Mint & Almond Pesto

From StoneSoup.

Serve this pesto pretty much any where you’d serve regular pesto. Dollop on soups or salads. Use as a sauce for pan fried fish, chicken breasts or even steak. My personal favourite is to team it with lamb… Either lamb cutlets cooked until still rosy pink or slow roast lamb shoulder literally melting off the bone. It’s also great to liven up some steamed green beans or peas.

Enough for about 1 cup 
large bunch mint, leaves picked 
1 small clove garlic 
3 handfuls almonds 
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Whizz mint, garlic and almonds in a food processor until finely chopped.

2. Add oil and a little lemon juice and mix. Taste and season with salt, pepper and extra lemon if needed.

VARIATIONS 
summery – replace mint with basil. You can replace the almonds with pine nuts but I’m also a fan of cashews because they’re delicious and much more affordable.

nut-free – replace almonds with half soft breadcrumbs and half finely grated parmesan.

other herbs - flat leaf parsley, carrot tops, coriander (cilantro) are all possibilities. I’m also a fan of a little bit or sage or oregano combined with parsley.

garlic-free – sometimes I can’t be bothered with garlic and it’s still lovely but I do find it needs more salt and lemon to make up for that garlicky sharpness.

no food processor – just finely chop everything and stir together for a more rustic chunky pesto.

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

From Cook's Illustrated.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

Our perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe had to produce a cookie that would be moist and chewy on the inside and crisp at the edges, with deep notes of toffee and butterscotch to balance its sweetness. Melting the butter gave us the chewiness we were looking for. Cutting back on the flour and eliminating an egg white also improved texture and brought the brown sugar flavor to the fore. To give our chocolate chip cookie recipe the crisp edges and toffee flavor we wanted, we let the sugar dissolve in the batter for 10 minutes, then baked the cookies at a high temperature so the edges darkened while the centers stayed soft.

MAKES 16 COOKIES

Avoid using a nonstick skillet to brown the butter; the dark color of the nonstick coating makes it difficult to gauge when the butter is browned. Use fresh, moist brown sugar instead of hardened brown sugar, which will make the cookies dry. This recipe works with light brown sugar, but the cookies will be less full-flavored. For our winning brand of chocolate chips, see related tasting.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 3/4cups unbleached all-purpose flour (8 3/4 ounces)
• 1/2teaspoon baking soda
• 14tablespoons unsalted butter (1 3/4 sticks)
• 1/2cup granulated sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
• 3/4cups packed dark brown sugar (5 1/4 ounces) (see note)
• 1teaspoon table salt
• 2teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1large egg
• 1large egg yolk
• 1 1/4cups semisweet chocolate chips or chunks (see note)
• 3/4cup chopped pecans or walnuts, toasted (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 large (18- by 12-inch) baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
   2. Heat 10 tablespoons butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until melted, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and, using heatproof spatula, transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 4 tablespoons butter into hot butter until completely melted.
   3. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla to bowl with butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add egg and yolk and whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, about 30 seconds. Let mixture stand 3 minutes, then whisk for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times until mixture is thick, smooth, and shiny. Using rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined, about 1 minute. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts (if using), giving dough final stir to ensure no flour pockets remain.
   4. Divide dough into 16 portions, each about 3 tablespoons (or use #24 cookie scoop). Arrange 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets, 8 dough balls per sheet. (Smaller baking sheets can be used, but will require 3 batches.)
   5. Bake cookies 1 tray at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, 10 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack; cool cookies completely before serving.
   FOR HIGH-ALTITUDE BAKING: PROBLEM: Cookies spread too much in the oven.SOLUTION: Use less sugar. Increase the oven temperature and decrease the baking time. PROBLEM: Cookies are too dry. SOLUTION: Add an extra egg or yolk.

TECHNIQUE

MEASURE IT RIGHT

Even a tablespoon too much or too little flour can have an impact on cookies. Here's how to measure accurately.

PREFERRED: WEIGH FLOURFor the greatest accuracy, weigh flour before using it. Put a bowl on a scale, hit the "tare" button to set the scale to zero, and scoop the flour into the bowl.

