8 Readers Share the Recipes They Know by Heart

My friends and I make Alison Roman’s squash and lentil soup so often that in our group chat we’ve taken to referring to it as “our soup.” As in: “I’m making our soup tonight,” or “Sorry you’re sick! Can I drop off our soup this afternoon?” We may not have written the recipe but it’s ours now! Inspired, we asked Cup of Jo readers to share the recipes they’ve made a million times. Here, eight readers recommend their tried-and-true dishes…

“Our” Alison Roman soup — the recipe calls for acorn squash, but I’ve been making it with honey nut squash from my garden.

“Everyone has their favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, but I swear by the one my mom always made from my grandmother’s The Best of Country Cooking cookbook. I have the recipe memorized, and I also add a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg. When I made these cookies for a friend, she could not believe I made them ‘out of my brain.’ Now it’s my favorite way to describe knowing a recipe off the top of my head.” — Katie

“I make Dan Pelosi’s non-alcoholic Negroni on repeat. Basically, you steep half a box of Red Zinger tea with orange peel, sugar, cloves, and black peppercorns, then serve it with tonic (and grapefruit juice if you have it, but I usually don’t). It’s a nice treat to sip on while putting dinner together. My husband and I like it so much that there’s usually a big jar of it in our fridge.” — Sarah

“Marcella Hazan’s tomato sauce is pure kitchen magic. I’ve made it so many times that I no longer need the recipe. It seems too rudimentary to be special — just tomatoes, butter, and whole onions — but somehow the result is truly exquisite. My girls have always loved it — they’re busy teens now and still get excited when they come home and smell tomatoes simmering. They call out from the doorway, ‘It’s a tomato sauce day!’” — Ashley

“On vacation in San Francisco, I ate a revelatory sandwich from Golden Gate Market Deli & Liquor, a bodega right next to the Presidio. Ever since, I have dedicated myself to perfecting my sandwich game. My latest is good sourdough, French Dijon, garlic aioli, Jarlsberg and smoked Gouda, an entire avocado, red onion, cucumber, perfectly ripe tomatoes (with salt and pepper, of course), wilted spinach, and a whole lot of sprouts. It takes a half hour to make but it is so, so worth it!” — Elizabeth

“We make a kale Caesar with poached eggs all the time. The key is to tear the kale into strips and massage them for at least a minute. Then, add lemon juice, a glug or two of olive oil, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and lots of freshly grated Parmesan. Toss it all together. The leaves should be acidic, salty, and a tad spicy. Sometimes we make homemade croutons from a fresh loaf of bread. Finally, poach eggs and put them on top! Dinner is served in 20 minutes. The salad is super nourishing but also finger-licking good.” — Becca

“Hands down, my go-to recipe is Smitten Kitchen’s confetti cookies. As Deb Perelman says, they’re the best because you can pull ingredients straight from the fridge without waiting for them to come to room temp. We call them ‘rainbow cookies’ in our house, and they’ve become my signature. My eight-year-old just made them all by himself for the first time, and I was so proud!” — Laura

“For several years, I’ve made ahead a batch of buffalo chicken meatballs to freeze and pack for lunch. I’m a high school math teacher, mom of three, and short on time, so I value the consistency. I like to pair these with roasted sweet potatoes. Never disappoints!” — Andrea

“A simple meal that my teenagers will always polish off is Melissa Clark’s cheesy white beans. I serve it alongside green salad and sliced baguette, and the whole thing takes 25 minutes, all in. We even had it over Christmas break, and Lulu and my dad approved, as well.” — Joanna

Now, it’s your turn to shout out your go-to recipes! What dishes have you made so many times you know them by heart? We want to add them to our list.

P.S. 11 (more) readers share their go-to recipes, and what are five recipes in your arsenal?

(Sprinkle cookie photos by Deb Perelman; tomato sauce photo by Christopher Testani for The New York Times; meatball photo by Chrissa Benson.)