Recipes By Julia Reed
83 recipes found

Squash Casserole
“Why don’t you just cook something that tastes really good?” Julia Reed’s mother said that, chiding her daughter, a writer of uncommon style and wit who used to contribute food essays and recipes to The New York Times Magazine. Her mother thought Ms. Reed spent too much time thinking about complicated, over-the-top recipes at the expense of simple, honest American cooking that draws compliments not because it looks amazing, but because it’s delicious. Like, for example, this recipe, for what Julia called in a 2002 article, “the best squash casserole on the planet Earth.” The ingredients are by no means fancy — summer squash, jalapeño, white bread, Ritz crackers, eggs and Cheddar — but they combine in mysterious and marvelous ways to deliver a perfect accompaniment to grilled chicken or a weekend roast.

Julia Reed's Mayonnaise

Pressed Cheese Straws

Sausage Balls
These classic Southern hors d’oeuvres, made with only three ingredients, taste just as good with beer as they do with bourbon. And they come together in about 20 minutes from start to finish.

Julia Reed's Fried Chicken

Spoonbread With Cheese and Scallions
Spoonbread, a sort of cornmeal soufflé, is far more popular in places like Virginia and the Carolinas than in Tennessee and Mississippi, where I did my formative eating. I love it, but I never understood why nobody ever made it with cheese (cheese grits being one of the world's great creations), so I did. Purists will likely curse me, but I have to say that cheese spoonbread is possibly the most inspired idea I've ever had. It's great with sausage, but it would also pair well with country ham or any kind of stew or daube.

Hot Cheese Olives
This is classic 1950s cocktail fare that, unlike the savory gelées and boiled ham canapés that are best forgotten, we still want to eat today. Just wrap cocktail olives in a simple Cheddar dough and bake until golden. Martini optional.

Laotian Catfish Soup

Pork Loin Marinated in Paprika and Herbs

Buttermilk Herb Dressing

Brine-Cured Pork Chops

Jason's Best Crab Cakes Ever

Charlotte Russe

Crab Louis

Montpelier Butter
"One of my favorite recipes in the whole book ('Jeremiah Tower Cooks') is for Montpelier butter -- it's the best version I've ever tried and incredibly versatile. In 'New American Classics,' Tower wrote that this classic compound butter 'transforms hot cauliflower' and that 'on top of mashed potatoes it is so good that it should be arrested.' Here he says he hasn't changed his mind and further recommends it with hot grilled fish or steaks and, at room temperature, with cold poached salmon. With typical passion, he adds that when it is spooned between slices of leftover roast pork or veal 'the slices reassembled, left for a day, and then eaten at cool room temperature, it creates a lifelong memory.'"

Lemon Caramel Pots de Crème

Seafood Lasagna

Bacon-Braised Mustard Greens

Lady Baltimore Cake

Justine's Pineapple-Mint Ice Cream

Hot Mustard

Roman Steaks
This simple recipe, which is adapted from “Mediterranean Cooking” by Paula Wolfert, was brought to the Times by Julia Reed in a 2004 article about easy Italian cooking. Ms. Reed said it was her favorite summer steak recipe, and for good reason: It requires very little effort and just a handful of ingredients to yield spectacular results.

Carbonnade à la Flamande

Pralines
This deeply Southern and unapologetically sweet candy recipe came to the Times by way of Julia Reed in an article about making edible holiday gifts. Her friend, Mary Cooper “can do anything: she canes chairs, she's an excellent gardener, she even makes her own cheese. And at Christmas she always makes me the best pecan pralines I have ever tasted.” Ms. Cooper was kind enough to share her recipe with Ms. Reed who, in turn, shared it with us. As you spoon the warm praline mixture onto the parchment paper, work quickly. It dries in a snap. Some have been known to sprinkle the tops of the wet pralines with flaky sea salt before they harden.