The culinary world often perceives Bon Appétit editors as paragons of gastronomic expertise, their professional lives deeply entrenched in the rigorous evaluation and innovative development of recipes within the esteemed Test Kitchen. It is, therefore, a natural extension of their professional passion that their off-hours are also frequently dedicated to the art of cooking. This month, the editorial team offers a curated glimpse into their personal kitchens, revealing the recipes they are enthusiastically preparing—from weeknight dinners and sophisticated entertaining options to sweet indulgences, clever uses for leftovers, and everything in between. These selections not only showcase their diverse culinary interests but also highlight how they integrate the winning products from Bon Appétit’s inaugural Pantry Awards into their daily routines, translating professional endorsements into practical home cooking.
The Bon Appétit Pantry Awards represent a significant undertaking by the publication, aimed at identifying and celebrating exceptional culinary products that elevate home cooking. For its inaugural edition, the team embarked on a meticulous tasting process, evaluating hundreds of new snacks, sauces, drinks, and other pantry staples. This extensive assessment, conducted within the controlled environment of the Test Kitchen, ensures that only items meeting stringent quality, flavor, and utility standards receive the coveted award. The subsequent integration of these winning items into the editors’ personal culinary endeavors provides a unique testament to their versatility and appeal beyond a professional tasting panel, demonstrating how they seamlessly fit into real-world weeknight meals, spontaneous gatherings, and creative culinary experiments. The editors’ personal anecdotes serve as practical endorsements, guiding readers on how to incorporate these top-tier products into their own kitchens.
August 21: Integrating Pantry Award Winners into Daily Cooking
The selections from late August particularly emphasize the innovative application of products recognized in the recent Pantry Awards. This segment offers a compelling narrative of how professional insight translates into everyday culinary solutions, demonstrating the practical value of the awarded items.
The Hoagie Chip Tower: A Homage to Regional Flavors
Olivia Tarantino, Senior Shopping Editor, showcased a playful yet sophisticated approach to snacking with her "Hoagie Chip Tower." Inspired by the iconic hoagies from Wawa, a beloved convenience store and gas station chain synonymous with the Jersey Shore experience, Tarantino conceptualized a deconstructed sandwich served atop chips. Her choice of the Graza Extra Virgin Olive Oil Sea Salt and Vinegar Potato Chips from the Pantry Awards was pivotal. These chips, distinguished by their olive-oil frying and red wine vinegar seasoning, provided a robust and tangy base. Tarantino elevated the concept by crisping salami until caramelized, then layering it with vibrant banana peppers, piquant hot cherry peppers, creamy torn provolone, briny olives, and a generous dusting of Parmesan cheese. This creation, drawing inspiration from an Epicurious recipe for a honey-butter potato chip tower, transforms a simple snack into an elaborate, shareable dish, merging nostalgic flavors with gourmet presentation. The integration of a Pantry Award-winning chip underscores how a high-quality base ingredient can dramatically enhance a dish, demonstrating the editors’ commitment to finding and utilizing superior products.
Leftover Celery Stir-Fry: Resourcefulness and Bold Flavors
Nina Moskowitz, Associate Editor, Cooking, exemplified resourcefulness by transforming leftover celery from a pepperoncini tuna salad into a vibrant "Spicy Chicken Stir-Fry With Celery and Peanuts." This culinary pivot, prompted by a quick consultation with colleague Olivia Tarantino, highlights the collaborative and knowledge-sharing culture within the Bon Appétit team. The recipe, a known favorite, features succulent chicken thighs cooked with aromatic ginger and scallions. The dish received a significant flavor boost from the WA-CHAA Salt & Sichuan Peppercorn Peanuts, another Pantry Award winner. Moskowitz enthusiastically praised these peanuts for their unique flavor profile, which added a "swoon-worthy" crunch and a complex spice. A surprising yet harmonious addition to the stir-fry was dates, which, according to Moskowitz, "almost melt into the mix, creating caramel-y puddles to contrast the spicy sauce," illustrating an adventurous and balanced approach to flavor combinations. This dish is a testament to mindful cooking, preventing food waste while exploring exciting taste dimensions.
