Sam Sifton - The New York Times Cooking No-Recipe Recipes

Acknowledgments

This book owes its existence to NYT Cooking and to all those at The New York Times who work to make it shine, on stage and off. I owe particular gratitude to my principal editors, Krysten Chambrot and Mark Josephson, who have been with the no-recipe recipe project from the start, as well as to the photo editor Kim Gougenheim, who first introduced me to the powerful work of the photographer David Malosh and the genius food styling of Simon Andrews. Those two men are magicians.

Without Emily Weinstein and Amanda Rottier, our stalwart and clear-eyed leaders, the book would never have progressed beyond a notion. Without Cynthia Cannell and Caroline Que, it would never have become a proposal. And without Lorena Jones and the fine crew at Ten Speed Press along with The Times design chieftan Kelly Doe, it would never have become an actual living thing. I thank them all, unreservedly, acknowledging that if there are errors in here, theyre mine. I hope you enjoy dinner.

About the Author

Sam Sifton is an assistant managing editor of The New York Times, responsible for culture and lifestyle coverage, and the founding editor of NYT Cooking. Formerly the national news editor, restaurant critic, and culture editor, he joined The Times in 2002 after stints at Talk magazine, New York Press, and American Heritage magazine. He is the author of Thanksgiving: How to Cook It Well and See You on Sunday: A Cookbook for Family and Friends.

Breakfast, Anytime

Peanut Butter Smoothie

One morning, one of my kids asked for this. I said, What? She told me what might be in it. I listened and then I jammed. Turns out its like a morning frapp: slightly savory, really good.

Bananas

Peanut butter

Milk

Maple syrup

Take a couple of bananas, a big scoop of peanut butter, a couple big glugs of milk, a couple drops of maple syrup, and a whole bunch of ice. Blitz that in your blender or food processor and enjoy.

Tip

If you make this sort of thing a lot, it might be time for a blender upgrade, to whats called a high-performance blender. In the smoothie game, a high-performance blender is a crucial tool.

Modifications

Oat milk for the whole milk works just great. So does a handful of cashews for the peanut butter.

Chilled Oranges with Yogurt

A breakfast of champions! Take a few navel oranges and put them in the fridge overnight. Slice them into eighths in the morning and eat them standing over the sink, before youve even made coffee or tea. Then tell me if theres a better-tasting fruit available, save a perfect watermelon or, like, three mangoes a year.

Navel oranges

Yogurt

Mint

Heres a way to make those oranges even better, so that you might even serve them for dessert: Peel them, segment them, cut the segments into pieces. Stir the pieces into full-fat plain yogurt that is maybe not Greek yogurt because Greek yogurt is a little thick. Add a few torn mint leaves and everyone will remember it for a very long time.

Soft-Boiled Eggs with Anchovy Toast

If youre up for a delicious, slightly sporty breakfast tomorrow, you might consider making some anchovy butter tonight. Then, come morning, you can slather toast with the result and serve it with soft-boiled eggs, a breakfast I once had in London at a hotel and restaurant the chef Fergus Henderson was running in Leicester Square.

Butter

Anchovies

Garlic

Paprika

Lemon

Bread

Eggs

Chives

Take a stick of unsalted butter and let it soften on the counter while you assemble the other ingredients: a tin of rinsed and minced anchovies, some minced garlic cloves, a shake or two of smoked or regular paprika, a wee squirt of lemon juice, and, maybe but probably not, some salt. Fork everything together into the butter.

Toast your bread. Make sure you spread the butter wall to wall on the toast. That means to cover the entire surface of the bread from edge to edgean important step in buttering, one that is too often shirked. Place however many eggs you want to cook in a small saucepan and cover with lukewarm water. Over high heat, bring the water just to a boil, then turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let stand for a minute or so. Transfer the egg pan to the sink and run cold water over the eggs for about 30 seconds, then peel them and place them on your toast. Sprinkle minced chives over and, well, you know what to do.

Kaya Toast with Eggs

Kaya toast and eggs is a Singapore tradition: toasted light-brown bread covered with the coconut-milk custard jam known as kaya plus a pat of salted butter, served with soft-boiled eggs cracked into a bowl with soy sauce. Dip the sweet-salty-crisp-soft bread into the salt-and-peppery umami creaminess of the eggs.

Eggs

Bread

Kaya

Butter

Soy sauce

White pepper

Place however many eggs you want to cook in a small saucepan and cover with lukewarm water. Over high heat, bring the water just to a boil, then turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let stand for a minute or so. Toast your bread. Spread with kaya and top with butter. Sandwich the toasts, if you like. Transfer the egg pan to the sink and run cold water over the eggs for about 30 seconds, then peel them into your bowl. Add dark soy sauce, a healthy shake of white pepper, and stir together. Get to em with the toast.

Tip

When boiling eggs, you put them in lukewarm water to start because if you slide cold eggs into hot water, the shells will crack.

Modification

Honey or marmalade is a totally acceptable hack for the kaya.

Savory French Toast with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

Its axiomatic that a stash of leftover bread makes the best French toast for breakfast, and so it stands to reason that a savory version would be equally satisfying for the crew around your dinner table. At least thats true in my house.

Eggs

Basil

Hot sauce

Bread

Butter

Cherry tomatoes

Basil

Whisk the eggs in a shallow bowl as you usually would for French toast, but omit any sugar and cinnamon, and instead hit the eggs with pepper, chopped basil, and a dash of hot sauce. Slide some slices of old bread in there to soak, then fry up the toasts in butter. Scattering a few handfuls of halved cherry tomatoes into the pan as the bread cooks yields a fine topping. Sprinkle basil leaves over. Doubters will doubt no more.