Monthly Archives: November 2021

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

The Humans
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama | Directed by Stephen Karam
Stephen Karam’s film adaptation of his powerful play acquires a supernatural sheen as a family gathers for Thanksgiving dinner.


Clockwise from left: June Squibb, Amy Schumer, Steven Yeun, Beanie Feldstein, Richard Jenkins and Jayne Houdyshell in “The Humans.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Encanto
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG | Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Musical | Directed by Jared Bush, Byron Howard, Charise Castro Smith
Disney’s new film, about a gifted family in Colombia, has stunning animation, a beautifully composed story and spellbinding songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda.


Mirabel, center, voiced by Stephanie Beatriz, is the non-magical member of the Madrigal family in “Encanto,” the new animated Disney film.
By MAYA PHILLIPS

A Boy Called Christmas
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG | Adventure, Drama, Family, Fantasy | Directed by Gil Kenan
Enchanting imagery elevates this Netflix holiday adventure about a boy who journeys to a magic elfin city.


Henry Lawfull in “A Boy Called Christmas.”
By NATALIA WINKELMAN

Drive My Car
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
In this quiet masterpiece, Ryusuke Hamaguchi considers grief, love, work and the soul-sustaining, life-shaping power of art.


From left, Hidetoshi Nishijima and Toko Miura in “Drive My Car,” | Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Writing with Fire
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Sushmit Ghosh, Rintu Thomas
This rousing documentary follows the reporters of India’s only all-women news outlet as they pivot to digital journalism while battling personal and political challenges.


Suneeta, a reporter in the documentary “Writing With Fire.”
By DEVIKA GIRISH

Food! Glorious Food! — Fowl Day Eve Edition

TRILOBITES
A Tool Kit to Help Scientists Find the Ultimate Chickpea
A major plant genome sequencing effort may offer a path to breeding more climate-resilient chickpeas, while also revealing clues to the legume’s origins.
By VERONIQUE GREENWOOD

For Those Who Feel Rejected by Family, Friendsgiving Can Be a Lifeline
For many L.G.B.T.Q. Americans, especially those with immigrant roots, traditional notions of Thanksgiving and family may not apply. The holiday offers another way to celebrate.


The chef Arnold Myint, in his Nashville home, making preparations for a Friendsgiving dinner.
By Eric Kim

CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
A Thanksgiving History Lesson in a Handful of Corn
The cornmeal that has become a staple of the holiday table reflects millenniums of work by Native Americans — a legacy that Indigenous people are trying to keep alive.


The Native people who came to the Pilgrims’ harvest feast in 1621 were Wampanoags, and the corn served was Wampanoag corn.
By Pete Wells

These Pie and Cake Servers Have Style
Two utensils available at the Museum of Modern Art make dessert presentation a breeze.


Tola Spatula, $30 ($27 for members); One-Handed Cake Server (after Dec. 10), $12, ($10.80 for members), store.moma.org.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

Yotam Ottolenghi’s Rules for Brunch
When it comes to planning a festive meal, the chef has certain specifications. This custardy butternut squash meets them all.


This meal is seasonal and comforting.
By YOTAM OTTOLENGHI

A Superb Shrimp Stew
Vallery Lomas’s spicy shrimp Creole delivers weekend depth of flavor in a fraction of the time.


By EMILY WEINSTEIN

A GOOD APPETITE
The Crispiest, Lightest Shrimp Cakes
What’s the secret? It’s using pulverized rice cakes as a binder, Melissa Clark writes.

For an untraditional binder, crushed-up rice cakes are mixed in with the shrimp for an ethereal, especially crisp result.
For an untraditional binder, crushed-up rice cakes are mixed in with the shrimp for an ethereal, especially crisp result.
By Melissa Clark

A GOOD APPETITE
Three Hanukkah Desserts That Skip the Fryer
Melissa Clark’s oil-imbued recipes, for lemon curd, chocolate cake and Greek honey cookies, are a sweet way to celebrate the holiday.