The Two-Ingredient Cocktail: Simplicity Meets Sophistication
Joseph Hernandez, Director, Culture, shared his philosophy on modern mixology: a return to simplicity. Drawing from his past experience as a bartender, Hernandez now champions the "highball" – a minimalist concoction of fizz and spirit. His discovery of Yuzuco’s canned blend of cold-pressed yuzu juice, sparkling water, and minerals through the Pantry Awards proved to be a revelation. This effervescent mixer, praised for its refreshing, thirst-quenching citrus notes, became the cornerstone of his preferred two-ingredient cocktail. Hernandez pairs it with a splash or two of spirits such as white Port, mezcal, or gin, crafting a light and invigorating drink. This choice reflects a broader trend towards less elaborate, yet equally flavorful, cocktail experiences, where the quality of the mixer plays a starring role. The Yuzuco product exemplifies how a well-crafted non-alcoholic component can elevate a simple drink into a sophisticated beverage.
Spicy Tuna Melts: Elevated Comfort Food with a Pantry Twist
Emma Laperruque, Cooking Director, highlighted the exceptional quality of Fishwife’s Soy Ginger Tuna, a Pantry Award winner so flavorful it could be enjoyed on its own. Recognizing its versatility, Laperruque adapted her colleague Rebecca Firkser’s "Kimchi Tuna Melts" recipe, cleverly omitting the soy sauce and kimchi brine due to the tuna’s inherent seasoning. This adaptation showcases an editor’s ability to intuitively modify recipes based on ingredient quality, demonstrating a deep understanding of flavor profiles. The result was a dish that Laperruque described as "delicious would be an understatement," emphasizing how a premium tinned fish product can transform a classic comfort food into a gourmet experience. This aligns with the growing popularity of tinned fish as a sophisticated and convenient protein source.
Speedy Gochujang Stir-Fry: The Art of Quick, Flavorful Weeknight Meals
For Alaina Chou, Shopping Writer, the daily challenge of preparing dinner swiftly led her to Nina Moskowitz’s "Gochujang Chicken Stir-Fry." This recipe is lauded for its rapid preparation, often faster than ordering takeout, making it an ideal solution for busy evenings. Chou’s appreciation for Potluck’s Gochujang, another Pantry Award recipient, is central to the dish’s success. She praises its "balance of sweet and heat," which, when combined with mirin, rice vinegar, and soy sauce, creates a "deeply flavorful sauce" that perfectly coats the chicken and haricot vert (or snap peas). This stir-fry exemplifies the modern home cook’s desire for efficiency without compromising on bold, authentic flavors, proving that quick meals can still be incredibly satisfying and complex.
Sardine and Bean Chop: Reinventing a Recipe with Personal Preference
Rebecca Firkser, Test Kitchen Editor, offered a fascinating insight into the recipe development process and personal adaptation with her "Sardine and Bean Chop." During the creation of a "chopped salad with sardines," Firkser had initially experimented with adding beans, which were ultimately excluded from the final published recipe. However, in her home kitchen, she embraced the freedom to reintegrate these elements, utilizing the Pantry Award-winning Patagonia Provisions Sardines & Beans. This product, featuring white beans, lemon, garlic, and leeks, proved to be an ideal complement to the salty-tart preserved lemon dressing, fresh vegetables, and crunchy pita chips of her original salad concept. Firkser’s experience underscores the dynamic nature of cooking, where recipes serve as blueprints that can be personalized to suit individual tastes and the exceptional qualities of specific ingredients.
Shrimp Scampi 2.0: A Modern Twist on a Classic
Emma Laperruque returned with another innovative dish, "Shrimp Scampi 2.0," a brilliant reinvention of classic shrimp scampi by her colleague Hana Asbrink. Asbrink’s "Shrimp Scampi Udon with Doenjang Butter Sauce" introduces chewy udon noodles and an "ultra-buttery, umami-packed sauce" that Laperruque now considers the definitive way to enjoy the dish. The star ingredient in the sauce was Potluck Doenjang, a Pantry Award winner described as "thoughtfully made and intensely flavorful." The rich, savory sauce was so appealing that, after the udon was devoured, steamed broccoli was employed to "sop up every last drop," illustrating the irresistible depth of flavor achieved through this innovative pairing of traditional scampi elements with Korean doenjang. This dish exemplifies the fusion of culinary traditions and the transformative power of a high-quality, umami-rich condiment.
