May Cookbook: Cook This Book by Molly Baz
It’s another BA Test Kitchen star, Molly Baz! I’ve been making Molly’s recipes from Bon Appétit for years and many have become monthly staples (for example, the crispy smashed potatoes with walnut dressing and the spaghetti al limone). So naturally, I was ecstatic when I saw on her Instagram stories that she was working on her first cookbook. I purchased the second it was available for pre-order! This book is so unequivocally Molly, from the design to the recipe names to the “Marry, F*ck, Kill” prompts in the corner of the pages. There are even these unique QR codes that link to video instructions! Genius.
Week One
I had to kick off the week with Molly’s signature dish – a caesar salad! I have been wanting to make caesar dressing from scratch for a while now and I was surprised how quickly the cae sal (pg. 174) came together. A little too quickly actually…by the time I made the hot ‘n’ crispy chicken cutlets (pg. 66) to go along with it, my croutons were soggy. I need to work on my timing! The chicken was good, but frying anything is always a pain in the ass. I think I went a little too light on the spices, so I’ll probably up the ante next time.
After receiving my second vaccine shot this week, I was feeling super out of it. I ended up taking a sick day to just lay on the couch and sleep it off. However, I did manage to lift my head enough to make the orecchiette with bacon, snap peas and ricotta (pg. 151) for lunch! It was like carbonara meets cacio e pepe (aka delicious).
Over the weekend I decided to venture outside of my comfort zone to make the poached fish with creamed leeks and toasty hazelnuts (pg. 119). It’s just fish poached in heavy cream so I had a good feeling about it. This was my first time using leeks though! I don’t care for onions and leeks are basically a mild onion, but it added a great flavor to this very decadent, cream-forward dish.
Then, for a Sunday afternoon project, I made the salty date and cheddar biscuits (pg. 270). You can’t go wrong with homemade biscuits! These actually reminded me of the cheese dates my grandmother makes, a snack my mom adores. I may have to make these for her the next time she comes to visit!
Marry, F*ck, Kill: Manhattan, Margarita, Martini
Marry Margarita, F*ck Manhattan, Kill Martini
Week Two
I felt like pretending to be a steakhouse so I started this rainy week with the minimalist wedge (pg. 181) and the strip steak au poivre (pg. 87). The wedge salad always makes me think of the 90s. It’s just a quarter head of iceberg lettuce smothered in a cream-based dressing, but for some reason it was revolutionary. To be fair, they are delicious. The bright citrus, creamy dressing with the crisp lettuce. It slaps. I was also surprised how much I enjoyed the strip steak! I don’t eat a lot of red meat, but I wanted to at least try one dish. The creamy, pepper sauce was a perfect addition.
Being from Texas, I literally live and breathe for breakfast tacos. There is simply no better breakfast! The b-fast tacos with charred scallion salsa and fried pepitas (pg. 127) weren’t how I traditionally like my breakfast tacos (where the cheese at?) but these were damn good. The scallion salsa and the crunchy pepitas were delicious. I topped them off with one of my favorite hot sauces, the Double Take Cilantro Avocado.
Now that we’re all becoming vaccinated, my neighbors have been a lot chattier in the halls. I recently met a bunch of people on my floor and we even started a group chat! (It’s mainly pictures of our pets and gossip about who is moving out.) But finally, a chance to make a lot of baked goods and pawn them off easily! Just last week I traded some of the biscuits for a couple of brownies. Score! This week, I made the seedy sweet potato snacking cake (pg. 269) so that I could sweet-talk one of them into watching Maisie while I’m away next month. Fingers crossed! The cake itself is very much my vibe. I love anything with crunchy seeds and a cake that gives the illusion of health.
For dinner one night this week I made the blistered broccolini with charred dates, lemons and sesame (pg. 200) since I wasn’t feeling very hungry (probably because I ate three pieces of seedy sweet potato cake, but whatever.) I loved this! Broccolini is one of my go-to veggies and I eat it at least once a week, but the addition of the dates and sesame oil made such a difference. I can see myself alternating between this recipe and Alison Roman’s roasted broccolini with lemon and parm.
