The Weekday Vegetarians Get Simple
A Q&A with Jenny Rosenstrach & Tagliatelle with Chickpeas and Rosemary
’s newest cookbook, The Weekday Vegetarians Get Simple, came out yesterday and it’s so very good. The book is a follow-up companion to her NYT, best-selling The Weekday Vegetarians where she introduced the concept of eating meat-free during the weekdays, a brilliant move! Similarly to Jenny, and many of you as well I believe, I too am thoughtful about my meat consumption. Jenny proves once again that it’s not complicated to have delicious, meat-free flavorful meals. She does a beautiful job developing creative, vegetable-forward recipes that are unfussy and full of flavor, think Sheet Pan Gnocchi with Butternut Squash, Carbonara with Cabbage & Miso, Golden Greens Pie, Crispy Eggplant Bowls with Pistachios & Basil and many more.
Luckily for us, the lovely Jenny made time in her busy schedule to answer some fun questions about her cooking style, what’s in her fridge and what she likes do when she’s not in the kitchen. Oh, and she even shared a recipe from the book, Tagliatelle with Chickpeas and Rosemary! It’s right up my alley, utilizing pantry ingredients (beans! pasta!) and fresh herbs to turn a weeknight dish into something much more special than you’d think it to be.
Take a peek below for much more and don’t forget to buy the book and subscribe to Jenny’s wonderful newsletter, Dinner a Love Story!
A Q&A with Cookbook Author Jenny Rosenstrach
If you could describe your cooking style in three to five words, what would they be?
Simple, crowd pleasing, vegetable-forward, but most of all real, as in I make these recipes every day in real life.
What are the few kitchen tools you can’t live without?
I had heard about the Benriner mandoline for so many years, but it wasn’t until the food stylist on Get Simple (Lauren Radel) convinced me that uniformly paper-thin slices didn’t just make vegetables look prettier, it made them taste better. My gratins were so much more tender and textured when I used evenly sliced potatoes; my salads more satisfying when I tossed in delicately sliced radishes and cucumbers; and I don’t think I will ever go back to normal roasted brussels sprouts after discovering I can prep them on the mandoline, and toss (raw!) with Pecorino, walnuts, and raisins. This particular mandoline is so lightweight and easy to handle, and is lovable for its decided lack of bells and whistles, unlike my previous one which was huge and cumbersome and came with a million interchangeable blades and a kickstand. That one lived on an upper cabinet shelf and my Benriner pretty much lives on my kitchen counter. How did I forget the golden rule: simpler is always better.
What are some items can we always find in your fridge and/or pantry?
All the obvious vegetarian MVPs – chickpeas, Rancho Gordo beans, tofu, eggs. But I’m also a big believer in having an arsenal of store bought staples that can often be the difference between preparing a vegetarian dinner instead of falling back on an animal protein to anchor the plate. Dufour all-butter Puff Pastry (an excellent starting point for any roasted vegetable tart), empanada dough (stuff with refried beans or vegetables and that’s a meal), Gotham Greens pesto (I toss this into pasta and salad dressings, but also lentils, quinoa and grains. Pesto-tossed quinoa topped with a jammy egg is my idea of the perfect meal…and only takes 15 minutes to make. I have a whole section in Get Simple dedicated to my store bought saviors.
Are there any ingredients that you’re finding particularly inspiring right now?
I love Dashi RDX, an umami-loaded syrup developed by the Noma Projects people. You just a need the smallest amount to up the what’s-in-this? factor in salad dressings, sauces, grain bowls, almost anything. It’s made from kombu, dried mushrooms, and dried fish flakes, so unfortunately not vegetarian.
Favorite thing/s to do when you’re out of the kitchen?
Walking my dog, Bean, reading somewhere pretty, watching my daughter play soccer, Citi-biking around Central park while accompanying a family member on a run. (I’m way too slow a runner to do this without a bike), thinking about what I’m going to make for dinner. I’m only half kidding – what we’re eating next is just seems to be a constant conversation in my house. Also, I just moved to New York after living in the suburbs for 20 years, so right now my most favorite thing to do is walk around the city to people-watch and wander – whether that’s in my neck of the woods (the Upper West Side) or a new neighborhood I’ve always wanted to explore. Even though I’ve lived in or around New York my whole life, it feels newer and more exciting to me. I still kind of can’t believe I can read about a new bakery in Greenpoint, then be eating lunch there 45 minutes later.
What is the first thing you’ll make when you feel like turning the oven on again this fall?
I hate to say it, but we’ve been making pasta or polenta with Pork Ragu for two decades now and as soon as the temperature drops, that’s what I crave. (It’s still the most popular recipe in Dinner: A Love Story’s 14-year history.) I guess that’s why I’ll probably always be a weekday vegetarian and not a full-time one. And I’m ok with that – for now, at least!
Tagliatelle with Chickpeas and Rosemary
UNDER 30 MINUTES
SERVES 4
Behold Exhibit A illustrating the concept of a recipe being more than the sum of its parts. The ingredients here are so everyday, and yet, when that garlic mixes with the white wine and is then spiked with the piney rosemary, something magical happens. As my friend and food stylist Lauren Radel said to me when she sat down to this dish, “Garlic and rosemary together is a gift to the world.” I’d add wine to that, too. Missy Robbins, the James Beard Award–winning Brooklyn chef, makes a similar dish using pappardelle, which is a nice way to add a little drama, elevating it to Saturday night fare.
INGREDIENTS
Kosher salt
1 pound egg tagliatelle, preferably the kind that comes in nests
1⁄4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
3 cups cooked chickpeas, or 2 (15-ounce) cans, drained and rinsed, patted dry as much as possible
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2⁄3 cup dry white wine
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup freshly grated
Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
Needles from 1 fresh rosemary sprig, chopped, about 1 heaping tablespoon
METHOD
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta to al dente according to the package directions. Reserving ¼ cup of the pasta water, drain the noodles and drizzle a little oil over them in the colander to prevent sticking.
Return the pasta pot to the stovetop, over medium heat. Add the ¼ cup oil, the chickpeas, and salt and pepper and cook until the chickpeas are crisp-tender, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chickpeas to a plate.
Add the white wine, scraping the bottom of the pan to release any crispy bits, then add the garlic and butter and cook until the garlic is golden and aromatic, about 1 minute.
Return the tagliatelle to the pot along with the Parmesan and rosemary and toss together, adding a drizzle of pasta water at a time if necessary to evenly distribute the cheese on the pasta. Toss in the reserved chickpeas, then serve with lots of black pepper and Parmesan.
Luckily, I made a big batch of chickpeas yesterday, and I have everything else on hand to make this dish, so I know what’s on the menu for dinner tonight. Thank you, Jenny!
Have a great rest of your week.
With love,
Colu xx
So inspired to make all of it... and to take my old mandolin out of retirement!
On this week's "to make" list!