Haley's Recipe Testing Order!!!
today is a Haley Scarpino fan club newsletter :)
BOOK TOUR!!
Are in Chicago? DC? Anywhere near Salisbury, CT (so maybe you’re in Western Mass or in the Hudson Valley??) or Brooklyn? Come to one of my upcoming book events!!!
Fri. Oct. 25th at 7p / CHICAGO: In Conversation with Monica Eng at the Swedish American Museum with Women and Children First
Mon. Oct. 28th at 7p / WASHINGTON D.C.: In Conversation with Joe Yonan at All Souls Unitarian Sanctuary with Bold Fork Books
Wed. Oct. 30th at 6:30p / SALISBURY, CT: In Conversation with Virginia Sole-Smith at The White Hart Inn with Oblong Books
Fri. Nov. 1st at 7p / BROOKLYN: In Conversation with Helen Rosner at Books Are Magic
I have seen Haley Scarpino on Zoom multiple times a month for years now (she moderates the chat in all of my online cooking classes — and if you’ve taken any of them, you know how great she is). But until this past weekend, we had never actually met in person as she and her wife Maggie live in Des Moines. They came to Kingston, NY this past weekend to help me celebrate the book and just have a delightful Hudson Valley fall weekend (the leaves are peeking right now!!).
We officially met in person Saturday morning at the Kingston Farmers Market and it was SO SURREAL! I told her I felt like we were doing the big reveal on Love Is Blind but Haley doesn’t watch as much trash TV as I do so that may have been lost on her…lol.
Want to see the sweetest thing in the world? Here’s the moment Haley and my mom met in person:
In addition to being my right hand in class, Haley tested every single recipe in WHAT GOES WITH WHAT.
I’ve said this before, but knowing that Haley’s made every single recipe in the book makes me feel extra confident about it being a reliable book that you can trust. I do not take any reader’s time, energy or money for granted, which is why it was a no-brainer to invest in Haley’s work on the recipes.
When I did a little Q&A with Haley about this work a little while ago we got to hear more about her attention to detail, including how she organized her recipe testing around shared ingredients between the recipes in the book.
One newsletter reader asked if Haley would ever be open to sharing her recipe testing order.
And because Haley’s the best, she made us a spreadsheet (my brain works in charts, Haley’s works in spreadsheets!). Here’s the note she sent along with the spreadsheet:
Ok! I have sorted all the recipes in the order I tested them and by ingredient. There are a few exceptions. For example, I grouped the two recipes using Sambal together in the spreadsheet. I thought that might be helpful. I didn't actually make these back-to-back since Sambal keeps so long in the fridge. Or all the recipes with carrots, I didn't make back-to-back since carrots keep in the fridge for a long time, but I made them near each other. I think this captures the spirit of the request.
I grouped things I made and served together in grey.
Also, toward the end of testing, you can see that it's more one-off dishes. These are recipes that use all the ingredients. For example, one whole can of tomatoes, so there isn't a lot of overlap with other recipes. They are also heavier dishes that stand-alone or go well with a simple salad. You get it.
Haley also let us know which are her favorite recipes from the whole entire book.
It’s a truly invaluable document and an excellent companion to the book and I am so grateful to her for putting it together.
Here it is:
On Sunday night Haley and Maggie came over to our house for dinner and we had such a wonderful time together. It was so sweet to watch Haley see our kitchen in person since she usually only sees it from one very specific angle. Before they left, I forced her to take a photo with me in the spot where I teach!!!
I’m so grateful to Haley for all of her hard work in my classes and on the book and also for her friendship. Having Haley in my corner makes me feel so lucky!
If you haven’t entered this week’s giveaway yet, don’t miss your chance to win a SIGNED copy of my new book, What Goes With What, in the custom box my publisher has put together that also includes two jars of Better Than Bouillon, The "7 Lists" zine that I made for everyone who preordered from Oblong Books…includes doodles by my mom!, and an "Endless Possibilities of Salad Dressings" postcard:
To enter, just click on the button below and fill out the form (entry ends end of the day next Monday / US residents only — apologies to my international friends!). Flatiron Books will be in touch with the winner for shipping info!
Have a great weekend everyone!! xooxox Julia
OMG DYING LITERALLY DEAD over that pic of Haley and your mom!!! I LOVE when Internet friendships/collaborations meet in real life. What a delight!
I have never wanted to win something so much! Ok maybe the $5000 Room&Board sweepstakes. Anyway that spreadsheet is amazing! I always have capers, feta, tahini and (duh) white wine around because I use them so much, but buttermilk I for sure often buy for about 1/2 cup and the rest goes bad.