OVEN
RIPEN BANANAS ASAP
Overripe bananas—supersweet and packed with flavor—are essential for banana bread. But I don’t always plan ahead. So when I only have green bananas, I use this hack for ripening them: I bake them whole in the oven until they get soft, then spoon out the flesh.
Bake underripe bananas in a 350° oven until the peels are dark all over and the fruit is soft to the touch, 5 to 7 minutes. Slice through the peels lengthwise to scoop out the fruit.
Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread
Active
30 min;
Total
1 hr 40 min plus cooling; Makes one 9-inch loaf
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly, plus more for greasing
1½ cups plus 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
½ cup walnuts
½ cup semisweet chocolate chunks or coarsely chopped chocolate (2½ oz.)
1 tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. kosher salt
1¼ cups sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 cup mashed very ripe banana
2 large eggs
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Coat a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan with butter and flour. Spread the walnuts in a pie plate and toast for about 7 minutes, until fragrant. Let cool, then coarsely chop. In a small bowl, toss the walnuts and chocolate chunks with 1 tablespoon of the flour.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the remaining 1½ cups of flour with the baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, whisk the 1¼ cups of sugar with the banana, melted butter and eggs. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Fold in the walnuts and chocolate chunks. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the top generously with sugar.
3. Bake the banana bread for about 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely on a rack before turning out onto a platter. Cut into slices and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The banana bread can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
PEEL CHERRY TOMATOES
Roast cherry tomatoes just until the skins wrinkle. Let them cool, then simply pinch off the skins.
Bucatini with Oven-Roasted Tomato Sauce
Total
30 min;
Serves
6
1½ lbs. Campari tomatoes or large cherry tomatoes (not grape tomatoes)
1 small red onion, halved and very thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. capers—rinsed, drained and finely chopped
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
Kosher salt and pepper
1 lb. bucatini
Shaved or grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving
1. Preheat the oven to 500°. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the tomatoes on the baking sheet. Roast for 3 to 5 minutes, until the skins just wrinkle. Let cool slightly, then pull off and discard the skins.
2. On the baking sheet, toss the tomatoes with the onion, capers, olive oil, garlic and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Roast for about 5 minutes, until the tomatoes just start to burst and the onion is just softened.
3. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan of salted boiling water, cook the pasta until al dente. Drain well, reserving ½ cup of the cooking water.
4. Scrape the tomato sauce and any juices into the large saucepan. Add the pasta and cooking water and toss well. Season with salt and pepper and toss again. Transfer to shallow bowls, top with shaved or grated Parmesan and serve right away.
REVIVE STALE BREAD
Here’s the problem: T minus 30 minutes until guests come for dinner and you find out that your baguette is stale. Here’s a tip that will save the day. Wet the bread slightly, then pop it in the oven. It will emerge so crisp and crunchy, you’ll be deafened by the noise when you bite into it. This trick also works beautifully for reviving any extra rustic bread or rolls you keep in the freezer.
Run an unsliced stale or frozen loaf of bread under water to dampen it. Bake in a 350° oven until crisp on the outside and softened inside, 5 to 10 minutes.
Tuna Banh Mi
Total
20 min;
Serves
4
New York City has a bunch of shops that specialize in banh mi. But there’s one filling I’ve never seen in these Vietnamese sandwiches: canned tuna. So I made my own version with fresh mint leaves and sliced pickles for extra tang.
15 oz. tuna in olive oil, drained
¼ cup fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp. Asian fish sauce
1 jalapeño, minced
Kosher salt and pepper
One 24- to 32-inch soft baguette, split and toasted
Mayonnaise, mint leaves, julienned carrots and sliced dill pickles, for serving
In a medium bowl, toss the tuna with the lime juice, fish sauce and jalapeño. Season with salt and pepper. Spread the cut sides of the baguette with mayonnaise, then fill with the tuna salad, mint, carrots and pickles. Close, cut into 4 sandwiches and serve.
Shrimp and Chorizo Tortas
Total
20 min;
Serves
4
2 Tbsp. canola oil
¾ lb. shelled and deveined medium shrimp
½ lb. fresh chorizo, casing removed, meat crumbled
¾ cup minced red onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
Kosher salt and pepper
Toasted kaiser rolls, mayonnaise, lettuce and thinly sliced tomato and avocado, for serving
In a large skillet, heat the canola oil. Add the shrimp, chorizo, onion and garlic and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and the shrimp and chorizo are cooked through, about 8 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and 2 tablespoons of water and season with salt and pepper. Serve on toasted kaiser rolls with mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato and avocado.
BAKE DRIED PASTA
This tip for making pasta without boiling it in a pot of water is going to change your life. Combining uncooked pasta with sauce and water in a baking dish not only saves you time and dirties one less pot, it results in a surprisingly luscious dish.
Layer dried pasta with meatballs, cheese and sauce in a baking dish. Add water, cover tightly with foil, then bake.
Baked Ziti with Meatballs
Active
30 min;
Total
1 hr 45 min
Serves
6 to 8
½ lb. ground pork
½ lb. ground beef
½ cup plain dry bread crumbs
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
⅓ cup lightly packed torn basil, plus more for garnish
¼ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
Kosher salt and pepper
1 lb. ziti or rigatoni
1 lb. fresh mozzarella, torn into 1-inch pieces
3 cups marinara sauce
1. Preheat the oven to 400°. In a large bowl, combine the pork, beef, bread crumbs, eggs, ⅓ cup of torn basil, ¼ cup of Parmesan and 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper; mix well. Form the mixture into 1-inch balls.
2. In a 9-by-13-inch ceramic baking dish, spread half of the pasta in an even layer. Arrange half of the meatballs and mozzarella on the pasta. Spoon half of the marinara on top and season with ½ teaspoon of salt. Repeat with the remaining pasta, meatballs, mozzarella and marinara, then season with ½ teaspoon of salt. Add 2½ cups of water to the baking dish and cover tightly with foil.
3. Bake for about 1 hour, until the pasta is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. Uncover and bake for 5 minutes longer, then turn on the broiler and broil 8 inches from the heat until the top is lightly browned. Let stand for 5 minutes, then garnish the baked ziti with basil and Parmesan and serve.
MAKE AHEAD The baked pasta can be refrigerated overnight. Reheat gently.
VARIATION You can use other pasta shapes in place of the ziti or rigatoni. Try curly rotini or fusilli, shells or campanelle, which look like little bells.