Pasta? For Spring? Delicious.
Tomorrow is the first day of spring, and I can see it in the snowdrops and crocuses finally poking up in green, purple and white profusion all around Prospect Park. I know the days of flowering chives and local asparagus are still many weeks away. But I'll content myself with frozen peas, which feel light and springy and will help bide the time until the fresh sugar snaps start arriving in May.
Perhaps I'll use those tiny orbs in Ali Slagle's one-pot tortellini with prosciutto, where they'll add pops of velvety sweetness next to the bits of salty cured pork in the creamy sauce. Or maybe I'll toss them with Parmesan, lemon and charred scallions to make Hana Asbrink's verdant crème fraîche pasta with peas and scallions, an elegant, 30-minute dish that's both rich and bright. Vegetable-filled pastas seem like the right move now on the cusp of springtime, and Krysten Chambrot, a senior editor, has put together more terrific ideas for you, here.
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I can daydream about spring as much as I want, but that won't make the evenings any warmer or the buds bloom any faster. So to continue to ward off the chill — and to use up those farm box root vegetables that have piled up in my pantry — I'm going to give Cybelle Tondu's baked sweet potatoes with blue cheese and bacon a go. I love the notion of the almost candied, silky potato flesh rubbing elbows with the funky, creamy blue cheese butter, all topped with crisp bacon and chopped walnuts for extra texture. It's like a steakhouse wedge salad, but even more satisfying.
Those loaded potatoes would make a fine meal all by themselves. But if you wanted to round things out, Christian Reynoso's chile crisp chicken cutlets are deeply spiced from a chile crisp marinade spiked with soy sauce and red wine vinegar, and they're coated in a wonderfully crunchy panko crust. Christian's trick for adding even more oomph is to whisk some of the excess marinade into the eggs used for coating the cutlets, which lends a pleasingly sharp kick.
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In the early 1900s, frugal home cooks combined leftover chicken, ham and fish with mayonnaise to serve atop lettuce leaves for the next day's lunch. (This is probably why this mostly white mishmash we know today is called a 'salad.') During World War II, luncheonettes looking to cater to the growing female work force started serving versions made with canned tuna and hard-boiled eggs, eventually tucking them in between pieces of bread for portability and convenience. MARGAUX LASKEY To maximize the crunch of this salad , Sohla El-Waylly starts with a base of corn chips, piles on all the fixings then finishes it off with more chips. Sohla El-Waylly's taco salad. James Ransom for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Maggie Ruggiero There's the tostada, a crunchy, flat corn tortilla with a molehill of toppings, and there's the tostada salad, a crisp-fried flour tortilla pleated into a tall bowl that cradles a mountain of meat, beans, cheese, tomatoes, shredded lettuce and sour cream. 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Eric Kim's crispy wonton chicken salad. Chris Simpson for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Sophia Pappas. Long before you could have your salads made to order at a Sweetgreen counter, Cary Grant requested a 'Chinese chicken salad' from Madame Wu's Garden, Sylvia Wu's celebrated Los Angeles restaurant. His customized chicken salad included rice noodles, fried wonton skins and scallions, slicked with a zippy soy-and-sesame dressing, but the dish has continued to evolve over time. Inaccurately named and inarguably American, Chinese chicken salad can today be spotted at the mall, at chain restaurants or at cookouts and potlucks — it's a salad that parties. It also doesn't take itself seriously, a whimsical heap of slivered greens, chicken, crispy fried wontons and herbs, coated in a salty-sweet dressing that still typically includes soy sauce and sesame. A.W. In her version , Melissa Clark doesn't choose just tuna or anchovies. Rather, she features the larger fish and blends the smaller into the dressing, increasing this salad's protein punch. Melissa Clark's Niçoise salad with basil and anchovy-lemon vinaigrette. Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. This sunny salad is at its best when tomatoes are fat, juicy and sweet, as they would be from basking in the summer sun in the south of France, where this salad originates. Tomatoes, olives and tuna (or anchovies) are traditional, along with any raw vegetables the cook desires, but potatoes, green beans and hard-boiled eggs are practically expected. The added ingredients create a particularly hearty warm-weather meal, ideal for making ahead and porting to a picnic. C.L. Classic three-bean salad is made with sugar-vinegar dressing, but Melissa Clark gives hers a decidedly savory French accent with Dijon, shallots, parsley and celery. Melissa Clark's bean salad. Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Hearty bean salads, a welcome standby at picnics and in lunchboxes, can be traced back to Native American cultures, whose agriculture relied heavily on beans. Three sisters salad was named after the ancient 'three sisters' method, which entailed planting corn, beans and squash together in a way that benefited all three crops: The corn provided a stalk for the beans to climb, large squash leaves provided shade and discouraged weeds, and the beans helped stabilize the corn stalks. Bean salads, now typically made with inexpensive canned beans, remain popular for many good reasons: They're economical, they get better as they sit, they serve a crowd and they're happily riffable. M.L. Martha Rose Shulman's Lebanese tabbouleh is a best-in-class version, ensuring a high ratio of herbs (parsley and mint) to bulgur. Martha Rose Shulman's tabbouleh. David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. This classic Middle Eastern salad combines bulgur wheat with diced tomatoes, lemon, olive oil, and piles and piles of fresh herbs, chopped until diminutive enough to be consumed by the spoonful. The dish may even predate the Middle Ages, yet its combination of acidity and greens still feels fresh today. Though lemon juice jolts any salad to life, it can also dim the brightness of the greens, so this salad, like many others, is best enjoyed close to its creation. A.W. Gabrielle E. W. Carter uses watermelon and tomato in her country panzanella for even juicier, sweet-savory notes in every bite. Gabrielle E.W. Carter's country panzanella with watermelon dressing. Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. The Tuscan painter and poet known as Bronzino first wrote about a salad of stale bread, onions, cucumbers and leafy greens like purslane in the 16th century (tomatoes weren't included, since they had only recently been introduced to Italy). Unlike crunchy croutons, the bread in panzanella, now a Tuscan classic, is the main event, soaking up the vibrant juices from summer produce and becoming equal parts chewy and juicy. And since panzanella and its pita-based cousin, fattoush, tend to improve as they sit, they're especially easygoing, ready to take to the beach or wait patiently in the fridge for post-pool snacking. ADINA STEIMAN Millie Peartree's classic adds sweetness with carrots and a bit of sugar; celery and bell pepper provide fresh crunch. Millie Peartree's macaroni salad. Christopher Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist; Simon Andrews. The union of elbow macaroni and a mayonnaise-based dressing is such a staple at deli counters and on picnic blankets that this American pasta-salad spinoff has naturally engendered its own riffs. In Hawaii, the pasta is cooked until soft (never al dente), and mayo is more than a binder, but a flavor of its own. Shrimp can be added for heft and a bit of protein, but no-cook options like canned tuna and peas are smart mix-ins. C.L. Melissa Clark's light, refreshing lemony potato salad adds extra flavor with a mint-scallion finish. Melissa Clark's lemon potato salad with mint. Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. The potato salad has had a long time to sit and marinate: Mention of potatoes boiled and dressed in oil and vinegar date back as early as the 17th century, but the salads as we know them gained popularity in America in the second half of the 19th century. These days, there's a potato salad for every taste: served warm or cold, accented with bacon fat, mayonnaise or a simple vinaigrette. Most recipes call for waxy potatoes that hold their shape, but starchy russets aren't unheard-of, and, in some cases, the potatoes aren't in cubes but broken down to a chunky mash. C.L. 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There is an entire universe that separates Ali Slagle's fruit salad recipe from the tired versions you might encounter on airplanes, in buffets or at supermarkets. Ali Slagle's fruit salad. Nico Schinco for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Fruit salad is both simple and limitless. Technically, you could combine two different sliced fruits and present the results as fruit salad, but you'd be shortchanging yourself on flavor, when it could be intensified with dressing, spices, herbs or vegetables. Ali Slagle spikes her fruit salad with fresh lime zest, lime juice and sugar; the results taste like fruit at its peak, how a salad should make you feel: abundantly alive. A.W. To ensure each element of Melissa Clark's Caprese shines, bring the mozzarella to room temperature, sprinkle the tomato slices generously with salt and top the salad with basil at the last minute. Melissa Clark's Caprese salad. Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. The essence of effortless summer cooking, Caprese salad demands little from the cook: Cut up a few ripe tomatoes, tear some fragrant basil and slice some milky mozzarella, and all that's left is to arrange them all on a platter, season and drizzle with olive oil, and admire the sight before you tuck in. The same blueprint applies even if you get restless and swap out the tomatoes for stone fruit, cucumbers or melon, or add more depth with prosciutto, olives or a spicy vinaigrette. A.S.