SECOND-BEST: DIP AND SWEEPDip a dry measuring cup into the flour, sweeping away excess flour with a flat edge. This method yields more accurate results than spooning flour into a measuring cup.

RECIPE TESTING

CREATING A NEW CLASSIC

Here's how we improved on the Toll House classic to create an even better cookie.

TOLL HOUSE RECIPE: EQUAL AMOUNTS BROWN AND WHITE SUGAR

A 1-1 ratio of brown to white sugar creates a cookie that's neither crisp nor chewy.

OUR RECIPE: MORE BROWN SUGAR

Using more brown sugar than white makes for a chewier cookie.

TOLL HOUSE RECIPE: CREAMED SOLID BUTTER
Creaming butter creates a cakier texture in cookies.

OUR RECIPE: BROWNED, MELTED BUTTER
Melting butter contributes to chewiness; browning it enhances flavor.

TOLL HOUSE RECIPE: 2 WHOLE EGGS
Whole eggs contribute to a drier texture.

OUR RECIPE: 1 WHOLE EGG, 1 YOLK
Eliminating one egg white also boosts chewiness.

TOLL HOUSE RECIPE: BEAT AND BAKE
Baking the dough immediately after mixing doesn't allow the sugar to dissolve as fully as possible.

OUR RECIPE: WHISK AND WAIT

Whisking sugar into the liquid ingredients and then waiting 10 minutes allows more of it to dissolve, setting up better flavor and texture.

TOLL HOUSE RECIPE: LESS DOUGH
The smaller the cookie, the more uniform its texture.

OUR RECIPE: MORE DOUGH
Three tablespoons of dough per cookie increases its crisp-chewy contrast.

RECIPE TESTING

DON'T BAKE IN BATCHES

Baking two trays at a time may be convenient, but it leads to uneven cooking. The cookies on the top tray are often browner around the edges than those on the bottom, even when rotated halfway through cooking.

TOP RACK

BOTTOM RACK

RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT

Nigella Lawson's One-Step, No-Churn Ice Cream

From Food 52.

Adapted slightly from Nigellissima (Clarkson Potter, 2013)

Makes 1 pint

1 1/4 cup (300 milliliters) heavy or double cream, well-chilled
2/3 cup (175 grams) sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 tablespoons espresso liqueur

1. Whisk all the ingredients together just until the whisk leaves trails of soft peaks in the bowl, and you have a gorgeous, caffe-latte-colored airy mixture.
2. Fill two 500-mililiter or one 1-pint airtight container(s), and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Serve straight from the freezer.

Got a genius recipe to share — from a classic cookbook, an online source, or anywhere, really? Please send it my way (and tell me what’s so smart about it) atkristen@food52.com. Thanks to Food52ers mrslarkinand Ina-Janine for this one!

Photos by James Ransom

Every week — often with your help — Food52’s Executive Editor Kristen Miglore is unearthing recipes that are nothing short of genius.

Today: 4 ingredients. 1 step. No cooking. No churning. Ice cream!

Not having an ice cream maker never stopped us before. We’ve done all kinds of weird stuff in the name of doing it for ourselves. We’ve nested coffee cans and shaken (orkicked) them; we’ve returned obsessively to the freezer to stir; we may or may not have purchased this ball.

I am so impressed with us for doing all of that! We did a really good job of making ice cream, against all odds. But instead of doing any of it, you can glide over to your cupboard like you’re Nigella Lawson, find four ingredients, whip them into a cloud, then freeze — they will become ice cream while you go on with your day. 

It’s really as simple as that — there’s no egg to deal with, nothing to heat or temper or ice bath or strain. Just cream and sweetened condensed milk, flavored with espresso powder and liqueur. The sugar and booze keep it from getting hard and icy; the whipped cream provides air (and, yes, cream); the thick condensed milk helps do the work of a custard. 

