What to cook this week + I'm starting a meal delivery service
It’s a busy week so let’s get right into it!
30 min dinner -
Weeknight Pozole with Mini Quesadillas
I grew up eating and loving tacos, but had never heard of or tried pozole until this awesome Mexican food workshop we did during cooking school. It’s such a simple but flavorful dish, and something I know people would love if they tried it.
My weeknight pozole takes just 30 minutes to whip up (taking a few shortcuts from a traditional recipe), and still hits all the spots. It’s also a great excuse to make some mini quesadillas to pair with it. I find that when introducing new recipes to people, it’s nice to have something that’s familiar and a guaranteed crowd pleaser … like quesadillas :)
I really hope this our next generation is as familiar with pozole as they are with tacos, along with so many other amazing Mexican dishes. And I hope this weeknight pozole makes it a little bit more accessible to incorporate into your routine.
Recipe coming straight to your inbox through Substack this Tuesday.
Salad of the week -
This Avocado Chicken Caesar salad came to life from a request to recreate the Cafe Caesar Salad from Calif Chicken Cafe in Los Angeles. I love a good Caesar salad, and this version makes it a whole meal with the addition of avocado and PASTA (which I LOVE in this!).
I make a homemade caesar dressing by just blending all the ingredients in a food processor, and the key to caesar dressing is to use fresh lemon juice, lots of black pepper, and a little of parmesan cheese in the dressing as well.
If you have a favorite salad you love and want to recreate at home, let me know and I'd love to help and make a recipe for it!
Another dinner idea:
Spring Veggie Flatbread with Burrata
Here in California, we’re already seeing signs of spring produce, which makes me so happy! I know it’s not like this across the country, but if you do want a taste of spring, and have access to asparagus and sugar snap peas, this spring veggie flatbread is perfect.
I use a store-bought pizza dough that I leave out of the counter in the morning, and it’s ready to be rolled out and baked in the oven in the afternoon. I use this sheet pan pizza method I learned from my friend Brenna, which doesn’t require any special equipment - just a sheet pan and an oven.
In other news …
I’m starting a meal delivery service in the Bay Area!
I’ve been working on this project for the past half year, and I’m excited to FINALLY get started and bring this TO LIFE! To give you a sense of what this is without writing an entire novel, imagine a service where a private chef drops off food for you to have for the week.
This is actually a pretty common service in the Bay Area (and a version of what I did during my time as a private chef), especially among busy professionals. The main limitations however include the small scale nature of it (you have to find a private chef who is available for hire) and the relatively high cost.
After years of constantly hearing requests for something like this, and having served in this kind of private chef role for various clients in the past years, I decided that it would be worth expanding the offering to provide this much demanded service to a greater number of people. With that, Jackie’s Supper Club was born.
This service is available now in the Bay Area! And here’s how it works: every week, you can pick items from our rotating menu. Meals are then prepared and packaged into reusable containers which are delivered to you at the beginning of the week. There are a number of different plans available depending on the desired number of portions, and you can select the plans as either a recurring subscription, or opt in on a week-to-week basis.
There are a number things that I believe make this program special. First, the Tupperware containers. It might seem like a small detail, but this is actually how private chefs drop off food for their clients. The idea is to provide you with something that’s homey and comforting, not just take out that’s caked in grease and sodium. Even more important, I’m not a fan of single use plastic, so despite the challenges associated with choosing reusable containers for this program, I really want to make it work and make a difference.
Of course, the most important aspect of a meal delivery service is the food itself. If you love good food, then you’re in luck because I’m only planning to serve the good stuff. I’m proud of the food I make - not only do I love sharing my food to others in real life, but I also enjoy sharing recipes and cooking videos online to reach an even wider audience. With Jackie’s Supper Club, I’m going to work in even more new recipes and extra flavors, incorporating the best of local California produce and San Francisco small businesses whenever I can. I hope to put even more good food on people’s tables.
Now, I know this service is not for everyone. Some of you are already great home chefs and don’t necessarily need the help. But many people can probably benefit from taking a break from cooking or ordering too much take out. So if you or someone you know could benefit from more private chef style food and less Doordash, feel free to spread the word about Jackie’s Supper Club.
Jackie