Silky Soy-Marinated Eggs: A Savory, Make-Ahead Staple
Cristina Correa, Social Media Manager, highlighted the enduring popularity of Bon Appétit’s "Soy-Marinated Eggs," a recipe celebrated for its savory, gently spicy, and convenient make-ahead qualities. Her renewed enthusiasm for this recipe stemmed from tasting HEYDOH’s silky, nutty soy sauce during the Pantry Awards. Recognizing its superior quality, Correa immediately made a fresh batch of the eggs at home. These versatile eggs served as a standalone breakfast and provided a quick, flavorful topping for rice, offering an effortless weeknight dinner solution. This demonstrates how a foundational ingredient like soy sauce, when of exceptional quality, can elevate simple preparations into truly memorable meals, making everyday cooking both easier and more delicious.
August 14: Seasonal Celebrations and Entertaining Staples
The mid-August selections reveal a focus on seasonal ingredients, particularly ripe summer tomatoes, and recipes ideal for entertaining or quick, adaptable meals. These dishes often draw on classic comfort food principles while incorporating fresh, vibrant elements.
Special Tomato Toast: An Elevated Summer Staple
Carly Westerfield, Manager, Audience Strategy, seized the opportunity to create Andy Baraghani’s "Tomato Toast With Chives and Sesame Seeds" when she found herself with the perfect ingredients. This recipe transcends a simple toast, beginning with a "makeshift aioli" crafted from mayonnaise, grated garlic, and lemon juice—a versatile base she suggests remembering for future applications like BLTs. The toast is then adorned with shingled tomato slices, a generous "flurry of chives" for a delicate onion flavor, and sesame seeds, which impart an earthy, nutty note. Westerfield emphasizes how this thoughtful assembly makes a "modest toast feel worthy of company," illustrating how simple, high-quality ingredients, thoughtfully combined, can create an elegant and satisfying dish perfect for summer gatherings or an elevated breakfast.
The Easiest Skillet Cake: Effortless Elegance for Dessert
Jesse Szewczyk, Senior Test Kitchen Editor, a professional baker by trade, rarely turns on her home oven for personal projects. However, Shilpa Uskokovic’s "Raspberry–Brown Butter Skillet Cake" proved to be an irresistible exception. The cake’s primary appeal lies in its utter simplicity: it is made and mixed entirely in a single skillet, requiring minimal cleanup and effort. Szewczyk describes it as "easy enough to pull together within minutes, yet fancy enough to serve for guests," comparing its sophisticated texture to a financier, but with the added joy of "juicy raspberries and crowned with melty ice cream." Her immediate plan to re-make it with different berries—blueberries, blackberries, or tiny strawberries—speaks to its adaptability and inherent deliciousness. This recipe taps into the desire for impressive desserts that don’t demand extensive time or complex techniques, perfect for the casual entertainer.
Anything-Goes Pasta Salad: The Ultimate Flexible Feast
Rebecca Firkser, the Test Kitchen Editor, offered a solution for spontaneous entertaining with her "Olive Bar Pasta Salad." Faced with a house full of guests and limited grocery options, Firkser defaulted to this adaptable dish, which she describes as "tossing a bunch of oily-briny condiments and cheese with a box of whichever noodle shape is on sale." This concept champions culinary flexibility and resourcefulness, encouraging home cooks to utilize what they have on hand. Suggested additions include roasted red peppers, marinated beans or mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and herb-infused olives. This approach to pasta salad is not just about convenience but also about embracing bold, Mediterranean-inspired flavors, making it an ideal choice for summer potlucks or impromptu gatherings where a diverse array of flavors is welcome.
