October 26 – November 1, 2026
Monday: Skirt Steak Hash with Endive and Arugula Salad – No picture, but above is Autumn in the hood
Tuesday: Tortellini in Brodo / Antipasta
Wednesday: Dinner at Il Pizzaiolo with John and Linda
Thursday: Chicken Provencal with Olives and Capers
Friday: Roasted Halibut with Potato Chip Crust
Saturday: Italian Sausage and Peppers Pizza – no picture but above was Casa Stuarti, where they give out full-size candy bard, on Halloween
Sunday: Chicken Chemuin with Parsley Sauce, Salad, Low-Country Red Rice
Ina Garten Hits Another Home Run
If you didn’t enjoy the World Series, please don’t tell me. If you didn’t watch it, you missed what was, for people my age, a return to our youth, when baseball reigned supreme and life was simpler. And, in a sense, that’s what Ina Garten – never a technique-driven, too-many-ingredients kind of cook – has done with her new, superb cookbook. You should buy it, because every recipe (except desserts, which may be great but are not my cup of tea, so to speak) is worth serving to your crew, spouse, guests, what have you.
How is this cookbook simpler? Ina uses some store-bought sauces, some frozen ingredients, and some things (olives, salami, nuts, potato chips) that are neither cooked nor chopped nor altered in any way. In addition, the organization of the recipes is intuitively navigable. Chicken dishes follow one another (take your pick), and on the pages immediately following her “Cheddar and Chive Omelet” you will find an “Endive and Avocado Salad with Shaved Parmesan” that is a perfect (acidic and bitter) accompaniment to the sweet, rich omelet.
But, even if these recipes weren’t simple they would be worth cooking and last week we ate her “Tortellini en Brodo” and a wonderful Friday feast for us Micks stuck in the 1950s: “Halibut with Potato Chip Crust.” That, of course, is a funny title for Ina, who usually does not drift into recipe titles that are anything less than classic. But, hey, SWMBO really doesn’t like having potato chips in the house – she thinks that, like women in abbreviated clothing, they are a source of temptation – so this recipe appealed to me as a way to smuggle in a large bag of chips that would remain as a temptation, well after we had cooked the fish.
And the fish was out of this world – it actually reminded me of the ‘holy snook’ our late good friend Tim caught one boozy night in Naples, Florida. I, for one, hope that Ina does not retire from cookbook writing – another book of the same caliber as “Simply Ina“ would make my day.
Roasted Halibut with Potato Chip Crust
(adapted from Ina Garten, Simply Ina)
Timing: 25 minutes
Ingredients: Serves 4
4 (6 oz.) skin-on, center-cut halibut filets [NOTE: Halibut is quite expensive and you can substitute skinless cod filets]
½ cup coarsely crushed, ridged potato chips, such as Cape Cod. [Lay’s makes a kettle-cooked chip that works just fine.]
½ cup panko
2/3 cup mayonnaise (Hellmann’s)
1/3 cup minced shallot (3 large shallots)
1 tablespoon fresh dill, minced
1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons lemon juice plus lemon wedges for serving
Kosher salt and black pepper
Prep:
Preheat oven to 425F.
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper if using skin-on fish, but if you’re using skinless filets, don’t use parchment or the filets will stick to it.
In a bowl, stir the mayonnaise, shallots, dill, mustard and 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of pepper together.
In a separate bowl, combine the crushed chips, the panko and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Juice lemon
Slice lemon wedges
Cook:
Dry the fish filets and arrange on sheet pan, skin side down. Drizzle the lemon juice on the filets and sprinkle with the salt and pepper.
Spread the mayonnaise mixture very thickly on the filets – it will seem like it’s too much, but use it all. Spoon the panko/chip mixture on top.
Bake for about 14 minutes, until the topping is browned and the fish is just cooked in the center.
Remove fish from parchment paper and/or sheet pan with a spatula.
Serve hot with lemon wedges.