  

  

"When I was a child, I used to make an ice cream with my great aunt that required no special equipment (save a freezer) and was the work of moments and a trio of ingredients: condensed milk, heavy cream, and vanilla," Lawson wrote to me. "Needless to say, it was sickly sweet, but more latterly it occurred to me that by adding bitterness or sharpness — coffee, bourbon and salted caramel, the fixings for a margarita, the combined juices of pomegranate and lime — this effortless ice cream could make life subtly sweeter in the grown-up world.”

More: Serve it with another genius Nigella dessert:Dense Chocolate Loaf Cake.

The ice cream will have a creamy, almost buttery smoothness. The first time, I whipped it a bit too far and it had a more noticeably buttery quality — not the worst problem, but an avoidable one. The sweet spot is just when the whisk leaves trails in the bowl (I was trying to be proper and hold a soft peak when I lifted the whisk out — no need). 

You can try all kinds of variations — Lawson has worked out at least 6 others for us. Food52er mrslarkin has this to add: “I loved this recipe so much that I made a mint chip version, using gin, mint extract, and grated chocolate, which was very delicious.” Definitely make a no-churn ice cream cake. 

   

Or, like Lawson, “You could (and I often do) serve it with a chocolate sauce but my absolute favourite way of eating this is by squidging it into little brioches, like sweet burger buns, as they do in the south of Italy.”

Make Your Own Ramen

From Good Housekeeping

The term, "ramen," has crawled out from under its sad reputation in America as a college student's idea of a cheap dinner. Ramen, realramen - springy, handmade noodles, complex, simmered-for-days broth - is hitting its stride right now with authentic (and whimsically inauthentic) ramen joints popping up in cities all across America. None in your neighborhood yet? Improvise with the packaged variety! Alternatively, you can also buy packages of curly "Chinese egg noodles" or "chuka soba," which are very similar to ramen noodles.

Start by tossing the flavor packet away. Cook the noodles in your favorite store-bought chicken or veggie broth (or better yet, homemade stock) as the package directs, but jazz up your meal-in-a-bowl with some of these fresh and fabulous add-ins.

Quick-Cooking Veggies: shredded carrots, spinach, frozen peas, frozen corn, shredded cabbage, sliced mushrooms, beansprouts, canned bamboo shoots (rinsed and drained), thinly sliced chili peppers

Leftover/Pre-Cooked/Quick-Cooking Proteins: cubed tofu, cooked slices of pork, shredded rotisserie chicken, cleaned shrimp, egg (crack it right into the simmer broth as the noodles cook)

Easy Stir-ins to Amp up Flavor (season to taste): Miso paste, wasabi paste, Asian hot sauce (such as sriracha or chili-garlic sauce), sliced scallions, grated fresh ginger/ground ginger, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, togarashi (Japanese seasoning mix), cilantro, kimchi, Thai curry paste, unsweetened coconut milk

Too many options making your head spin? Try one of these tasty combos: 

1. Carrots + scallions + rotisserie chicken + kimchi

2. Tofu + spinach + mushrooms + soy sauce 

3. Thinly sliced Serrano chilis+ lime juice + fish sauce + unsweetened coconut milk + Thai red or green curry paste + cilantro

4. Cooked pork + canned bamboo shoots + togarashi + wasabi paste + grated ginger

5. Miso paste + sesame oil + bean sprouts + spinach + egg 

6. Poached egg + sesame oil + shredded cabbage + frozen corn + ground ginger + Sriracha

-Sherry Rujikarn

More from Good Housekeeping: 

Unbelievably Easy Ramen Soup With Salmon

Warm-You-Up Chicken Soup Recipes

16 Healthiest Food Swaps

Gising Gising

1/2 kilo ground pork

1/4 kilo Sliced Green beans/Baguio beans

6 finger chili ( siling haba)

3 cloves garlic

1/2 onion

1/2 cup pure coconut milk ( can be replaced with Nestle cream or all purpose cream)

salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Saute the garlic and onion then add the meat and saute until the pinkish color is gone, then simmer  over medium heat.

2. Add the green beans, chili, salt and pepper then stir until almost done.

3. Add the coconut milk then simmer until done.

4. Serve it hot with rice.