[CREATIVE PURSUITS]
MARK’S
COOKING
MUSTS
Mark’s long-running
column in The
New York Times
was called “The
Minimalist” for a
reason. A few of his
most basic tips for
home-cooking
success:
BUY THE BEST
Always start with
quality ingredients.
He says, “I let what
I fi nd at the market
determine what I’ll
make for dinner
instead of the other
way around.”
TASTE AS YOU GO
Often all you need
is salt and pepper
to make good
ingredients taste
delicious. For Mark
that means kosher
salt and freshly
ground black
peppercorns.
STOCK UP
When you have a
well-stocked pantry,
adapting a recipe
or experimenting
with fl avor is easier.
Use recipes as
a blueprint; play
with spices and
seasonings to keep
them interesting. ■
FOOD HOME COOKING
90 | September 2019
CHICKEN-
AND-BISCUIT
POT PIE
MOROCCAN
PASTILLA
MORE FROM MARK
Find the company-
ready variations of
these three dishes and
97 more in Dinner
for Everyone ($40;
crownpublishing.com).
F
A
S
T
M E A T L E S S
POT PIE
■MEATLESS Mark’s
r i ff o n p a s t i l l a — a
North African sweet-
savory chicken pie—
features a hearty
Moroccan-spiced
fi lling of parsnips,
dried fruit, nuts,
and olives beneath
a fl aky phyllo crust.
■FAST “Think of this
as the pot pie version
of cobbler,” Mark
says. Topping
creamy chicken-and-
vegetable fi lling
with stir-together
biscuit dough makes
it possible to whip
up homemade pot pie
in about an hour.
