Kind of a big dillIf money, idiomatically speaking, can burn a hole in your pocket, how do I describe the abundance of dill in my fridge? Is it burning a hole in the door, melting the shelves clear off their brackets? Anyone who has purchased dill even once understands the sense of urgency that follows this herb home. I regularly poll friends and readers, asking about the items they struggle to use up when cooking. Recently, two girlfriends agreed on fresh herbs, with one noting: “Specifically, dill.” A voluminous bundle, a sure sign of spring, becomes such a liability when you need only a bit of dill to make the dish you bought it for. With each passing day, dill’s feathery ends threaten to brown, dry out or fuse together in slimy masses if you don’t store it properly or plan accordingly. (A quick P.S.A.: Chopped dill freezes spectacularly!) Perhaps you sought it out for Alexa Weibel’s feta-ranch wedge salad. Just me? This is the wedge of my dreams — intentionally slighter in appearance but not in flavor, its subtly green dressing flecked with fresh dill. This ranch skeptic (I know, I know) is soothed by how simple and bright it is. Feta-Ranch Wedge SaladYou will still have a lot left over after that, even if you garnish with a generous hand. So plan on Farideh Sadeghin’s maroulosalata. This decidedly green salad, popular in Greece, calls for many of the ingredients you’ll find in Alexa’s wedge recipe — lettuce, scallions, dill, feta and lots of lemon. Or let your herb fronds freckle the batter of Yewande Komolafe’s goat cheese and dill Dutch baby, a striking and savory centerpiece for any of the brunch-y holidays that accompany spring. I’m partial to a bit of dill on my baked potatoes, so why not in my mashed ones, too? Andy Baraghani’s recipe for herby mashed potatoes with labneh embraces it, calling for two-thirds of a cup of chopped dill. I want a heap of that alongside something mushroom-y, like Colu Henry’s baked mushrooms and white beans with buttery bread crumbs. Or maybe Lidey Heuck’s white beans au vin. Or perhaps Alison Roman’s creamy farro with crispy mushrooms and sour cream, which offers an opportunity for double the dill. You can easily stretch a single bouquet across three recipes by revisiting this meal plan I put together in 2023, complete with a Venn diagram that centers on dill. You’ll see that these three dishes — Ali Slagle’s crispy rice with dill and runny eggs; Lidey’s chopped salad with chickpeas, feta and avocado; and her chickpea salad with fresh herbs and scallions — use overlapping ingredients. This saves you time and money, and helps avoid waste. Or guarantee your dill burns no metaphorical holes in your kitchen, with the help of Naz Deravian and a single recipe. Her baghali ghatogh — a fava bean stew beloved in northern Iran that calls for two bunches of dill — is “an ambassador of early spring produce,” she writes. We are, admittedly, only one week into the season, so fresh favas may still be elusive. Frozen fava beans, canned butter beans, lima beans or cannellini beans are all worthy substitutes.
Goat Cheese and Dill Dutch Baby
Creamy Farro With Crispy Mushrooms and Sour Cream
Baghali Ghatogh (Fava Bean Stew)For a limited time, you can enjoy free access to the recipes in this newsletter in our app. Download it on your iOS or Android device and create a free account to get started. One More Thing!Bleak: A.I. chatbots may give a helpful boost in confidence to anxious restaurant diners, but are they offering better wine advice than that of sommeliers? Chic: The restaurant guest check, a century-old symbol of hospitality, remains a beloved and nostalgic artistic medium, even as it fades in popularity. And finally, in case you missed it: We published a new episode of our Veggie video series last week, all about the art of smarter snacking. You can watch it on YouTube or the NYT Cooking app. Thanks for reading, and see you next week! Email us at theveggie@nytimes.com. Newsletters are archived here. Reach out to my colleagues at cookingcare@nytimes.com if you have questions about your account.
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