Recipe Weekend- The Washington Post Cookbook compiled by Bonnie Benwick

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge, from NetGalley, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it

Ah newspaper compiled cookbooks.....

You know you have a couple, or 10, or more!

After Hurricane Katrina, the Times Picayune compiled cookbook and website was in H

HUGE demand, as many family cookbooks had been destroyed,

and they had contained recipes that moms and grandmoms had gotten from the paper!

The Washington Post is the nation's longest daily issued newspaper, having begun in 1877

(our Times Picayune begun in 1837, but they no longer have daily issues!!)

Yes, I said 136 years ago! 

Take a moment and think how many generations that is!

Synopsis: The first cookbook from the nationally acclaimed, award-winning Food section of The Washington Post presents a collection of readers’ favorite recipes culled from the last 50 years. Ranging from classics to the experimental, these recipes reflect the best of cooking from the city’s multinational chefs, supplemented by dishes from staff members and home cooks. Whether it’s trendy kale chips or traditional fudge from Mamie Eisenhower, you’ll see why the Food section is widely recognized as one of the best in the country. It has won 10 James Beard Awards for journalism, including Best Newspaper Food Section in 2009 and 2010, and has earned Association of Food Journalists awards for writing, visual presentation, blogging, and general excellence in 24 of the 26 years since the awards were initiated. This cookbook is a must-have for any cook.

Review:

It's hard to believe that this is The Post's first recipe cookbook! You would have thought they'd be on the 3rd or 4th by now! The book has 173 recipes that were all submitted to the Washington Post, from readers who had clipped them themselves, or had relatives or friends who had. if a recipe got 4 submissions, it was automatically put in the book! They then added to those from their online database to even out all the categories, and weaned down the large ones (like meats and desserts). I don't envy Bonnie's job at all, tis had to have been a rough job. Check out their video about the process:

The book is an interesting mix of 'styled' comfort food (which makes sense, as it is in D.C.) and foods with international flair (again with all the embassies, no surprise), and one that most self pronounced 'foodies' would love to have on their coffee tables this Christmas season! So keep it in mind for your Christmas gift buying list (101 days and counting- go ahead and scream and then come back fora recipe!).

Here's one of my favorite recipes from the book, that was published in The Washington Post, courtesy of their 'Nourish' food columnist Stephanie Witt Sedgwick (And is pretty close to my mom's)!:

Stuffed Peppers with Summer Vegetables

6 servings

This dish requires a sharp knife and a fair amount of prep time, but it’s well worth the effort. These are stuffed peppers reinvented: light, packed with the tastes of summer vegetables and fresh herbs and just plain delicious. They will wipe away any memories of old-style specimens.

To ensure the pepper shells are cooked through, they are steamed before they are stuffed. This step ensures success, so don’t skip it.

If you want to make this vegetarian, omit the pork. If you like things a little spicier, use Italian sausage instead of the ground pork.

MAKE AHEAD: The dicing and cutting of the vegetables and herbs can be done a day in advance. The stuffing also can be prepared, up to the point of adding the egg, and refrigerated for up to 8 hours. Add the egg just before you stuff the peppers.

Ingredients: 

6 sweet bell peppers, red, orange or yellow or a combination; tops cut off like a cap; stemmed, seeded and white veins scraped out, tops cut into 1/4-inch dice

2 tablespoons olive oil

8 ounces lean ground pork

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

3 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped (2 tablespoons)

1 medium (4-ounce) onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice (1 cup)

2 small (6-ounce) zucchini, cut into 1/3-inch dice (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 small (5-ounce) eggplant, cut into 1/3-inch dice (1 1/2 cups)

2 tablespoons chopped basil leaves

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 1/2 cups cooked rice, preferably basmati

1 large egg, beaten

2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions:

1. Line a rimmed baking sheet or large shallow dish with aluminum foil, then grease the foil with nonstick cooking oil spray.

2. Prepare a steamer. Once the water is boiling, arrange the hollowed-out bell peppers right side up in the steamer basket; cover and steam them for 10 minutes. You might need to do this in batches. Drain any accumulated water from the steamed peppers, then place the peppers on the prepared baking sheet or shallow dish.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or saute pan over medium heat. Add the ground pork, then season with salt and pepper to taste; use a spoon to break up any clumps. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring as needed, until the pork is cooked through. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the pork to a plate or shallow bowl.

4. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the skillet or pan over medium heat. Add the garlic; cook for 1 minute, then add the onion and diced bell pepper tops. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften. Add the zucchini and eggplant. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes or until the zucchini softens and is tender. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a large bowl.

5. Add the chopped basil, parsley, cooked rice and pork to the vegetables; mix well to combine. Taste, and add salt and pepper if needed. Remove from the heat and let cool for 15 minutes.

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

7. Add the egg to the cooled vegetable-meat mixture, stirring to incorporate. Stuff each bell pepper loosely with an equal amount of the stuffing, about 1 cup per pepper. Top each with 1 teaspoon of the cheese. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the filling is hot and the internal temperature registers at least 160 degrees when tested with an instant-read thermometer. If desired, run the peppers under the broiler to brown the tops.

8. Let the stuffed peppers rest for 5 minutes before serving.

enjoy !

About the Editor: Bonnie Benwick is the deputy editor of the Washington Post Food section. Phyllis Richman is the former long-time editor of the Washington Post Food section, and wrote the Foreward for the book.