Two recipe recommendations (after a week of recipe development failures)

Thankful for Ina Garten and Melissa Clark, as always.

Ina Garten’s French Toast (Using Brioche)

When I think of a new recipe to develop, I often start with the words of the main ingredients first.

This week, it was “lemon, tarragon & parmesan pasta” and “gochujang buffalo tofu over greens with buttermilk dressing”. They sounded like good ideas in my head, but what I ended up with after a long Saturday morning of recipe testing was zero recipes that I would like to share.

In fact, for every recipe I excitedly share on Substack, there are significantly more recipes that did not go according to plan, or that I scribbled down on scrap paper and lost among the multiple piles of children’s artwork all over my countertops, tables, bookshelves, desk, and floor.

But this time I panicked because I had nothing else in my drafts folder. I knew that after the day of failed recipe testing was over, there was no chance I’d have time to make something else to post this week.

Despite my own recipes not turning out well, I still ate a lot of great food this week. So today, instead of sharing something of my own, I’m recommending recipes I made this week that turned out just right: a long-time favorite and one that’s new to me.

1. Ina Garten’s Challah French Toast

My grandpa introduced me to challah French toast on a trip to Vermont when I was in elementary school, and this has been my go-to French toast recipe for as long as I can remember cooking it on my own. I am such a fan of the addition of orange zest, it truly makes the whole thing so much better. For anyone new to this recipe, I will add that you should be careful about not soaking the bread too long if it’s a delicate challah or brioche because it can quickly turn soupy. (But of all the bread options for French toast, my favorite to use is slightly stale sourdough.)

2. Melissa Clark’s Youvarlakia Avgolemono (Lemony Greek Meatball Soup)

I made this at a friend’s house for the first time this week, and it was a hit! This feels like such a perfectly cozy and nourishing bowl of food. My friend made us garlic bread with goat cheese on the side, which only added to the deliciousness. I’ll be making this one many more times!

What's a recent delicious creation or discovery of yours? Share your intel!