There is a light brightness that spring necessitates. Maybe that is a streamlined chocolate pudding. Perhaps ramen spiked with the stalwart Latinx seasoning sazón. Or maybe your salmon wants a long sauna stint before being finished with a zippy garnish. Accessible and satisfying: This is spring cooking.
Crispy Potato, Egg and Cheese Tacos
Ali Slagle shows why she is one of the better recipe creators with this crackly, satisfying take on an open-faced taco-sandwich hybrid. You grate potato and cheddar. Then you fry a circle of the shredded potato, top it with a round of the shredded cheddar, let the lot get all crisp and commingled, then top with an egg. When the egg is done to your liking, slide it onto a warm tortilla. Call it breakfast. Or lunch. Or dinner.
Easy Chocolate Pudding
The namesake Joy Wilson of Joy the Baker says she makes this effortless chocolate pudding about once a month. Duh. Because pudding is a source of vast comfort, and her recipe skips the eggs for cornstarch and simply heats it with raw cacao powder, maple syrup, coconut milk and vanilla extract. Who said you only need to make this once a month?
Sazón Ramen
Those packets of sazón are ubiquitous across much of the Latin diaspora. Kiera Wright-Ruiz takes the packets in a fresh direction by using their deep umami to season bowls of ramen heady with the flavors of instant dashi. For contrast, she adds shrimp, green bell pepper and spinach. This is but one example of the delicious paths-crossing Wright-Ruiz is becoming known for.
Sheet-Pan Gnocchi
This dish is unsure if it is a pasta or a salad, and for that we thank it. Because it highlights the allure of both. Shelf-stable gnocchi are roasted, going all chewy and crusty, alongside cherry tomatoes, which pull a similar maneuver. Then they are all finished with sharp greens, basil and Parmesan. Winner, winner, gnocchi dinner.
Slow-Roasted Salmon with Leeks and Crushed Olives
Breaking news: You can be famous on TikTok for your food content and not actually know how to cook or create a recipe. Hailee Catalano is not that TikTok star. Instead, she is a trained chef who has worked in restaurants and also knows how to explain to the home cook how a recipe should work. A one-skillet dish, this salmon is roasted on sautéed leeks and finished with a kicky mixture of olives, honey and vinegar.
Strawberry Pudding Cake
Pudding cakes are a textural marvel, crackly on top, cakey in the middle with a lush layer of fruit. This style of cake is often made with citrus, typically lemon, but Christian Reynoso uses spring’s triangular delight, the strawberry, to yank the pudding cake into the balmier months.