RECIPE FROM GOOD TASTE. Order now.

One of my most favorite people in the world is my sister-in-law, Fishy. I was already living in the States when she became my sister-in-law, which is unfortunate on two levels. First, I don’t get to see her nearly as often as I would like, and second, I don’t get to experience her cooking.

My parents are always going over there for dinner and reporting back about delicious roast chickens and fantastic lamb. She is the expert at delicious, traditional, effortless comfort food and one of her best dishes, according to my mother, is her lemon and almond tart.

There really is nothing better than lemon and almond tart, particularly this one that is so densely citrusy, thanks to the puréed lemon. The almond extract and thick, moist texture makes it almost taste like marzipan, and the entire tart is heavenly.

SERVES 8

Ingredients:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Butter a 9″ tart pan and line with waxed paper.

In a food processor, combine almond flour and 6 tablespoons sugar.

Separately combine egg yolks, 2 tablespoons sugar, lemon purée and salt, and beat until smooth and pale. Add almond mixture and combine.

Beat egg whites to soft peaks, add confectioners’ sugar, and combine. Beat 1 large spoonful of egg whites into almond mixture, then fold rest of almond mixture into egg whites.

Transfer to tart pan and bake for 35 minutes.

Dust with confectioners’ sugar sprinkled through a sieve and cover top with toasted slivered almonds before serving.

RECIPE FROM GOOD TASTE. Order now.

SERVES 6–8

Ingredients:

2 chickens, jointed into 8 pieces, seasoned

Zest of 4 oranges

2/3 cup fresh orange juice

1⁄4 cup honey

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

2 teaspoons finely minced garlic

1⁄4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper

2 large red bell peppers

2 medium onions

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 cup short-grain brown rice

11⁄2 cups chicken stock

3⁄4 cup dry white wine

1 teaspoon tomato paste

1⁄2 large orange, cut into 1⁄2″ wedges, peel on

4 scallions (white bulbs and 3″ green), thinly sliced on diagonal for garnish

Method:

Rinse and dry chicken pieces and combine orange zest and juice, honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes into a bowl for marinade. Stir well, coat chicken pieces and refrigerate at least 1 hour, or preferably overnight.

When ready to cook, season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Next, slice the red peppers in half and remove the seeds and pith, then slice each half into 6 strips. Likewise, peel the onion and slice into strips of approximately the same size.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the casserole and, when it is fairly hot, add the chicken pieces—2 or 3 at a time—and brown them to a nutty golden color on both sides. As they brown, move them to a plate lined with paper towels, using a slotted spoon. Next add remaining oil to the casserole, with the heat slightly higher than medium. As soon as the oil is hot, add the onion and peppers and allow them to brown a little at the edges, moving them around from time to time, for about 5 minutes.

After that add the garlic and toss around for a minute or 2 until the garlic is pale golden, then stir in the rice and, when the grains have a good coating of oil, add the stock, wine and tomato paste. As soon as everything has reached a simmer, turn the heat down to a gentle simmer. Add a little more seasoning, then place the chicken gently on top of everything (it’s important to keep the rice down in the liquid). Finally, scatter the wedges of orange in among them.

Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook over the gentlest possible heat for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until the rice is cooked, but still retains a little bite. Alternatively, cook in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Garnish with scallions.