Watermelon Salad for a Bachelorette: A Spicy, Refreshing Crowd-Pleaser
Nina Moskowitz, Associate Cooking Editor, found herself appointed "in-house private chef" during a friend’s bachelorette party. Her choice for a vibrant, memorable dish was a "Thai-style watermelon salad," specifically the "Watermelon Som Tam" recipe she had previously championed. Moskowitz reiterates the recipe’s appeal, urging readers to save it for future use. The dish features crisp watermelon triangles dressed in a "buzzy lime-forward dressing" with crunchy crushed peanuts and the fiery kick of serrano chile. Her crucial advice—"Always, always, always taste your chile before adding it, so you can customize the amount accordingly"—highlights the importance of personalizing spice levels. This refreshing salad offers a delightful contrast of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty, making it a perfect, unexpected centerpiece for a festive occasion.
Customizable Summer Rolls: A Fast, Fresh No-Cook Dinner
Kelsey Jane Youngman, Senior Cooking Editor, revealed her "Mango Chicken Summer Rolls" have been a consistent hit in her kitchen since July. These rolls are lauded as the "fastest no-cook dinner," offering immense customization potential with various proteins like shredded chicken, roasted tofu bites, or shrimp, and an array of crunchy vegetables such as carrots, cucumbers, and jicama. When utilizing leftovers, Youngman claims the preparation time shrinks to a mere five minutes, making them an unparalleled option for quick, healthy meals. She emphasizes a critical technique from her colleague Shilpa Uskokovic regarding rice paper: "The sheets should get ‘coated in a film of water but not sodden’" to ensure malleable, tear-resistant wrappers. The final, emphatic instruction—"And make extra sauce! You can never have too much sauce"—underscores the importance of a flavorful dipping sauce to complete the experience of these fresh, light rolls.
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August 7: Comfort, Creativity, and Culinary Traditions
The initial August entries highlight a blend of comfort food classics, creative regional mashups, and dishes perfectly suited for specific moods or occasions, from vacation dinners to birthday celebrations.
Old Bay Potato Chips: A Regional Fusion Snack
Olivia Tarantino reappeared with a delightful culinary mashup, "Old Bay potato chips," created while vacationing in Idaho with Baltimorean friends. This dish ingeniously combined Idaho’s famous potatoes with Maryland’s iconic Old Bay seasoning. Tarantino utilized Kendra Vaculin’s recipe, which simplifies the process to an effortless degree: a bag of kettle chips is briefly baked, then coated with a blend of Old Bay, powdered sugar, and a hint of lemon zest. The inclusion of powdered sugar is a crucial, often overlooked, detail, as it "rounds out the salty spice in a way that makes the chips even more addictive," transforming a simple snack into a gourmet treat. The chips, described as "sunset-hued," were so popular they were devoured before the main course, proving that a taste of home, even when playfully reimagined, can travel exceptionally well. This recipe speaks to the appeal of elevated comfort food and regional culinary pride.
Pasta with No-Cook Sauce: A Celebration of Peak-Season Produce
Sam Stone, Senior Editor, embraced the bounty of Martha’s Vineyard’s farmstands, despite the "college-tuition-size prices" of plump cherry tomatoes, to create "Pasta With No-Cook Cherry Tomato Sauce" from Epicurious. This recipe is a masterclass in highlighting peak-season produce with minimal intervention. Stone’s method involved gently "squishing the halved tomatoes into some olive oil with garlic and basil" before stirring this fresh mixture into buttery, cheesy pasta. A unique advantage of this dish, as noted by Stone, is that the "leftovers which, after resting, are somehow more tomatoey," suggesting a deepened flavor profile over time. This pasta dish is a perfect example of summer cooking, prioritizing fresh ingredients and simple techniques to achieve maximum flavor, ideal for warm evenings when heavy cooking is undesirable.
