this Poor Man's "Shrimp" Cocktail recipe...especially for vegetarians or for those who have shellfish issues:
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/poor-man-s-shrimp-cocktail

I love these eggless sugar cookie dough decorations I came up with - http://cakebatterandbowl.com/video-sugar-cookie-dough-decorations.html

Easier to work with than fondant and they taste soooo good, well at least to those of us who can't get enough cookie dough... :)

Tartine's pumpkin tea cake!

My mom's lentils with onions and smoked fish (http://betterwithlemon.com/2013/08/01/lentils-with-onions-and-smoked-fish/) are a perfect winter dish. Easy to make and a great combo of smoky, sour, and savory flavors

For Hanukkah, I made the genius polenta recipe. I love polenta but find it difficult to make for a party. It scorches on the bottom and has to be stirred until the last minute. The genius recipe can be made ahead and holds in a double boiler for up to 4 hours. Plus it didn't scorch on the bottom!