Second Helpings

A dinner party recap and a virtual dinner party happening this week

Hi friends,

Welcome to This Needs Hot Sauce, a weekly newsletter about cooking, dining out, and making the most of it. This week, I’m looking forward to my Instagram Live with Julianne of @howtobebrokeinnewyork. We’re going to be cooking dinner and answering your questions about cooking on a budget, packing lunch, and anything else that comes up. Please submit questions by replying to this email or DMing on Instagram! We’ll be live tomorrow (1/29) at 8. I’m so excited and want it to feel like a virtual dinner party, so please come hang!

Now let’s dive in.

Something to cook:

Last monday was freezing, so I was thrilled to discover I had all the ingredients for this broccoli farro salad on hand. I added some crispy chickpeas that I cooked in a skillet with olive oil, salt, pepper, and a little cumin and the whole dish held up well for a few days. Farro is a really filling option if you’re usually hungry after a salad.

Tilden came over and we made a totally last minute bowl dinner based on what we were in the mood for. It was quinoa, thinly sliced eggplant roasted with cayanne and paprika at 400, kale sauteed with garlic and red pepper flakes, sliced and salted cucumbers with a fried egg on top. So good and a reminder that a delicious dinner can be made with odds and ends in the cabinet + a vegetable you pick up on your way home from the subway.

I hosted a Shabbat dinner for This Needs Hot Sauce readers and it was a blast. Thanks so much for coming and for the reminder that having people over is always worth it. I hosted dinner with support from OneTable, an organization that funds shabbat dinners across the country. You register your event and get funding (giftcards from Whole Foods, Fresh Direct, etc) based on the number of guests you’re having. It made hosting 9 people so much easier and is very easy to set up. (This is definitely not sponsored, but I really like the free service and have used it multiple times).

Here’s the menu:

Challah: I used this recipe, minus the filling, and it’s great even though it looks like a turkey. I love a challah with a dark crust and big pieces of flakey salt, but I’d cover it with foil while it bakes if you don’t want it to get too dark. Make sure to test your yeast and see if it’s alive or else nothing will rise. Also, kneading dough is very therapeutic. Need to do more of this in 2019.

Salad: I made a kale salad with roasted cherry tomatoes, persian cucumbers, toasted pumpkin seeds, and Alison Roman’s lemon tahini dressing (not my favorite tahini dressing tbh, it was aggressively garlicky even though it only had one clove of garlic).

Guests brought cheese and crackers for a starter.

Butternut Squash Baked Pasta: Wow, I loved this dish. It’s a baked pasta that doesn’t contain tomatoes and it’s cheesy without giving you a stomachache. I made a double batch which was more than enough for our group. There’s a lot of chopping involved but I would definitely make this again. I made a few modifications based on the comments: use 3 cups of stock instead of 4, add some extra parmesan cheese (an handful or so, nothing crazy) to the filling. Taste the filling before you assemble, of course. I would also make less of the topping in the future, since 1/2 cup of hazelnuts is a lot. Anyway, this dish is delicious, the leftovers are delicious, and you should try it.

Cookies: These are my favorite chocolate chip cookies. Make the dough a day in advance and bake them in the middle of your party topped with Maldon salt. I froze the leftover dough for future cookies.

Seltzer and wine: It’s nice to have both options at a dinner party to accommodate people’s preferences.

Another thing I found helpful was this anatomy of a dinner party post from Amateur Gourmet. I’ve definitely hosted a fair number of dinners and parties but it’s always a little stressful and a lot comes together at the last minute.

Something to Order:

I got a much needed tropical escape last Monday at Selemat Pagi, an Indonesian restaurant in Greenpoint. It wasn’t cheap but the food was great and the portions were big, I really liked the pumpkin curry and the papaya salad. Also, a reminder to myself to always order the bottle of wine instead of two glasses each, it’s so much cheaper.

Gia was in town and we grabbed lunch at Superiority Burger, which I really need to visit more often. It’s tiny and there’s barely any seating but it’s so so good. The veggie burger is definitely my favorite in the city (would not recommend trying it at home) and the sides are always creative and seasonal. Plus, Brooks Headley’s pastry chef background shines through in the gelato and sorbet, which come in a little paper cup that makes me think of Italian ice shops. On Fridays, they make focaccia.

Madi had such a fun pizza party to celebrate her birthday. It’s a great concept: she ordered the pizza (from Table 87, Samin Nosrat’s favorite NYC pizza) and everyone else brought snacks/desserts/drinks.

Yesterday on my walk home from yoga, I decided to stop somewhere for breakfast (or lunch, idk it was after 1). I headed to Lella Alimentari, a little Italian shop full of communal tables and Italian speciality foods. They make a very good daily frittata (mine was kale, tomato, and the underrated jack cheese) and the atmosphere is very homey—you don’t have to pay until you’re done eating. I read the Sunday Styles, lingered for a while and only spent $7.

Something to read:

Have you spotted Super Milk at the coffee shop? It’s extra luxe dairy milk perfect for latte art. (via Joy the Baker)

What’s the next status water bottle?

This essay on the limits of home cooking to change the needle on poverty/inequality is really interesting and I want to read the book it’s referencing.

A huge challenge: On adjusting your eating habits when you can only have a teaspoon of salt per day.

It’s so 2019 that even chefs are starting side hustles.

At home in Paris with the family behind Mokonuts bakery (known for its cookies that I’ll need to try when I’m there this spring).

A much needed critique of the NYTimes 52 places list.

How eating a spruced up can of bodega beans helped one woman pay off her credit cards debt.

This is a really sad one, but important to include. Former Top Chef Contestant Fatima Ali died of cancer. This essay was scheduled to run in a future issue of Bon Appetit, but it’s here now and very much worth a read.

Updates from me:

For Bustle, I wrote about how women are using Instagram for networking that doesn’t suck.

We’re also hosting a launch party for the Passport to Bushwick on Wednesday. Come celebrate and enjoy an hour long free open bar for Passport holders.

Last week I asked you what you would be eating if it were 80 degrees. The answers were painful.

Leah: A Mister Softee swirl cone with rainbow sprinkles, iced coffee, and raspberries. Wow I wish.

Julianne: If it were 80 degrees outside, we would be on my roof together, eating probably that delicious squash ricotta pizza Ian made for Julia's surprise birthday extravaganza & some salad you and I threw together that would definitely consist of tomatoes and some cheese. There would be chilled rosé (rooftop) and maybe Julia would have baked her salt bae chocolate chip cookies in advance because she's nice like that. BUT ALAS, IT'S 70 DEGREES COLDER THAN THIS.

Julia: I miss my summer fruit pie baking kick. I miss it with all my heart. (I agree, this peach crumble situation is a dream).

Isa: I don't think there's any answer to this question aside from "A Copa margarita and a basket of Spanish fries with cheddar at an outdoor table".

But also, in the case that it's 80 and I'm not in Philly - an Aperol spritz, a sundae from Bi-Rite and a big bowl of mango de manila con lemon, chamoy y tajin. V excited for when I can eat these things again. 

From my mom, a year round iced coffee drinker: If it were 80 degrees, I would like to be eating iced coffee while luxuriating outside (rather than nursing this absurd habit inside wearing too many layers of clothing) and farm fresh strawberries, but not at the same time.  

This week, let’s get back to reality (sad, but necessary): what’s your favorite cozy dinner? I’ve been very into these baked pastas and also need to make a big pot of chili soon. Reply to this email with your answer and make sure to tune in tomorrow for the Instagram Live! Send questions so we can make it as helpful as possible.

Happy eating and thanks for reading.

xo, Abigail

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