Extra Good Things: Bold, vegetable-forward recipes plus homemade sauces, condiments, and more to build a flavor-packed pantry: A Cookbook
Starred review from July 18, 2022
“It’s the added extras that dress up a meal, making an already good dish deliciously better,” insist chef Ottolenghi and Ottolenghi Test Kitchen chef Murad in this creative collection of sauces, crunchy bits, and more. The jazzed-up recipes are what the authors call “a celebration of vegetables” and are largely inspired by Middle Eastern cuisine: Moroccan-inspired sweet and savory chicken pie gets a spicy crunch from the cinnamon-almond topping, while Egyptian ful mudammas (a spiced fava bean dish typically served for breakfast) is given a fiery kick from a green chile sauce. Throughout, the duo suggest variations for each “extra” item in a recipe; for instance, the pomegranate salsa used for a green frittata with burnt eggplant also pairs well with labneh, hummus, and a slow-cooked lamb shoulder. On a sweeter note, a bonus section focuses on dessert basics, where the team takes a classic dessert, such as devil’s food cake, and puts a fresh twist on it with intriguing ingredients like hazelnut praline, which can also be spooned onto toast, pancakes, or oatmeal (or even mixed with cocoa powder for a “Nutella-esque experience” that the authors “promise you won’t regret”). This master class on flavor and flair will inspire home cooks far and wide.