This olive oil lemon curd can be served with scones or berries, piled into a Pavlova or mounded into a tart shell.
This olive oil lemon curd can be served with scones or berries, piled into a Pavlova or mounded into a tart shell.
By Melissa Clark

How to make shortbread – recipe

Felicity Cloake’s festive shortbread would make an ideal gift.
Felicity Cloake’s festive shortbread would make an ideal gift.
Christmas shortbread as made by our resident perfectionist, with a few choices of festive flavourings
Felicity Cloake

https://www.youtube.com/embed/5fcTHVlgELc https://www.youtube.com/embed/-R41YFcX8e4 https://www.youtube.com/embed/BU3bTBWnvT4 https://www.youtube.com/embed/htARnZjxQGs https://www.youtube.com/embed/mqPlNhIIHes

Elite Wine Group Moves to Expel 6 Members in Sexual Harassment Inquiry
The American chapter of the Court of Master Sommeliers says it investigated 22 members. But at least one woman who came forward feels that’s not enough.
By CHRISTINA MORALES

Peter Buck, Co-Founder of the Subway Sandwich Chain, Dies at 90
The $1,000 loan he gave to a friend’s son was used to start a single sandwich shop. That shop grew into the world’s biggest fast-food chain.


Peter Buck in an undated photograph. The idea behind what became Subway stemmed from his fond memories of an Italian sandwich shop his family had patronized when he was growing up in Maine.
By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

King Richard
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Biography, Drama, Sport | Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green
Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis play the parents of Venus and Serena Williams in a warm, exuberant, old-fashioned sports drama.


From left, Demi Singleton as Serena, Saniyya Sidney as Venus and Will Smith as the future tennis stars’ father, Richard Williams, in “King Richard.”
By A.O. SCOTT

Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn
NYT Critic’s Pick | Comedy, Drama | Directed by Radu Jude
A viral video scandal ensnares a Bucharest schoolteacher in Radu Jude’s biting, bawdy and brilliant Covid-age fable.


Katia Pascariu as Emi in “Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn,” from the Romanian director Radu Jude.
By A.O. SCOTT

— Of Possible Interest —

Ghostbusters: Afterlife
PG-13 | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy | Directed by Jason Reitman
Jason Reitman, son of the original “Ghostbusters” director, delivers a toothless film with Paul Rudd as a love interest and plenty of cutesy ghosts.


In “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” the main characters are adorable, wide-eyed children, played by, from left, Celeste O’Connor, Finn Wolfhard, Logan Kim and Mckenna Grace.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Food! Glorious Food!

NONFICTION
Seven Immigrant Women Who Changed the Way Americans Eat
“Taste Makers,” by Mayukh Sen, features women who, often while confronting sexism and racism in the food industry, introduced Americans to the dishes of their native cultures.


From left, Julie Sahni, Najmieh Batmanglij, Marcella Hazan and Madeleine Kamman. Mayukh Sen’s book “Taste Makers,” a group portrait of these women and three other foreign-born female cooks, is unquestionably timely, an opportunity to reflect on America’s complicated history with immigrants and their food.
By HETTY MCKINNON

EAT
A Crispy Upgrade for Cheese and Crackers
An unpretentious bar snack transformed into something sublime.


By GABRIELLE HAMILTON https://www.youtube.com/embed/qX9Jpg3b90M https://www.youtube.com/embed/YGKOJ48nPVk https://www.youtube.com/embed/rPrfD9_RbCg https://www.youtube.com/embed/sIFlPc-TW94

Fowl’s Day

How to Make Your Thanksgiving Dinner Less Boring
Samin Nosrat will say it: Every year, the meal is a lot of the same. Here are five ways she adds brightness, crunch, freshness and flavor.


Spoon a fried sage salsa verde over your roast turkey for bright, palate-pleasing flavor.
By SAMIN NOSRAT

A Beginner’s Thanksgiving: 7 Recipes That Lighten the Workload
For first-time cooks, or anyone looking to simplify the holiday prep, this special menu minimizes effort and maximizes flavor.


These recipes call for a limited number of essential ingredients, many of which are shared across the menu.
By ERIC KIM

How climate change and extreme weather are crimping America’s pie supply
For Mike’s Pies in Florida, even once supply chain problems resolve, there’s still climate change
By Laura Reiley

12 Wines for Thanksgiving and Beyond
The characteristics that make a bottle great for the holiday work for just about any occasion. These wines not only taste good, they feel good.


By ERIC ASIMOV

Food! Glorious Food! — The Pre-Fowl Edition

The Untold Story of Sushi in America
How a controversial religion from Korea quietly built an empire of raw fish.
By DANIEL FROMSON

This Lemon Pie Captures the Feeling of Home
For years, Yewande Komolafe didn’t feel a connection to the food she was cooking professionally — until she started making Edna Lewis’s recipes.


