Let Melissa Clark Solve Your Pantry Problems

Find the NYT Cooking columnist’s favorite cornbread recipe and her go-to quick chickpea dinner here.

Imagine you’re poking around your kitchen. There are a few cans of black beans in the pantry, and shelf-stable gnocchi, plus some farro you always forget about. There’s a bag of corn kernels in the freezer, but none of this feels like it adds up to a dinner you’re excited about eating.

But then Melissa Clark, many-time cookbook author and columnist at NYT Cooking, waltzes in your door. She glances at the ingredients you have on hand, and soon she’s bubbling over with a week’s worth of recipe ideas for you.

That’s essentially what the latest episode of The Dinner Plan podcast is—Melissa solves your pantry problems, and shares a long list of recipes she personally adores. (We can say this: the lady eats a lot of soup.)

I loved talking to Melissa about how her family dinners at home evolve into the recipes you end up seeing in the Times, and how her gig as an interim restaurant critic who’d never let a leftover go to waste has changed what she’s been cooking lately.

Melissa thinks a lot about how to make weeknight dinners more joyful. Sometimes that means figuring out a way to cut down on the dishwashing load. But it’s also very much about vibes.

Some folks are happiest when dinner prep time is alone time, Melissa explains: “You say, this is my time. All of you out of the kitchen!” Then turn up the music and spend a minute making something nice to drink: “One of my favorites is just plain tonic water with a grapefruit peel in it,” she says. “My god, it’s so good, right?”

Personally, though, she’s not interested in being alone while she cooks. There’s more to her (quite romantic) routine, but I’ll let you listen to find out.

---

You can support this free newsletter by shopping any of the affiliate links in this newsletter—or purchasing guest-recommended cookbooks from this Bookshop list.

Looking for a no-cost way to help keep the show running? Share the podcast (or this newsletter) with a friend!

Win a Copy of Dinner in One:

In Dinner in One, Melissa Clark simplifies dinner—and cuts down on the dishes. Recipes include brussels sprouts with paneer and a tangy lime dressing, tahini-roasted cod with asparagus, and Instant Pot spicy tomato white beans with Pecorino.

To win a copy, make sure you’re subscribed to this newsletter and leave a comment below by Friday, February 21.

Winner will be alerted by Substack DM and email—be sure to check your messages! U.S. addresses only, 18+, no purchase necessary. Giveaway not sponsored or administered by Substack or Instagram. Ends Thursday, February 27, 2025.

Melissa recommends:

Melissa’s Red Lentil Soup (NYT Cooking, all links are gift links!)
Melissa’s Brown Butter Skillet Cornbread (NYT Cooking)
Priya Krishna’s Everyday Dal (NYT Cooking)
Melissa Clark’s Sheet-Pan Gnocchi With Sausage and Peppers (NYT Cooking)
Fly By Jing Chili Crisp Vinaigrette
Jenny Rosenstrach’s Puréed Cauliflower Soup (Dinner a Love Story)
Sarah DiGregorio’s Sheet-Pan Garlicky White Beans and Shrimp (NYT Cooking)
Melissa’s Coconut Black Bean Soup (NYT Cooking)
Melissa’s Sheet-Pan Chicken Thighs with With Spicy Corn (NYT Cooking)
Carolina Gelen’s Pass the Plate
Madhur Jaffrey’s An Invitation to Indian Cooking
Dorie Greenspan’s Around my French Table, especially the duck breast with kumquats
Hetty McKinnon’s newsletter, To Vegetables With Love
Instagram must-follows: Heidi Swanson, Odette Williams, Alexandra Cooks

Maggie recommends:

Homemade Focaccia (Serious Eats)
Anna Stockwell’s Crispy White Beans (Epicurious)
These quarter-sized sheet pans
Charlie Bird’s Farro Salad (NYT Cooking)
Dorie Greenspan’s Pumpkin Stuffed with Everything Good (excerpted from Around my French Table in The Kitchn)
Hetty McKinnon’s Neighborhood: Hearty Salads and Plant-Based Recipes from Home and Abroad

Photo: Linda Xiao

Fried Chickpeas and Scrambled Eggs with Garlicky Greens and Spicy Yogurt

Reprinted from Dinner In One. Copyright © 2022 by Melissa Clark. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House.

While I’d happily eat a plate of crunchy, salty fried chickpeas all by itself for dinner, the rest of my family needs a little more substance on the plate. Enter this super speedy meatless dish. After the chickpeas are fried with cracked coriander and cumin until golden and crisp, the skillet is given over to a soft egg scramble shot through with wilted greens, garlic, and scallions. To serve, the eggs are drizzled with a simple creamy yogurt sauce, then topped with the chickpeas, cilantro, and more of the salted cracked-spice mix. It makes a deeply piquant meal, with minimal effort.

SWAP IT OUT: Feel free to change up the spices, substituting other whole seeds—caraway, fennel, sesame, mustard—for the cumin and coriander.

Serves 4

2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons flaky sea salt
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
3 garlic cloves: 1 minced or finely grated, 2 thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
6 large eggs, beaten
6 scallions, thinly sliced
5 ounces (5 cups) baby kale or spinach, coarsely chopped
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, torn
Lime wedges, for serving

1. Dry the drained chickpeas thoroughly with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels and set aside.

2. Using a mortar and pestle or the flat side of a chef’s knife and a cutting board, crack the coriander and cumin seeds. In a small bowl, combine the spices with the flaky sea salt and red pepper flakes and set aside. In another small bowl, make the yogurt sauce: Whisk together the yogurt, the minced garlic, and a pinch of kosher salt and set aside for serving.

3. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chickpeas and a pinch of kosher salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisped, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in half of the spice mixture (save the rest for serving) and cook for another minute or two, until the spices are fragrant and toasted. Immediately transfer the chickpeas to a paper towel–lined plate.

4. Season the beaten eggs with a pinch of kosher salt and a grind of black pepper. In the same skillet used for the chickpeas (no need to wash it first), heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat and add the scallions and the thinly sliced garlic. Cook until golden at the edges, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the kale and a pinch of kosher salt, and cook until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Carefully pour in the eggs and cook, stirring frequently, until just set, 1 minute.

5. To serve, spoon eggs onto a dish, drizzle with yogurt sauce, and top with the chickpeas, cilantro, and more of the spice mixture. Squeeze a lime wedge on top and serve immediately.