I’ve forgotten a lot of things in life. A meal has never been one of them.

Two silver linings in this whole social distancing thing: more time to read and more time gathered around the kitchen table. If you’re like us and haven’t cooked this much in years, great news: super foodies Kate and Amelia are here to solve our dinner dilemmas. Less time fretting over meals means more time reading. We feel better already. And you will too after spending time in The Away Cafe. Here’s a taste of what you’ll find (see what we did there?):

At The Away Cafe, our vacation recipe blog, we have been dealing with the coronavirus stress the way we do with many of our other worries—by reading more cookbooks. Yes, it’s been nice to slow our lives down with social distancing, but knowing we can’t buy a pastry from one of our beloved cafés has been a challenge. We miss the brunch bowl from our favorite Saturday lunch spot; we miss their salted chocolate chip cookie. If you’re anything like us, you’ve been looking to fill that void in your own kitchen. Here are some of our favorite sources for doing so. 

Ina Garten recipes are consistently delicious and never over-complicated, but her tips are fabulous, too. She taught us how to assemble party platters with no cooking required, to serve finger food to help more formal guests relax and enjoy themselves, and that it’s better to seat too many people at a small table than too few at a larger one. As hard as it was to choose among the many books she’s published, we decided to highlight the first book, which has recipes that we still love to make and eat after all these years, including Turkey Tea Sandwiches, Parker’s Split Pea Soup, Homemade Granola, Caramelized Butternut Squash, and many more.

Yottam Ottolenghi is a vegetable genius, with a plethora of cookbooks to back him up. Jerusalem is what got us hooked (and converted the dad to cooking), but his others are wonderful as well: Plenty, Plenty More, and Simple. His creations are creative and really play to the strength of their ingredients. We admit they’re usually a bit over-complicated, but for days when you feel like something really delicious and special, Ottolenghi is the man. We love the Baby Spinach Salad with Dates and Almonds, Roasted Cauliflower and Hazelnut Salad, Shakshuka, Conchiglie with Yogurt, Peas, and Chile, and Turkey and Zucchini Burgers with Green Onion and Cumin. 

One of Amelia’s favorites is Bread Toast Crumbs. The whole book is constructed around one master bread recipe: a delicious, super easy (no knead, short rise) white bread recipe. The first chapter offers variations of that bread (like a wonderful focaccia and scrumptious anadama bread), making it the “bread” chapter. The next chapter is about toast (tartines, french toast, etc.), and the final is crumbs (breaded things, panzanella). The book has made dropping off a warm loaf at a neighbor's house easy, and bread baking irresistible. Some favorites: Homemade Nutella (still dying to make this into Grilled Creme Fraiche and Nutella Sandwiches), Onion Jam Bacon, and Grilled Cheese, Rosemary Semolina Bread, and an addictive Spicy Broccoli Sauté. 

Posted by Rachel