Edna Lewis’s buttermilk chess pie inspired this lemony version with a black pepper crust.
By YEWANDE KOMOLAFE

Here’s the Secret to the Best Mashed Potatoes for Thanksgiving
You’ve tried boiling, but Genevieve Ko found a better way to make this side dish fluffier — and more flavorful.


A final sprinkle of salt — or a ladle of gravy — can add an extra savory note to mashed potatoes.
By GENEVIEVE KO

The Absolute Best Pumpkin, Apple and Pecan Pies for Thanksgiving
Melissa Clark has spent months perfecting techniques, so you don’t have to.


For the best pies, skip the pumpkin, increase the pecans, and precook your apples.
By MELISSA CLARK

For Arab Americans, It’s Not Thanksgiving Without Hashweh
The rice-based stuffing is often a centerpiece of celebrations in the Arab world, and on holiday tables in the United States.


Chicken or lamb filled with hashweh — or “stuffing” in Arabic — is a staple of celebratory meals. But hashweh can also stand on its own at the Thanksgiving table.
By REEM KASSIS

Padma Lakshmi’s Thanksgiving Turkey: Slow Roasted and Richly Sauced
The host of “Taste the Nation” and “Top Chef” isn’t a professional chef herself. That’s why her bird is stress-free and foolproof.


Padma Lakshmi uses a potato masher and fork to smash the fruits and vegetables that roast with her turkey to turn them into gravy.
By Genevieve Ko

Mix and Match the Perfect Sidesgiving
Because vegetarians have always known that sides are the real star.


By TEJAL RAO

A Vegetarian Thanksgiving
Kay Chun’s new recipe for stuffed mushrooms with an escargot-flavored filling evokes the French classic.


By SAM SIFTON

Five-Star, Honey-Glazed Chicken
Yewande Komolafe graced us with this one-pan recipe. Don’t miss it.
By EMILY WEINSTEIN

EAT
The Secret to a Better Green Salad
A chef’s tricks can make even the simplest salads shine.
By ERIC KIM

Tracing Mexico’s Complicated Relationship With Rice
Having arrived in the country via the Spanish Conquest, the grain’s presence poses the question: What’s native, and what isn’t, when it comes to a nation’s culinary history?
By AATISH TASEER and STEFAN RUIZ

For Many Members of the Arab American Diaspora, Mansaf Offers a Taste of Home
The traditional Bedouin dish of bread, rice, lamb and yogurt is a talisman of identity in Jordan — and in various communities in suburban Detroit.


A home-cooked mansaf of bread, rice, lamb and yogurt made by the Bazzi family, who own the Dearborn institution Habib’s Cuisine.
By DIANA ABU-JABER and RENEE COX

In Senegal, a Return to Homegrown Rice
The country has remained mostly dependent on the grain’s importation since colonization in the 1800s. But some locals are trying to change that.


At Phare Des Mamelles, a restaurant in a lighthouse in Dakar, Senegal, grilled thiof (a white grouper fish) is served with cups of tamarind sauce (left), sauce moyo (right), roasted vegetables, limes and riz de la vallée (“rice of the valley”), which is grown in one of the country’s primary areas of cultivation, the Senegal River Valley. Beside the dish are some of its raw ingredients, including (clockwise from bottom) tamarind fruits, tomatoes, a bowl of dried peppers, fresh pepper fruits, onions, miniature eggplants, miniature green bell peppers, baby carrots and potatoes.
By ANGELA FLOURNOY and MANUEL OBADIA-WILLS

The Thrilling Dare of Scorched Rice
When browned on the bottom of the pot by a skilled cook, the grain is transformed into a complex delicacy, one prized by food cultures around the world.
By LIGAYA MISHAN and ANTHONY COTSIFAS

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
Seeing the World Through a Grain of Rice
The widely consumed staple is freighted with history, and has as many culinary applications as it does meanings.
By HANYA YANAGIHARA

Marking a Different Thanksgiving Tradition, From West Africa
Liberian Americans have a complicated relationship with their holiday that plays out in the foods they make and the ways they reflect on a proud and difficult history.


Ms. Wreh’s Thanksgiving spread includes a mix of Western and Liberian foods.
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Jonathan Reynolds, Playwright and Food Columnist, Dies at 79
His plays tended to parody American institutions. His food writing tended to be full of humor.


