Spring in Colorado kicks off the warm season of many farmers markets, backyard parties and campground barbecues. From May through September, restaurants and home cooks across the state fill their baskets with bright greens, tart cherries and succulent Palisade peaches. As we emerge from the past two pandemic-tinged years, it seems like everyone is eager to get together for cheese board nights, snacks and seltzers in the park, and weekend dinners together — giving us the chance to reconnect around the food of our own kitchens. Three Colorado authors — Allyson Reedy, Eliza Cross, and Tieghan Gerard — recently released cookbooks to help get you started on your own delicious summer.
50 things to bake before you die: the world’s best cakes, pies, brownies, cookies and more from your favorite bakers, including Christina Tosi, Joanne Chang and Dominique Ansel
By Allyson Reedy
Allyson Reedy is not a professional baker. In fact, this collection of sought-after recipes was born out of a seemingly universal experience: the frustrating search for the perfect gift. Reedy was looking for a “greatest hits” cooking volume for her aunt for Christmas. When she couldn’t find one available, she decided to compile one herself. “I was like, I was wondering if I could ask some of these amazing bakers and chefs if they would share recipes and I could put together what I was looking for,” Allyson recalled. She describes what she created as a “very diverse group of recipes, from super easy cookies to more complicated layer cakes and the like.”
The diversity doesn’t just shine in the complexity of the recipes, ranging from effortlessly chewy brownies (excerpted below from Tessa Arias, the blogger behind Handle the Heat) to more advanced products like cookies and cream macaroons (from Cambrea Gordon by Cambrea Bakes). The variety also extends to creators, from the mentioned online bloggers to baking giants like Christina Tosi of Milk Bar fame and Duff Goldman – yes, the Ace of Cakes man himself. A few Denver-based sweets have even arrived, like Ruby Jean Patisserie’s gorgeous Blueberry Galette and The Long I Pie Shop’s Blueberry Lemon Pie (nicknamed “The Boy Scout”).
This baking to-do list doesn’t take itself too seriously, though, with categories like “Things You Eat With Your Hands” and the equivalent, “Things You Probably Shouldn’t Eat With Your Hands.” your hands”. It’s designed to be accessible to home bakers of all skill levels and is the perfect anthology of approved recipes to have in your kitchen when you need to cook something you just know is fantastic. Oh, and yes, it’s the best gift.
Chewy Brownies by Tessa Arias, as featured in 50 things to cook before you die.
Greg McBoat
Excerpt from 50 Things to Cook Before You Die by Allyson Reedy. Copyright © 2022 Ulysses Press. Reprinted with permission from Ulysses Press. New York, NY. All rights reserved.
Fluffy Brownies
Tessa Arias, baking blogger (Handle the Heat)
I think it’s safe to say that Tessa Arias is a brownie geek. She’s posted forty brownie recipes on her blog, Handle the Heat, and she spends her free time doing things like experimenting with cornstarch amounts and egg yolk temperatures. We are grateful for their efforts as they gave us these amazing chewy one bowl brownies, way better than the box. (Seriously: a bowl!) We’re talking wall-to-wall chocolate action, where every bite is packed with gooey goodness and chocolate chips. And did I mention you can do it all in one bowl? There may be no better reward-effort ratio.
Makes an 8 x 8 inch mold
1¼ cup granulated sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk, cold
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup vegetable oil
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cornstarch
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line an 8×8-inch pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a microwave-safe bowl, add butter and sugar. Microwave for about 1 minute or until butter is melted. Whisk the eggs, egg yolk and vanilla. Stir in oil and cocoa powder.
3. Using a rubber spatula, stir in flour, baking soda, cornstarch and salt until well blended. Add the chocolate chips.
4. Spread brownie batter evenly in prepared pan. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until the brownies are set and a toothpick inserted in the center has moist crumbs attached. Do not overcook. Let cool completely before cutting and serving.
Half-Cooked Harvest Every Day: Recipes for Balanced, Flexible, Enjoyable Meals
By Tieghan Gerard
If you’re an internet foodie, chances are you’re already familiar with the work of Tieghan Gerard. Maybe you’re one of his 4.3 million Instagram followers, frequent his hit blog Half Baked Harvest, or already own one of his two previous cookbooks, Half-baked harvest cookbook Where Super simple semi-cooked harvest.