Soup for a Rainy Summer Evening: A Cozy Culinary Comfort
Kelsey Jane Youngman, Senior Cooking Editor, found comfort in Liesel Davis’s "Summer Vegetable Soup With Pistou" during late summer thunderstorms. This choice reflects a primal human response to inclement weather: the desire for warm, comforting soup. Youngman describes the experience as a perfect opportunity to "turn on my stove (for just a little while), listen to rain tip-tap on the A/C unit… and gently cook my market haul in a big pot of stock." She closely followed the recipe, praising the game-changing technique of "roasting the tomatoes and corn for a hands-off infusion of depth." Her only deviation was swapping collards for spinach, adding them earlier to ensure they became "wilty and tender." The preparation of fresh pistou while the soup simmered further enhanced the experience, creating a vibrant, herbaceous counterpoint to the rich vegetable broth. This highlights how seasonal produce can be adapted for comforting, soul-warming dishes regardless of the weather.
Birthday Menu: A Personal Culinary Celebration
Emma Laperruque, Cooking Director, curated a special birthday menu focused on her fervent desire for "clams, clams, and more clams." The centerpiece was Hana Asbrink’s "Spaghetti With Clams and Sun Gold Tomatoes." Laperruque sourced peak-season Sun Gold tomatoes from the farmers market and enjoyed "carte blanche access" to her neighbor’s backyard basil, emphasizing the joy of hyper-local ingredients. She highlighted a critical distinction of Asbrink’s recipe: "it’s a white sauce with tomatoes, not a red sauce from tomatoes," a nuance that true connoisseurs appreciate. The dish was a hit, described as "bright and briny and buttery." For dessert, Laperruque fulfilled a year-long craving by making Smitten Kitchen’s "Chipwich Ice Cream Cake," a decadent creation featuring two round blondies sandwiching vanilla ice cream and "bejeweled with chocolate" (using chopped chocolate instead of chips, based on availability). This elaborate yet personal menu underscores the celebratory aspect of food and the joy of crafting dishes that truly resonate with one’s desires.
French Toast to Cure All: The Ultimate Comfort Breakfast
Nina Moskowitz provided a relatable account of a post-night-out recovery, turning to "French toast to cure all." After "a few too many spaghetts," she utilized leftover Japanese milk bread, initially bought for a BLT, to craft a classic French toast. Her preparation involved soaking the thick slices of bread in a mixture of eggs, milk, sugar, and cinnamon, then sizzling them in butter until "the chubby bread had webs of brown on both sides." Served with an extra pat of butter and a generous "dribble of maple syrup," this indulgent breakfast was precisely "what the doctor ordered," offering both physical and psychological comfort. This scenario highlights the universal appeal of French toast as a restorative meal, particularly when made with premium ingredients like Japanese milk bread, known for its soft, fluffy texture.
Yearly Tomato Galette: A Beloved Summer Tradition
Ali Inglese, Executive Producer, shared a cherished summer tradition: Andy Baraghani’s "Tomato Galette." This recipe has been a non-negotiable part of her summer culinary calendar since its publication in 2019, a testament to its enduring appeal. The galette features a flaky, buttery dough that comes together effortlessly in a food processor, then is "rolled out and crimped into a free-form round." The true star, however, is the "peak-season heirloom tomatoes," shingled artfully across the crust, offering a perfect excuse to "buy every color, shape, and size you can find." This dish celebrates the ephemeral beauty of summer produce, transforming simple tomatoes into a stunning and delicious savory tart. The galette embodies the spirit of seasonal eating and the joy of repeating truly excellent recipes year after year.
The collective experiences of the Bon Appétit editorial team underscore a profound connection between professional culinary expertise and personal passion for food. Their shared recipes, particularly those integrating the carefully vetted Pantry Award winners, provide a practical guide for readers seeking to enhance their own cooking. These insights demonstrate that whether addressing weeknight meal dilemmas, planning for entertaining, or simply indulging a craving, the principles of quality ingredients, thoughtful preparation, and creative adaptation remain paramount. The emphasis on seasonal produce, smart utilization of pantry staples, and a willingness to personalize recipes reflects broader culinary trends and encourages home cooks to approach their kitchens with curiosity and confidence. This compilation serves not just as a recipe list but as a narrative of a vibrant food culture, driven by those who truly live and breathe gastronomy.
