Recipes

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

This recipe for a simple summer spoon cake draws the juices out of blueberries then pours them on top of a gluten-free cornmeal batter. As the cake bakes, some blueberries sink and form a stewy bottom, others bubble into chewy jam. The result looks like an upside down cobbler, or a muffin without its middle. It isn’t too sweet, and what it lacks in slice-ability and portability, it makes up for with tenderness and juiciness. Make sure to bake it on a tray to catch any batter or berries that rise over the rim — these are the cook’s midbake treat.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

These summery grilled chicken thighs with sweet corn are scented with basil and lime. Warm your lime-basil butter on the side of the grill while you cook your corn and chicken, so it melts willingly on the charred thighs and corn kernels. Finishing with extra lime wedges and flaky salt isn’t a recommendation, but an essential final kick.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

In this elegant, easy summer meal, grilled chicken is marinated in a vinaigrette, infused with herbes de Provence, that tenderizes and seasons the thighs. Another simple mustard vinaigrette dresses the tomatoes after they come off the grill, as do the flavorful juices from the chicken. Slashing the thighs through to the bone encourages heat to penetrate the meat, so your chicken will be cooked through before the skin burns. Have fun developing a crust: once the chicken releases from the grill, rotate it repeatedly for an even, chestnut char.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

This simple eggplant recipe yields soft and deliciously spiced rounds. Eat them as a side with meat or fish, or as a vegetable main, with seasoned yogurt and chopped herbs. Don’t be afraid to use your broiler for extra crispness at the end of roasting, and consider leftovers an excellent start for your favorite eggplant dishes, like moussaka or ratatouille.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

The classic French dessert throws off its formality in favor of family-style fun. You can use the broiler or a torch to caramelize the sugar on top — just make sure the dish is fully chilled before this final step so you don’t scramble the voluptuous, vanilla-flecked custard.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

These braised duck legs — spiced with ginger, thyme, anise and orange — are festive and ideal to cook ahead. Unlike traditional orange duck, which is cooked pink and served in a syrupy sauce, this version is savory, fragrant and confit-tender. Make sure to top up the pot with stock if it looks like it’s drying up at any point (don’t be fooled into thinking your pot has enough stock just because you see plenty of the fat that will render during the braise). And do save the duck fat for something specialwhen you spoon it off at the end. If you’re making the dish ahead and reheating it, add the fresh orange juice right before you serve.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

Greens, boiled in properly salted water, make an ideal companion to almost any dish. Served with spiced duck, or a similar saucy braise, they provide soft, nourishing relief to every eater and gallantly soak up what’s on the plate. Dinosaur kale (also known as lacinato or Tuscan kale), Savoy cabbage and brussels sprouts are particularly suitable during winter. Let the greens drain and steam dry fully before drizzling with olive oil or topping with a knob of butter.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

This pita-crusted rice and squash bombe is a celebratory showstopper, capable of upstaging any roast or standing alone as the centerpiece of a vegetarian feast. The technique of encrusting pilaf in crisp bread is inspired by fruit-studded Azerbaijani shakh plov and Persian polo ba tahdig. It’s a bit fiddly, with three components to prepare — rice, cumin-roasted shallots and squash, and saffron butter — but none of them are complicated. Cook them in advance, but assemble the bombe when you’re ready to bake it off. Make sure to butter the baking bowl heavily and overlap your pitas without gaps. If in doubt, arm yourself with more pitas than the recipe calls for, in case yours are a bit dry when you take them out of the packet — you may need spares for patching.

Clare de Boer · NYT Cooking

Bitter winter chicories are balanced with some endive and cress, and sweetened with a honey-spiked dressing. It makes a refreshing side to any rich wintry dish. As vinegar and honey can vary wildly in flavor, dip a leaf into your dressing jar to check it for seasoning and balance, adjusting as needed before tossing it through the salad.

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Prepare the ice-cream base, exclusive of the mint, as it appears in the preceding recipe and chill.

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking

Christopher Idone · NYT Cooking