Mirin is a low-alcohol rice wine essential to Japanese cooking. Look for it in your supermarket with the Asian or gourmet ingredients. An equal portion of sherry or white wine with a pinch of sugar may be substituted for mirin.

You might need to buy:
  • instant brown rice
  • reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • sugar
  • reduced-sodium soy sauce
  • large egg whites
  • large egg
You might need to buy:
  • shredded fontina cheese
  • salt
  • Freshly ground pepper to taste
Belongs to largomason Shrimp Etouffe 
You might need to buy:
  • cooking oil
  • flour
  • canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock
  • bay leaf
  • salt
  • cayenne pepper
  • fresh-ground black pepper
  • dried thyme

If you want to use rice that is not “instant,” stir in 1 cup of any leftover cooked rice instead. Or, if you have time, add 1/2 cup of quicker-cooking whole-grain rice, such as Bhutanese red rice or Kalijira rice and an additional 1 1/4 cups of chicken broth before adding the okra. Cook until the rice is almost tender, about 25 minutes (or according to package instructions) then add the okra and simmer until it is tender.

You might need to buy:
  • extra-virgin olive oil
  • all-purpose flour
  • sauce from Wine & tomato Braised Chicken
  • reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • cayenne pepper
You might need to buy:
  • Crust:
  • butter
  • powdered sugar
  • flour
  • Filling:
  • sugar
  • eggs
  • Almond extract
  • Frosting:
  • powdered sugar
  • Milk
  • Almond extract

To toast whole almonds, spread on a baking sheet and bake at 350°F, stirring once, until fragrant, 7 to 9 minutes. To toast sliced almonds, cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.

Note: Eggs must be at room temperature for the proteins to unwind enough to support the cake’s crumb. Either set the eggs out on the counter for 15 minutes or submerge them in their shells in a bowl of lukewarm (not hot) water for 5 minutes before using.

You might need to buy:
  • For Cake:
  • honey
  • vanilla extract
  • baking soda
  • salt
  • For Topping:
  • honey

I use slab bacon here because I like large pieces that are brown on the outside but still moist in the center. If you cannot find slab bacon, use the thickest-sliced supermarket bacon you can find. Just be sure not to overcook it. If you prefer, you can pour off all the bacon fat after browning the bacon and replace it with an equal amount of olive oil, but remember, the bacon fat has a much more pronounced flavor. If you don’t have the stock called for in the recipe, just use water from the pasta pot.

Often you will see this dish prepared with cream. It’fs not the traditional style, but that’s not to say it doesn’t taste good. But I prefer my carbonara made this way, the sauce thickened lightly with egg yolk. The heat of the pasta is enough to cook the egg yolks, but if you like, you may bring a small saucepan of boiling water to a simmer and, about a minute before draining the pasta, slip the yolks into a small sieve placed in the simmering water, to coddle them for a minute. Carefully lift the sieve from the water and add the coddled yolks to the pasta as described below.

You might need to buy:
  • Salt
  • linguine
  • egg yolks
  • freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
  • Coarsely ground black pepper

Pecorino Romano is a very salty cheese, which negates the need for extra salt in the batter. If you substitute for another cheese, add 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon salt.

You might need to buy:
  • large eggs
  • grated Pecorino Romano cheese
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • chopped rosemary
You might need to buy:
  • medium cloves garlic
  • packed roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
  • packed roughly chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • white vinegar
  • lime juice from 1 lime
  • olive oil
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper