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Our Favorite Recipes of 2017
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Oven-Roasted Chicken Tikka
Curious to try making Indian food at home? This crowd-pleasing recipe is great for beginners because it's easy and all the ingredients are available at ordinary supermarkets. It comes from the marvelous cookbook Made in India (Flatiron, $35). If you like, serve the chicken with Mint and Yogurt Chutney (recipe link below).
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Smoked Turkey and Citrus Wild Rice Salad
This main-dish salad is just what the doctor ordered after the holidays, bursting with color and fresh flavor. The recipe comes from The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook (University of Minnesota Press, $29.95). (Note: You'll end up with extra dressing, but that's just fine ... stash it in the fridge to wake up any salad.)
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Honey French Toast with Macerated Berries
Egg bread, extra egg yolks and half-and-half take a trusty diner classic to new levels of splurge. (Trust us, you won’t regret going along for the ride.) Both the French toast and berries need to rest overnight, so this is an ideal make-ahead brunch dish. The recipe comes from The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook (University of Minnesota Press, $29.95).
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Lemon Hazelnut Sea Salt Cookies
Many cookies call for just citrus zest, but these soft gems use a lot of juice, too, so they’ve got the same tart kick as lemon bars. They’re a perfect match for hot tea. The recipe comes from The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook (University of Minnesota Press, $29.95).
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Flourless Rhubarb-Almond Upside-Down Cake
Our naturally gluten-free cake swaps ground almonds for all the flour and wears a rosy blanket of tart rhubarb and chopped nuts.
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Double-Ginger Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Crystallized ginger and powdered dry ginger add welcome zing to an American classic. Fanning the pineapple like flower petals is striking, but also functional--no bare spots between rings.
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Sweet and Spicy Cabbage and Peanut Slaw
Fresh ginger and red pepper flakes add welcome zing, but the real surprise here is napa (aka Chinese) cabbage. Cara Mangini, of Little Eater in Columbus, Ohio, likes it for slaws because it's more tender than ordinary cabbage but still holds up better than lettuce.
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Chipotle-Maple Chicken Thighs
We won't mince words: This is juicy, spicy, sticky, glorious barbecued chicken. One of the secrets? Chicken thighs. They cook fast, like breasts, but they have richer flavor and don't dry out. And nutritionally speaking, the two are more similar than you'd think.
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Zucchini Olive Oil Cake with Lemon Drizzle
With its subtle mix of warm spices, vanilla, maple and citrus (and tangy white icing), this is no ordinary zucchini cake. The recipe comes from The Vegetable Butcher cookbook, by Cara Mangini.
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Swiss Chard Crostata with Fennel Seed Crust
Dried herbs, garlic and fennel give this rustic tart a familiar Italian sausage-like flavor. The olive oil-based pastry comes together in a snap in the food processor. The recipe comes from The Vegetable Butcher cookbook, by Cara Mangini.
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Choco-Banana Pops
You can taste the banana in these rich and chocolatey pops, but the fruit is really there to give the treat a fabulously fudgy texture.
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Tex-Mex Scramble with Tortilla Chips
Inspired by the Tex-Mex dish called migas, this ridiculously easy breakfast (or breakfast-for-dinner) dish can be on the table in less than 15 minutes.
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Lake Chowder
Angry Trout Cafe in Grand Marais, Minnesota, makes this buttery, dill-flecked chowder with lake trout, a mild-flavored and relatively oily fish. The recipe tastes just as good with salmon or whitefish.
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Pina Colada Pops
Can you hear the waves? Our recipe is virgin, so little ones can get in on the frozen tropical fun, too.
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Rosemary Lamb Burgers
This lamb burger explodes with flavor: aromatic herbs, tangy lemon mayo, sweet grilled onion. We love lamb’s earthy flavor, but if you aren’t sure your family or friends will agree, use a 50-50 blend of beef and lamb. Or seek out American-raised lamb, which is more mild than meat imported from New Zealand.
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Green Ginger Pops
Even our kid tester loved the zingy combination of spinach, pineapple and fresh ginger in these healthy frozen pops.
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Flash-Braised Pork Chops with Apples and Cream
Braising sounds slow, but it can be weeknight-fast. After a skillet sear, pork rib chops and apples simmer in cider for 10 minutes. A swirl of cream and Dijon makes a luscious pan gravy at the end.
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Tandoori Chicken Drumsticks and Roasty Red Onions
Our version of the Indian restaurant staple has an easy spiced yogurt marinade and roasts in a hot oven with wedges of onion. Serve with basmati rice and mango chutney.
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Roasted Broccoli with Pecorino and Lemon
Roasting broccoli is a wonderful change from steaming or stir-frying, bringing out a sweetness and complexity you might not have known was there. A simple finish of bright lemon and salty cheese adds a burst of freshness and flavor.
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Sweet Potatoes with Goat Cheese "Mallows"
Laced with garlic and rosemary and topped with pecans and goat cheese, this easy casserole gives a savory wink to the traditional sweet-on-sweet Turkey Day staple.
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Celery and Apple Salad with Walnuts
Imagine a Waldorf salad, but lighter and more refreshing, with a tangy lemon-thyme vinaigrette. This salad would go beautifully with roast pork or turkey.
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Hidden Roots Mashed Potatoes
This rich mash is more than just a vehicle for gravy. It’s a subtly sweet blend of parsnip, celery root and two kinds of potato, plus plenty of butter, sour cream and nutmeg.
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Can-Don't Green Bean Casserole
Is our all-natural, totally homemade version of the iconic Thanksgiving side more work than the one made with canned stuff? Well, yes. But wow, is it good.
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Roasted Fall Vegetables with Saffron Aioli
Featuring whatever’s in season, this gorgeous platter is Chowgirls Killer Catering's most popular menu item, an unexpected and delicious alternative to raw veggie trays. The recipe comes from the Minneapolis company's cookbook, Chowgirls Killer Party Food.
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Gnocchi
Des Moines chef George Formaro says no food hugs you like potato gnocchi. The good news is, his recipe for the Italian classic is super easy--and so are his ideas for how to sauce them.
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