Modern Comfort by Ina Garten
Ina does it AGAIN with her newest book called Modern Comfort. I will tell you that although I love Ina, I just somehow didn’t gravitate to her last few books as much as I did her first eight or so books. They were filled with good recipes – I just didn’t find myself cooking from them as much as I did from her older books and maybe it’s nostalgia because she inspired my cooking so much. MODERN COMFORT REALLY FEELS LIKE HER ORIGINAL BOOKS which are some of my absolute favorites. So many recipes to make and love.
My favorite recipe in this whole book is the OFF THE CHARTS Lemon Orzo with Feta. This recipe is FLAVORFUL and VERSITAL because you can serve it both warm and chilled (delicious both ways) and can be a side or a main dish if you added chicken.
Although it’s not seasonal now – I have to share the Butternut Squash with Brown Butter and Sage. If you asked me what I wanted for my last meal on this earth. Butternut squash ravioli with brown butter and sage would definitely be on the plate. This trifecta of ingredients is always an incredible pairing. This is a flavorful side dish that can be served with ANYTHING, and my guess is even your kids will love it.
Another incredible non seasonal great side dish that I could not leave out was the Sweet Potatoes with Chipotle Orange Butter. The secret to this recipe is compound butter. If you are not familiar with compound butter it’s really just flavored butter that you make ahead, and it transforms recipes with the combination of flavors. It’s SOOO EASY. In this case it’s a stick of butter with maple syrup, and the chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (which again sounds intimidating but trust me it is not. It is on the shelf in your grocery store and adds INCREDIBLE FLAVOR). You soften up the butter, mix the ingredients together and refrigerate until you are ready for serving. This recipe would be awesome to serve at Thanksgiving or any day of the week. TIP: I love to serve compound butter on corn on the cob in the summer. Corn is just coming available in Michigan, and I plan on trying this chipotle butter on it. So far, my favorite is one tablespoon of Chili Lime Seasoning (which can be found at Williams Sonoma and Trader Joes) per stick of butter. It really adds flavor to the corn.
Let’s talk breakfast. I think I have mentioned my family’s love for a DUTCH BABY – which for those that don’t know is an incredible breakfast treat that is a mix between an omelet and a pancake. THEY ARE INCREDIBLE. My husband grew up eating this deliciousness because his mother made them for him all the time. Fast forward one generation and now my kids make them all the time especially my youngest. Ina’s Dutch Baby includes apples which we had never tried, and she ABSOLUTELY KNOCKED IT OUT OF THE PARK. Please try this, IT IS SOOO GOOD. I find these are best made in a seasoned and well-greased cast iron skillet.
There are so many great recipes between the covers of this book that it was challenging to pick my favorites. This book has so much to offer so pick up your copy today and enjoy cooking your way through Modern Comfort. You can view my chart below for my tips and ratings.
| 1-3 Could not eat | |
| 4-5 Would not make again | |
| 6-7 Might make again | |
| 8-9 Definitely make again | |
| 10 Make again SOON |
| Modern Comfort – Ina Garten | |||||||
| # | Date | Recipe | Category | Rating | Page | Difficulty | Notes |
| 1 | 11/1/2020 | Hot Spiced Apple Cider | cocktails | 6 | 31 | easy | Not a drink to have several |
| 2 | 11/2020 Thanksgiving | Kielbasa with Mustard Dip | Cocktails | 7 | 52 | super easy | Dip not use a lot of the dip. could 1/2 recipe. Served for appetizer thanksgiving since i didn’t have to use oven |
| 3 | 12/20 | Split pea soup w/ crispy kielbasa | lunch | 8 | 62 | medium | Takes 2+ hours |
| 4 | fall 2020 | Crispy Chicken w/ lemon Orzo feta | dinner | 7 | 111 | easy | The Orzo was the star of this dish. boneless w/ skin on breast very hard to find |
| Lemon Orzo Feta | Dinner | 10 | |||||
| 5 | 2/8 | Roasted Sausages | dinner | ||||
| 6 | 12/1 | Roasted Broccolini | Vegetables & Sides | 8 | 150 | easy | Nice to touch to bring to next level |
| 7 | 12/2020 | Roasted Cauliflower | Vegetables & Sides | 9 | 154 | easy | Love roasted cauliflower – Would be great with steak |
| 8 | fall 2020 | Roasted butternut Squash with brown butter and sage | Vegetables & Sides | 9 | 158 | easy | Perfect side dish for fall. Loved the combination of flavors. |
| 9 | fall 2020 | Roasted sweet Potatoes with Chipotle orange butter | Vegetables & Sides | 8 | 178 | easy | Served at Thanksgiving – easy make ahead |
| 10 | winter 2020 | waffle iron hash browns | Breakfast | 9 | 242 | easy | FUN – great for special occasion |
| 11 | 2/10 | Zucchini Gratin | Vegetables & Sides | 8 | easy | Used pumpkin pie spice instead of nutmeg. | |
| 12 | raspberry mini corn muffins | 9 | 241 | easy | These were easy nd delicious. This recipe makes ALOT. consider halfing or sharing with friends. | ||
| 13 | Emily’ English Roasted Potatoes | vegetables and sides | 8 | 171 | medium | These are delicious but do take a considerable amount of time to make. | |
| 14 | Cheddar and scallion creamed corn | vegetables and sides | 9 | easy | This was so good. Cheesy and creamy. Would defenatley make this again as it is a crows pleaser | ||
| 15 | Skillet Roasted Chicken & potatoes | Dinner | 8 | 108 | medium | Potatoes werent as crispy as I usually like but did soak up chicken juices creating extra flavor. | |
| 16 | 3/29 | Chocolate Cake | dessert | 9 | medium | ||
| 17 | 5/1 | Giant Crinkled Chocolate Chip Cookie | dessert | 9 | easy | A lot of steps but worth it. | |
| 18 | 5/12 | House salad | 9 | super easy | made without the egg. Very simple loved the dressing | ||
| 19 | 5/9 | Salmon with red pepper aolie | 9 | easy | Cooking method gave salmon a crisp exterior. loved the sauce used on burgers and crab cakes later in the week. |
