It’s What’s For Dinner

I wish I had a nickel for every time a member of my family has asked me, "What's for dinner?"

I mean, shoot. I wouldn't mind a nickel for every time I've asked myself that question.

In either of those cases, I would be a very rich woman who could gratefully pay a staff of nutritionists and chefs to take this daily and desperately onerous task off my hands. 

But then again, I'd probably miss my forty-year foray into meal planning if it was gone. So instead, I've found the next best thing.

My daughter's copy. I may need to buy another for myself. 

It's a cookbook.

Scratch that. 

It's a really well-designed and incredibly practical cookbook. 

I bought it on a whim for my fourth-born's Christmas and we've been putting it to hard use for the past two months. 

Christopher Kimball's Milk Street The New Rules

Christopher Kimball is a world traveler, Vermont native, chef, and media personality who believes that cooking is community, and food brings us together. Milk Street is his brand, named for the building's actual street address in downtown Boston, where Christopher and his team hold their cooking school, record television and radio shows, and presumably, write killer cookbooks. The New Rules references Christopher's conviction that the world's ordinary home chefs have a lot to teach us that we may not already know. 

The book is peppered with tips and techniques for upping your own dishes from good to great. For example, Christoper patiently reminds me not to fuss with or start flipping my fried potatoes until they have had proper time to brown. K this is not rocket science and I do know better, but I confess to a trigger-happy spatula hand and I appreciate the reminder to lay off. 

I love that The New Rules is filled with varied and interesting recipes on a world-flavor theme. Sometimes the ingredients are a bit out there - uh, pomegranate molasses?! - but honestly, that's been part of the fun as my family helps me comb the shelves of our local grocery for these elusive items or perhaps quickly Google for impromptu substitutes as dinner is coming together. 

Spoilers: In a pinch, lemon juice and honey can stand in for the aforementioned pomegranate molasses. Who knew. 

But what I love most about The New Rules is that the vast majority of these recipes - all of the dozen or so that I've tried so far - come together fast. Thirty minutes max of hands-on prep and cook time is pretty typical, and for banging out a high-end, full-flavored entree, that is darn fast. 

In fact, our meals have been sliding onto the table so quickly that I have not had time to snap my own photos of these creations before the others start loading their plates. So let me lean into the gorgeous photos from the pages of my new favorite cookbook to show you just what I mean. 

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All food photos are the property of Christopher Kimball's Milk Street The New Rules cookbook. 

^ Stir Fried Green Beans with Pork and Oyster Sauce 

This was the first dish we tried, and we raved about the rich, tangy flavor - thank you, oyster sauce - and the dish's versatility as a vegetable-heavy entree or a protein-enhanced side dish. Win/win.

^ Spaghetti with Cilantro Yogurt

Several of my daughters are dairy sensitive so I have to be careful with cream-laden pasta sauces. But this one gets its smooth rich texture from yogurt, which they find much easier to digest and honestly, I find much more fun to work with and just ridiculously yummy. 

^ Toasted Pearl Couscous with Chicken and Chickpeas

We eat chicken on the regular, but even though I keep them on hand, we don't often dip into our couscous and chickpea pantry stock. This dish changed all that, and reminded me of how easy it is to introduce some fresh shelf-stable ingredients into my old tried-and-true recipes. 

^ Flatbread Pizza with Pancetta, Fig Jam, and Blue Cheese

This flatbread pizza dough requires a bit more lead time, but we are regular yeast people who subscribe to the theory that the extra steps are worth the delicious fresh-rise flavors of homemade dough. The toppings are fresh and creative, though we would do with a bit less fig jam and a bit more pancetta. Those fresh sage leaves, however, are to die for and just the right touch to make our Friday night movie pizza just a bit more swanky than usual. 

^ Smashed Potatoes with Soft-Cooked Eggs and Mint

These flatbread wraps took me back to the streets of Hyderabad, India and while they may not be legit Indian food, they certainly capture the same spirit. Simple, inexpensive food cooked with love and plenty of seasoning. I skipped the flatbread and ate mine off the plate with a fork; still delicious.

^ Omelet with Mushrooms, Mustard and Gruyere

Oh, my word. I wish I could give you a bite. Because what you might be surprised to learn is that this omelet's secret ingredient is whole grain Dijon mustard and it infuses every cheesy, fluffy bite with a tangy kick that made me swoon. If I could convince you to try any recipe in this post, I'd recommend this one. 

^ Pan-Seared Halibut with Spicy Mint Lemon Sauce

And this fish dish is what I'm serving up tomorrow. The halibut at my store was astronomically expensive so I'm serving this sumptuous green sauce on fresh cod, but I expect the substitution will work out just fine. 

In any case, at least for tomorrow, this dish will answer the age-old question, "What's for dinner?"

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All food photos are the property of Christopher Kimball's Milk Street The New Rules cookbook.