A round-up of our go-to recipes.
LOST CREEK CHILI SAUCE
To the unknowing stomach, a West Virginia hot dog is pretty simple. Hot dog, steamed bun, diced onion, yellow mustard, a creamy slaw, and a slathering of chili. But the secret is often enough in the sauce. “In West Virginia, you’ll find a lot of variety,” says Mike Costello of Lost Creek Farm in Harrison County, who grew up outside of Charleston with a slightly spicy version and was kind enough to share a personal recipe with us—and you.
NEW YORK STRIP WITH BROWN BUTTER BACON SAUCE + BALSAMIC DRIZZLE
It’s grilling season, and meat master Tuffy Stone has a foolproof recipe for summer cooking that can satisfy a crowd. “The first time I made this recipe, I was competing in the Kingsford Invitational barbecue competition in New York City,” he says. It was the contest’s “one bite challenge,” and Stone won. But the best prize? A North Carolina pitmaster telling him afterwards, “you’re one tough dude.”
COWBOY CAULDRON PIZZA
As Mike Bertelsen of the Cowboy Cauldron Company puts it, making your own pizza is “bonehead easy,” especially over one of his epic firepits and using a cast-iron pan as a de facto pizza stone. Consider these grilled pies, especially with a handful of fresh basil and other goods from the garden, your new go-to for summer.
DOGWOOD FARM ASPARAGUS TART
After a long cold winter, there are few fleeting rites of spring as joyful as a bunch of bright asparagus. Chef Harley Peet used to live on this seasonal tart’s namesake farm in Maryland, where his restaurants still source their eggs and vegetables.
STRAWBERRY COBBLER WITH BLACK PEPPER-CORNMEAL BISCUIT
Finally! Spring brings strawberry season, and we’d be lying if we said we haven’t been waiting all winter to pluck a few pieces of fruit from the garden and, eventually, bake the excess into turnovers, cobblers, and pies. This recipe from Milk Glass Pie’s Keia Mastrianni has all the charm of her Southern home in North Carolina, and best of all, captures that sweet, so-needed feeling of warmer days ahead.
CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS
The shoulder season has us craving both spring chicken and lingering winter comforts, from slow-cooked foods to sweatpants. Nashville chef Sean Brock’s “last meal,” which he claims this dish would be, serves up both. The one-pot Southern classic features a recipe that has been in the Brock family for generations, made by both his mother and grandmother, and now featured on the menu at Audrey.
VIETNAMESE-STYLE WHOLE FISH
This is a complex recipe. But John Tesar doesn’t take shortcuts. His Texas restaurants pride themselves on prized pieces of protein, as showcased in this Vietnamese-inspired celebration of local seafood. Save it for next year’s Feast of the Seven Fishes—or consider it the courageous start of 2023.
LOUISIANA PASTALAYA
SICHUAN PEPPER SQUASH + TOFU
Come fall, the peppers reach their peak before the first frost and the squash finally arrives, savory and sweet. Get the best of both with this Sichuan-inspired stir-fry from Woodberry Tavern's Spike Gjerde.
BISCUITS + COUNTRY HAM GRAVY
With the arrival of the autumn equinox, this comfort-food classic gets elevated to a new level thanks to chef Jeremiah Langhorne of The Dabney in Washington, D.C. When a Virginia son tells you to add country ham to your gravy, you do it, and thank him later.
TATE FARMS BURGER