Gerard is highly regarded for her family-friendly yet savory meals, often inspired by cuisines from around the world (an attribute that landed her in a cultural appropriation controversy in 2021 after posting a “Weeknight Ginger Chicken Pho Ga” poorly received). Recipe). Her recipes tend to be weekday oriented and healthy, with lots of fresh ingredients.
Tieghan Gerard published Half-cooked harvest every day in March.
Semi-cooked harvest/Instagram
According to a Cherry Bomb Radio podcast interview with Kerry Diamond, Gerard comes from a family of ten, including his brother, Olympic snowboarder Red Gerard. They all packed up and moved from Ohio to the mountains around Breckenridge when Tieghan was fourteen. In 2012 (when she was only nineteen), she launched her blog. Half Baked Harvest gained popularity almost immediately within the first year (and no, that’s no weed joke). His blog-turned-brand has also earned Gerard partnerships with companies like Anthropologie and Etsy.
Gerard’s most recent book, published in March 2022, stays true to its title with flavor-packed recipes that are flexible enough for a Tuesday night — like his Sweet Potato Nachos With the Works or Pizza Pasta With Pepperoni Bread Crumbs. She calls for recipes in thirty minutes or less, gluten-free and refined sugar-free to make the book an accessible tool for cooks, regardless of diet or circumstance. If you wanted to add more spice to your dinners at home – or if you just want a cookbook that guarantees meals that are as delicious as they are Instagram-worthy – this is the one for you.
Hot Diggity Dog: 65 great recipes using brats, hot dogs and sausages
By Eliza Cross
“Colorado is such a wonderful place if you like to cook, because we have such great produce and so many great ingredients available,” says Boulder native Eliza Cross. His first book, The Foodie’s Guide to Coloradowas released in 2003 and reflects this deep appreciation for our state’s food producers, restaurants, wineries, breweries and festivals.
Hot Diggity Dog is Cross’ fifteenth cookbook. Other titles from his repertoire include quinoa cookbook, Pump it up! and Berries: sweet and savory recipes. She also has a collection of 101 things to do with titles for bacon, pickles, pumpkin and (in Colorado style) beer. Even a short chat with Cross will prove to you that she’s committed to being an expert on the ingredients she chooses to write about. “It’s a fun way to wrap your arms around something and explore all the different ways to use it,” she explains.
Hot Diggity Dog is the fifteenth cookbook by Eliza Cross.
Povy Kendal Atchison
When she decided to make a cookbook around sausages, she and her publisher decided to include hot dogs and bratwurst as well. She managed to find exciting and unique ways to cook with these seemingly “ordinary” ingredients and includes recipes for every meal, including breakfasts for dogs, which consist of bacon and chopped hot dogs, eggs scrambled eggs and cheese sauce on toasted buns.
One of Eliza’s favorite recipes in the book is Bratwurst, Havarti, and Caramelized Onion Flatbreads, which look like the perfect garden meal paired with a crisp beer or cider. She also likes the Skillet of Summer Sweet Corn with Sausage and Peppers (excerpt below), inspired by the West Slope sweet corn that should start appearing on farm stalls in late June.
At first glance, Hot Diggity Dog may seem like a delightful novelty. Look beyond the first impression, however, and you’ll find that there are as many fun options for kids (or kids at heart) as there are appetizing dishes for your next dinner party. The recipes are simple in the best possible way, allowing the flavor of the dishes and the people you enjoy them with to be the highlight, rather than the process it took to get there.
This skillet dish showcases seasonal produce for an easy, family-friendly dinner.
Books by Gibbs Smith
Recipe from the cookbook Diggity hot dog, by Eliza Cross. Used with permission from Gibbs Smith Books.
Summer Sweet Corn Skillet with Sausages and Peppers
Makes 6-8 servings
8 cobs of fresh sweetcorn, shelled and cleaned
1/2 pound kielbasa sausage
2 tablespoons of butter
1/3 cup diced red bell pepper
1/3 cup diced green bell pepper
1/3 cup diced orange or yellow bell pepper
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chopped flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
In a large bowl, cut the corn off the cob and scrape each cob into the bowl to release the milk; put aside.
Cut the kielbasa into 1/4 inch thick slices and cut the slices in half. Melt the butter over medium-high heat in a large deep skillet. Add kielbasa and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add peppers and cook until tender, about 7-8 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium, add corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 8-10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute more. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.