NYTCB Project Weeks 4 and 5: Comfort Food Galore!

Oliver Clark’s Meatloaf – strange and delicious

#15 Brownies (p. 732) These brownies have a perfect, slightly crusty top and are very moist and rich. They are less caky than other brownie recipes we have tried. We made them without nuts. We learned to separate the edges from the pan before turning the brownies out. We doubled the first batch and used 13×9″ pan. We ended up remaking these a week later because they were so good! Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5

#16 Golden Winter Puree (p. 235) I just love the look of this dish. It’s like a little patch of sunshine on your plate. It was an excellent alternative to mashed potatoes. We will be making this simple and tasty dish again for sure! Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

#17 Winter Slaw with Lemon-and-Orange Dressing (p. 183) This crunchy, refreshing salad came together quickly and is a nice alternative when salad ingredients are looking sad at the grocery store. It was a treat to have something so light with all of the richer, heartier dishes we tried this week. Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

#18 Italian Beef Stew with Rosemary (p. 543) This is definitely a weekend recipe. The toast under the stew is delicious, but I wonder if it really needs butter. Next time I will try it with my standard garlic toast recipe next time, which calls for olive oil. We cooked this longer than recommended with excellent results. We doubled the recipe and used top-round roast. Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

#19 Pasta with Vodka (p. 327) Another insanely simple pasta recipe with very satisfying results. We made it on Friday night after a busy day. It was a wonderful way to start the weekend. Overall rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

#20 Pasta and Bean Soup (p. 153) This may be my favorite so far! Perfect on a chilly night. This is a relatively simple soup with complex flavor and a comforting texture. The rosemary is a brilliant addition! Unanimous rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

#21 Oliver Clark’s Meatloaf (p. 572) This may be the weirdest and most wonderful meatloaf recipe we have ever tried. It takes a while to pull it together, but it’s worth it. It also yields a pretty gigantic meatloaf, serving 8 easily. Our result was delicious, but a bit crumbly. Next time, we will compress the mixture more thoroughly before cooking and try adding the bacon a bit earlier (45 minutes or so) to allow it to finish cooking on the meatloaf while not overcooking the loaf. Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 (SAH deducted a point due to the recipe’s negative climate impact – there is a lot of meat in this loaf!).

Replays: We made Tarragon Sheet Pan Chicken, Perfect Batch of Rice, and Dried Apricot, Cherry, and Cranberry Infusion again. They did not disappoint!

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