Congratulations! You’ve made it through February, the shortest — and longest — month of the year. We all get extra credit too, because it’s a leap year. But next time I’d like a leap day in June, please.
For now, let’s ring in March like the pros we are with a brand-new Ali Slagle recipe. Her latest article for The New York Times goes deep on roasting vegetables, offering three fresh takes on how to employ the oven’s high heat to caramelize dense roots, sturdy broccoli florets and even hardy greens.
In her recipe for roasted kale with sweet potatoes and eggs, she starts by roasting sliced sweet potatoes on a sheet pan until velvety, and then adds layers of kale, eggs and coconut flakes on top. I can’t wait to try it: The combination of plush sweet potatoes, crispy kale leaves and runny eggs drizzled with a creamy peanut butter harissa sauce has me deeply intrigued. And since it’s an Ali recipe it’ll be easy, too.
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Roasted Kale and Sweet Potatoes With Eggs
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Two more excellent Ali recipes to consider this week: her oven-steamed fish with mixed-nut salsa and her rosemary chicken ragù.
For the fish, Ali uses an interesting steaming technique. She covers the bottom of a baking dish with parsley sprigs, places the fish on top and pours in just enough boiling water to cover the bottom. A tight foil cover contains the steam to gently cook the fillets, while the parsley keeps them from sticking to the pan and adds an herby perfume. To finish, a peppery mixed-nut and parsley salsa adds additional flavor and a crunchy texture. And everything comes together in under 30 minutes.
The chicken ragù takes a bit longer, but it’s hands-off time spent simmering the thighs in a winey mix of tomatoes, butter, anchovies and garlic until they’re soft enough to pull apart with two forks. Stir in some Parmesan, then serve it over pasta or with canned white beans for a sumptuous, warming meal.
Or, I’ve got a quicker pasta for you to consider. My one-pan feta pasta with cherry tomatoes is based on a popular TikTok recipe developed by the Finnish blogger Jenni Hayrinen, with a clever twist: I streamlined the dish into a one-pot meal. Think of this creamy, cozy baked casserole as the red sauce sibling of mac and cheese.
On the gutsier side of dinner, Hetty McKinnon’s cumin tofu stir-fry works with gochugaru (Korean red chile flakes), red-pepper flakes or Sichuan pepper, so you can choose the exact degree of heat that your dinnermates prefer. I’m a fan of Sichuan pepper; its characteristic numbing quality plays well with red and black pepper. Serve this one with rice to calm the flames on your tongue.
For dessert, let’s come back to Ali. Her chocolate oat milk pudding is so simple and so good. As Anne H. put it in the notes: “There aren’t enough stars. I don’t want to eat anything else. I’m not going to brush my teeth.”
And as always, you’ll want to subscribe to access all of these smart recipes and so many more (oh, just tens of thousands more) on New York Times Cooking. If you need any technical help, the brilliant people at cookingcare@nytimes.com are there for you. And I’m at hellomelissa@nytimes.com if you want to say hi.
That’s all for now. See you on Wednesday.
