What’s in the Bag

EVENT: Cooking From Christina’s Bag MAIN INGREDIENTS: Chives, Eggplant, Anchovy Paste, Artichoke Hearts CARA’S ADDITIONS: Fettucine, Pine Nuts, Raisins, Saffron, Fennel PHOEBE’S ADDITIONS: Striped Bass, Parsley, Capers, Lemon, Red Onion (leftover) MENU: Sicilian Pasta (C); Eggplant Bruschetta (C); Striped Bass with Salsa Verde and Mediterranean Roasted Vegetables (P)

Voila! Our final set of recipes from your shopping bags.… What Christina brought to the table seemed so different from what we usually have in our bags, cabinets, and fridges—and yet so enticing—we both decided to have a go at it. Likewise, what we made was quite different from one

EVENT: Cooking From Kate’s Bag
IN KATE’S BAG: Ground Turkey, Beets, Fresh Corn, Red Onion
MY ADDITIONS: Fresh Dill, Lemon Juice, Chives
MENU: Dill Turkey Burgers with Pickled Red Onion and Beet Relish; Sweet Corn with Chive Butter

In our second day of cooking from your bags, I opened Kate’s. Hers also contained a lot of summer stuff, but at the center was a new vehicle for serving it: ground turkey. I was glad, since I’ve always been more enthusiastic about making chicken or turkey burgers over the standard beef. Five or so years back, during summer no less, …

EVENT: Cooking from Sara’s Shopping Bag
VENUE: Cara’s Apartment, Park Slope
PARTY SIZE: 3
TYPE: Weekday Fare
MENU: Edamame Succotash, Sweet Tomato Grilled Cheese

Last week, in honor of our new banner, we asked you to list four items from your current shopping bag, real or hypothetical. Not surprisingly, in this late-summer abundance, many readers listed some combination of seasonal fruits and vegetables: zucchini, corn, tomatoes, eggplant, figs, peaches, and beets. Though we’re honoring one particular reader’s bag, as per the rules, we hope that all of you with fresh summer produce can find something to cook in the recipes …

where meals really come together: the shopping bag

Cara’s Shopping Bag: Summer Squash, Parmesan, Onion, Kohlrabi
Phoebe’s Shopping Bag: Tomato, Avocado, Cilantro, Cucumber

It’s been a long time coming, but finally, we have a banner. Quite frankly, we’ve been a little Goldilocks about the whole thing. Over the last six months we’ve tossed around many ideas and design iterations, some good, some bad, but in the end, not one until now, felt just right. For this beautiful, final version, we have to thank Tom (his website is TypeShapeColor) for being patient with our indecision, and offering the endless …