It’s the first day of spring, which means you’re officially allowed to start daydreaming about asparagus and artichokes, green garlic and peas. So what if all those vegetables aren’t available locally, spring is here! And this creamy asparagus and goat cheese tart (above) is calling your name.
It looks fancy. But made with purchased puff pastry, it’s not at all hard to put together. And it’s adaptable: Substitute sour cream or Greek yogurt for the crème fraîche, or feta or cream cheese for the goat cheese; other quick cooking vegetables (sliced shiitakes, sliced sugar snap peas, broccolini) can swap in for the asparagus. It’s your springtime tart, do with it what you will.
Is a tart a bit too much for a weeknight? How about a 30-minute sheet-pan meal of gnocchi and asparagus? Or a springtime minestrone with kale, asparagus and peas? We have many more ideas for spring cooking, ready for all your vernal cravings.
Nowruz, the Persian New Year, also begins today. It’s a holiday when sweets and herb-laden savory dishes are traditionally served. Whether you’re celebrating or not, Samin Nosrat’s sabzi polo, herbed rice with a crunchy tahdig, makes a verdant springtime dish. It’s often paired with fish, like Naz Deravian’s speedy and very flavorful mahi ba somagh (sumac roasted branzino or trout).
Cabbage may not be a spring vegetable, but it is Yotam Ottolenghi’s special vegetable friend. I can relate, as I have warm and fuzzy feelings for the brassica, too. In Yotam’s latest recipe, he stuffs cabbage leaves with a spiced walnut, onion and sour cream mixture based on pkhali, a savory Georgian spread. It looks divine.
I’m also excited about Romel Bruno’s pork tocino, a dish from the Philippines that’s sweet from brown sugar, pineapple juice and beet juice (which you can buy in large supermarkets or at a juice bar), and savory from soy sauce. You need to let the mixture marinate overnight, but the prep time is all of 10 minutes, making it easy to throw together tonight for dinner tomorrow. Serve it with fried eggs and some garlic fried rice, as they do in the Philippines.
Then, go for banana pudding. Magnolia Bakery’s version, made with sweetened condensed milk and instant vanilla pudding, is sublimely creamy and worth the agonizing few hours it takes to chill. We also have a stellar baked lemon pudding and, for immediate gratification, there’s this 15-minute oat milk chocolate pudding, which I like best when it’s still warm.
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One last note: I’ll be going on vacation for the next two weeks, but fear not, you will be in good hands. Till then, if you miss me, I’ll be on my Instagram account: @clarkbar. See you in April!