Marry, F*ck, Kill: Taco, Burger, Pizza
Marry Pizza, F*ck Taco, Kill Burger
Week Three
It was another rainy week so I made the orzo al limone (pg. 144) to brighten it up! Molly’s spaghetti al limone is one of my favorite go-to pasta dishes, so I knew this would be a hit! The orzo was a nice switch-up! This came together super quickly, making it a great weeknight meal.
Everyone knows microwave popcorn is my favorite snack. I have a very specific way I like it; slightly burnt with a little olive oil and flaky sea salt. Unfortunately, my current apartment did not come with a microwave and I have no space in my tiny kitchen to purchase one. (It was either a microwave or my stand mixer, so, you get it.) I haven’t been able to master the stovetop popcorn in the way that I like, so I was hoping Molly’s right way to make popcorn (pg. 251) would point me in the right direction.
[Update: This did not work. I tried twice and both times I ended up with tiny kernels sitting in a burnt mess. Instead of using the dutch oven method for the popcorn, I used my air popper instead and topped it with turmeric and nutritional yeast. Not exactly the way Molly intended but look, I tried.]
I love a cookie that doesn’t require a stand mixer. The black sesame shortbread (pg. 261) is a great weeknight bake because the dough comes together quickly and only requires a 30-minute chill in the fridge. They’re not very sweet, which makes them perfect with a morning coffee or afternoon tea!
I haven’t been in the mood to cook this week (there’s always at least one of these each month), but despite that, I made the crispy-skinned salmon with harissa and citrusy fennel salad (pg. 108) and the charred brussels with soy butter and fried garlic (pg. 207). I loved the salmon with the harissa, that’s definitely something I will do again, but the fennel salad wasn’t really my style. Fennel is a little too close to onions for me, and unfortunately, I have not grown out of disliking onions yet. The brussels were fantastic though. Just the way I like them! Super crispy, salty and with just a touch of sweetness.
Marry, F*ck, Kill: Salt, Pepper, Olive Oil
Marry Salt, F*ck Olive Oil, Kill Pepper
Week Four
The first thing I made this week was the coconut shrimp with crushed chickpeas and basil (pg. 107). It didn’t look pretty, but at least it tasted good! I liked that I didn’t have to dredge the shrimp in coconut, but rather sprinkle it on top. That made it a lot easier and less messy! I finished it all, but I’m not sure if it’s something that I would crave again.
For dinner I made the big shells with escarole, ‘chovies and mozz (pg. 156). I surprisingly had a hard time finding big shells, but I’m glad I did! Why are they so much more fun to eat? I loved how the mozzarella and panko would get lodged inside the shells.
Despite it being a delightful 60-degrees outside this week, my apartment building refuses to turn off the heat, leaving my home to be hot as balls (scientific term). I made the salted waju granita (pg. 265) in hopes that it would cool me off. Salted watermelon juice (aka “waju”) is something I pulled from Molly’s Instagram last summer and it has become a staple on a sunny day. It’s especially great if you add a shot of tequila. This granita is such a great summertime treat! And aside from having to grate watermelon with a box grater, the rest of the process is pretty simple. Pop the juice in the freezer and every now and then scrape it up with a fork.
Marry, F*ck, Kill: Peanuts, Popcorn, Potato Chips
Marry Popcorn, F*ck Potato Chips, Kill Peanuts
As a big Molly fan, I knew this book was going to be a hit. All of these recipes were fairly easy and perfect for a novice home cook. There are a lot of familiar dishes in here, but they all have a little twist. While I like to consider myself more of an intermediate cook, I did find a few of the QR codes to be helpful (like how to properly cut fennel, a vegetable I had never used before.)
You should buy this cookbook if…
You want to impress someone with some newly learned cooking techniques.
You don’t get annoyed by unnecessary abbreviations.
You’re a Molly Baz fan.