Cookthink

I like to use Nantes carrots for this soup because they are very sweet and have excellent carrot flavor when cooked. I find a little scrubbing is all they need. If you substitute other carrots, you may want to peel them. Read more about this recipe in Jeanne Kelley's Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes cookbook.

Mint Pesto

Mint-based pesto made with almonds is a refreshing take on the traditional basil and pine nut variety, and it's just as versatile. Try it as a pasta sauce; as a salad dressing thinned with a little vinegar or water; as a dip mixed with soft cheese; as a garnish for soups or grilled vegetables, fish, chicken or meat; or just spread on toast.

New York Strip With Spicy Gremolata Dressing

Based loosely on gremolata, the Italian analogue to salsa verde and persillade, this easy, bold-flavored vinaigrette will perk up your New York strip steaks with a minimum of effort.

Herbed Tuna Salad With Feta And Pine Nuts

This tuna salad would be good on bread or in a pita but I’ve discovered that my favorite way to eat this is to scoop it right onto a piece of lettuce, pick it up, and eat it by hand. This came from Nicole of Pinch My Salt and was the featured recipe for Root Source: Chives.

Potato, Chanterelle And Stilton Gratin

We used Stilton for this gratin, but you could use any blue cheese -- Gorgonzola, Bleu d'Auvergne, Roquefort, Point Reyes Blue, Jasper Hill's Bayley Hazen Blue and so on. For that matter, just about any combination of wild and cultivated mushrooms will do if you can't find chanterelles.

Bearnaise Sauce

Béarnaise sauce is a delicious accompaniment to fish and red meat -- like, say, a grilled sirloin or a freshly made hamburger. French restaurateur Fernand Point wrote in Ma Gastronomie: "A Béarnaise sauce is simply an egg yolk, a shallot, a little tarragon vinegar, and butter, but it takes years of practice for the result to be perfect."

Calf Liver And Onions With Vernaccia

The quality and flavor of organ meat is closely linked to how the animal is raised. My mother, like my grandmother, insisted on knowing whose calf was getting killed that week so she could trust the liver would be good. Read more about this recipe in Efisio Farris's book Sweet Myrtle & Bitter Honey.

Whole Wheat Squash Ravioli With Sage Butter

Emboldened by his recent foray into recipe-less gnocchi, Brys decided to try his hand at homemade whole wheat ravioli. Read more about how he developed this recipe on the Cookthink blog.

Sesame Noodles With Cucumber

This simple recipe is a fantastic side with other Asian-inspired dishes. If you're not a big fan of spicy food, you may wish to go a bit more gently on the chili flakes. Read more about this recipe at Cook & Eat.

Beef, Orzo And Cabbage Casserole

We love to use orzo pasta instead of rice in casseroles. The pasta feels lighter than the rice and gives the casserole a more interesting texture. If you want to give the casserole a more Eastern European feel, add some caraway and mustard seeds.

Rabbit With Prunes And Olives

Rabbit is a clean, lean, sustainable meat with a delicate flavor similar to chicken (which can be substituted here). If you make this dish ahead, the flavor will only improve. Read more about this recipe in Jeanne Kelley's Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes cookbook.

Pan-Seared Pork Chops with Balsamic Cherries

This is one of those recipes that looks a lot more complicated on the plate than it is in the pan – be sure to prepare the ingredients first, as the actual cooking process goes very quickly. You can use chops of any thickness; very thick chops will take longer to cook, so reduce the heat to medium after the first minute or so of cooking. Read more about this recipe at hogwash.