What can I say? I like the cooking better than the blogging. There are a lot of highlights on this list and a few we will not be making again. Dorothy Jewiss, I don’t know who you are, but you changed my life!

#243 Chocolate Pudding, 2004 (p. 911) Making this involved a lot of work and even more dirty dishes. It was 100% worth it. This pudding is at once light and rich. It is just wonderful. And it’s even better the next day. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#244 Dorothy Jewiss’s Coffee Cake, 1968 (p. 664) We love a sour cream coffee cake around here and this is or new favorite. I appreciate that it is made in a 9″ square pan, which is easier to prep and clean than a bundt or tube pan. Also, it makes just the right amount for our Sunday dessert and weekday snacking. Unanimous rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#245 Shakshuka with Feta, 2013 (p. 683) Breakfast for dinner became a thing this winter. Yay! This dish was easy and comforting. The recipe is clear and easy to follow. My taste testers liked a lot of things about this recipe, but found the sauce to be “too peppery”, both preferring a sauce that features tomatoes more prominently. The recipe makes a lot of extra sauce. I enjoyed the leftovers on pasta and rice. It would also be good over polenta (see below). Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#246 Orange Ice, 1877 (p. 769) This simple recipe yields a light and refreshing confection, pleasing to young and old alike! Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#247 Roasted Carrot and Red Lentil Ragout, 1998 (p. 292) We served this sweet and spicy deliciousness over brown rice. So good!! Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#248 Buttery Polenta with Parmesan and Olive-Oil-Fried Eggs, 2007 (p. 679) This made more polenta than needed for 4 servings. It was an excellent breakfast-for-dinner dish. Very satifying! Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#249 Mapo Ragù, 2016 (p. 609) Although we made this without the Sichuan peppercorns, it still had a nice kick. Good stuff! Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#250 Rachel’s Green Beans with Dill, 2002 (p. 251) This quick, but company-worthy dish will be part of our rotation for sure. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#251 Mississippi Roast, 2016 (p. 608) This looked weird on the page, but was great on the plate! It was tangy and tender and made a perfect Sunday dinner. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#252 Tapioca Pudding, 1877 (p. 856) This was very light with lots of egg whites. It is best the day it’s made. 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#253 Eggs Eli, 1909 (p. 656) This dish was easy, fun, and a little bit special. Nice for breakfast-for-dinner! Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#254 Spiced Pumpkin Oatmeal, 2001 (p. 671) This stuff looks and smells better than it tastes. The recipe makes 6 VERY generous servings. I think it would be good as part of a big brunch buffet. It is very rich, so it’s hard to eat very much of it at a time. Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#255 Salade à la Romaine We loved the make-the-dressing-in-the-bowl method and the unusual combination of ingredients. This recipe works well with pretty much any kind of hearty lettuce. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#256 Chicken Canzanese, 1969 (p. 473) This was an excellent Sunday night dinner served with Salade à la Romaine (above). We used bone-in thighs, 2 ounces of Prosciutto, and red pepper flakes. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#257 Fish Poached in Buttermilk, 1999 (p. 436) If you like to use all of your pans, this one is for you. But seriously, it’s worth the dishpan hands. Unusual, yet comforting and flavorful. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#258 David Eyre’s Pancake, 1966 (p. 662) This is a Dutch Baby’s slightly classier cousin. We loved it and will be making it again and again. We served it with Strawberry Chia Smash. Unanimous Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#259 Chorizo Revueltos (Scrambled Eggs with Chorizo), 2002 (p. 674) This dish is not the most appetizing-looking. Like the scrambled eggs below, the texture was very very soft. The flavor was great. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#260 Kathleen Claiborne’s Hot Cakes, 1980 (p. 667) I do not like pancakes, but I would eat these every day if I could. I won’t, because like most recipes associated with Craig Claiborne, it requires the dirtying of many (many!) dishes. The texture and flavor are more than worth the effort. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#261 Soft Scrambled Eggs with Pesto and Fresh Ricotta, 2007 (p. 680) We doubled this and we are glad we did. Although we are not usually fans of the soft-scramble, these were very flavorful and satisfying – maybe it was the ricotta. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#262 Preserved Lemons with Cardamom and Bay Leaves, 1999 (p. 639) This turned out great and was the key to some yummy recipes (see below), but something was off about the proportions. I think it may be because of the size of the lemons I used. I ended up cutting the recipe in half so that I would not end up with 2 massive jars. A little goes a long way. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#263 Asparagus and Bulgur with Preserved Lemon Dressing, 1999 (p. 187) This tangy, fresh, springy gem is easy to make and looks beautiful. It’s very lemony! Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#264 German Toast, 1875 (p. 653) We used Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse white bread for this. This dish was tasty, very soft and sweet. We used vanilla sugar for sprinkling and also tried it with maple syrup. Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#265 Scrambled Eggs, 1958 (p. 658) If you like your scrambled eggs very soft and smooth, this recipe is for you. We are hard-scramble people so it wasn’t our favorite. Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#266 Green Lentils with Roasted Beets and Preserved Lemons, 1998 (p. 293) This springy and oh-so-lemony dish paired very well with roast chicken. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#267 De Luxe Cheesecake, 1963 (p. 800) This made a light and delicious cheesecake. We served the glaze on the side. It’s not as good as Sophie’s cheesecake, but it’s pretty close! Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#268 Campton Place Buttermilk Chocolate Cake (p. 816) If we didn’t have about a dozen chocolate cake recipes left to make, I’d say we should try making this again to see if it could be improved. It didn’t live up to it’s promise and we are not sure why. The frosting was weirdly slippery and the cake was heavier than it should have been. Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#269 Whiskey Cake, 2005 (p. 835) This looked beautiful and tasted awful. Despite the fact that I made it ahead of time and followed the instructions to the letter, the whiskey did not permeate the cake as it should have, resulting in dry patches alternating with whiskey-sodden paste. Ick. Rating: 1/5 ⭐️

#270 Fettuccine with Preserved Lemon and Roasted Garlic (p. 344) You really have to like garlic and lemon to enjoy this dish, but if you do you will. We think it works better as a side dish than a main course. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ as a side, 2/5 ⭐️⭐️ as a main.

#271 Confit of Carrot and Cumin, 1999 (p. 244) This was an excellent addition to our Passover menu. It held very well on a hot plate. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#272 Brisket in Sweet and Sour Sauce, 2002 (p. 583) This recipe reminds me of my late mother-in-law’s brisket without the Lipton’s onion soup mix. It was tender, flavorful and very easy to slice. It needed to cook a bit longer than the recipe called for in order to reach the fork-tender stage, but was well worth the wait. I made it the night before and sliced it in the morning, letting it sit in the sauce in the fridge until it was time to reheat it for Passover dinner. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#273 Sweet-and-Salty Popcorn with Orange Blossom Honey, 2001 (p. 76) This one did not work well. It was too sticky to eat and just got stickier and weirder as time went on. The likely culprit was our method for popping the popcorn. We are in the habit of using the oil-free microwave method and that’s what I used without thinking twice. I If we try again, we will use the old oily-pan-on-the-stove technique to see if things go better. In our defense, the recipe just calls for “popped popcorn”. Rating: 1/5 ⭐️

#274 Parmesan Crackers, 2003 (p. 82) These could not be easier to make and we all loved them. In the future we will experiment with different cheeses and herbs, but they are pretty perfect as-is. Unanimous rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#275 Fried Olives, 2004 (p. 85) These are the opposite of the Parmesan Crackers. They are a pain to make and the results, while not bad, are nothing to write home about. For stuffing, we used almonds in some and anchovies in others. Rating: 3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

#280 Al Forno’s Roasted Asparagus, 1989 (p. 233) This quick and easy method for roasting asparagus yielded a flavorful, attractive side dish that went well with Fricassee of Chicken with Tarragon (below). Next time, we will check it after 8 minutes, as it was softer than we prefer after the recommended 10 minutes. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#281 Fricassee of Chicken with Tarragon, 1968 (p. 471) We loved this homey, yet guest-worthy dish. We used 5 pounds of thighs and drumsticks instead of whole chickens and served it with A Perfect Batch of Rice, p. 326. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#282 Lemon Pudding Cake, 2012 (p. 919) This was ah-mazing. Not hard to make, but looks impressive and tastes beautiful. We served it chilled with whipped cream. It was a wonderful light dessert for a warm evening. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#283 Elizabeth Frink’s Roast Lemon Chicken, 2001 (p. 494) This was very tender and flavorful. We will certainly be making this many more times. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#284 Roast Chicken Salad, 2004 (p. 507) We made this using Elizabeth Frink’s Roast Lemon Chicken and used about half the spinach the recipe called for. In it’s less-spinachy form it made a nice summer main dish served with brioche rolls. I think with the full dose of spinach it would be lighter and less sandwich-able, but just as good. Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#285 Spinach and Artichoke Casserole, 2003 (p. 255) This fun and comforting concoction pairs well with Roast Lemon Chicken (see above) Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#286 Mashed Potatoes Anna, 1999 (p. 297) This was a do-over after the first batch turned out rather soupy. We used 2.5 pounds of russet potatoes and this time and the result was divine! This would go great with anything, but especially with Oliver Clark’s Meat Loaf, p. 572. Unanimous Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#287 Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Milk Chocolate Frosting, 2007 (p. 838) These. Were. Awesome. The icing was particularly nice. We used regular cupcake cups and the recipe yielded more than 2 dozen. 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#288 Le Cirque’s Spaghetti Primavera, 1977 (pp. 324, 325, AND 326) This requires a lot of shopping, chopping and dish-washing, not to mention reading, but is well worth it. It makes much more than 4 servings. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️