Jonathan Reynolds in 2003 in “Dinner With Demons,” a one-man show in which he cooked a full dinner onstage.
By NEIL GENZLINGER

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Passing
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Drama | Directed by Rebecca Hall
Rebecca Hall’s piercing drama stars Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga as old friends navigating the color line in 1920s New York.


Ruth Negga, left, as Clare and Tessa Thompson as Irene in “Passing.”
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Uppercase Print
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Radu Jude
Radu Jude’s rousing, form-bending new feature rails at the power of propaganda to suffocate people’s freedoms.


A scene from Radu Jude’s “Uppercase Print.”
By DEVIKA GIRISH

Paper & Glue
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by JR
JR, plying his art of making and displaying gigantic portraits, carries on, this time without the inimitable Agnès Varda.


An aerial view of the prison at Tehachapi, Calif., with a supersize image of inmates, as seen in “Paper & Glue,” a documentary by the artist JR.
By LISA KENNEDY

7 Prisoners
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Crime, Drama | Directed by Alexandre Moratto
Alexandre Moratto plunges into the psychological traumas of human trafficking in this gripping Brazilian drama on Netflix.


Christian Malheiros in “7 Prisoners.”
By ISABELIA HERRERA

Belfast
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Drama | Directed by Kenneth Branagh
In this charming memoir, Kenneth Branagh recalls his childhood in Northern Ireland through a rose-tinted lens.


Front row from left, Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, Jude Hill and Lewis McAskie in “Belfast.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

— Of Possible Interest —

Julia
PG-13 | Documentary | Directed by Julie Cohen, Betsy West
An invigorating new documentary looks back on Julia Child and her influence on how Americans cook and eat.


Julia Child and a fridge friend in an archival image as seen in the documentary, “Julia,” directed by Julie Cohen and Betsy West.
By GLENN KENNY

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

North by Current
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Angelo Madsen Minax
In this documentary, the filmmaker Angelo Madsen Minax reckons with the loss of his niece, his vibrant sister’s rocky recoveries and being transgender in a traditional, Mormon environment.


A scene from the documentary “North by Current,” Directed by Angelo Madsen Minax.
By NICOLAS RAPOLD

Spencer
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Biography, Drama, Romance | Directed by Pablo Larraín
Kristen Stewart stars as an anguished, rebellious Princess Diana in Pablo Larraín’s answer to “The Crown.”


Kristen Stewart stars as Princess Diana in “Spencer.”
By A.O. SCOTT

A Man Named Scott
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary, Music | Directed by Robert Alexander
This film about Kid Cudi is that rare musician-focused documentary, one as sensitive, fully formed and noble in its intentions as the artist himself.


Kid Cudi in the documentary “A Man Named Scott.”
By CHRIS AZZOPARDI

All Is Forgiven
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Mia Hansen-Løve
A father with a drug problem tries to reconnect with his daughter.


Victoire Rousseau and Paul Blain in “All Is Forgiven,” Directed by Mia Hansen-Love.
By GLENN KENNY

Beans
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Tracey Deer
A middle school student comes of age during a standoff between the police and Mohawk residents during the 1990 Oka crisis in Canada.


Kiawentiio as Beans and Rainbow Dickerson as Lily, her mother, in “Beans.”
By TEO BUGBEE

Mark, Mary & Some Other People
NYT Critic’s Pick | Comedy | Directed by Hannah Marks
In this romantic comedy, a couple opens their relationship to prove they can be married and modern.


Hayley Law, left, with Ben Rosenfield in “Mark, Mary & Some Other People.”
By AMY NICHOLSON

Simple as Water
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Megan Mylan
Filmed in five separate countries, this documentary follows, with ambitious scope and devastating intimacy, Syrian families displaced by war.


Yasmin, right, with her daughter, Faten, in the documentary “Simple as Water.”
By CLAIRE SHAFFER

— Of Possible Interest —

Eternals
PG-13 | Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi | Directed by Chloé Zhao
A pleasing cast and the director Chloé Zhao, who won a best picture Oscar for “Nomadland,” give Marvel’s latest a steady heartbeat.


The gang’s all here: from left, Kumail Nanjiani, Lauren Ridloff, Don Lee, Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, Salma Hayek, Gemma Chan, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry and Barry Keoghan.
By MANOHLA DARGIS

Finch
PG-13 | Drama, Sci-Fi | Directed by Miguel Sapochnik
Tom Hanks, a dog and two robots take a post-apocalyptic road trip in this unexciting drama from Apple TV+.


Tom Hanks plays a character with a robot friend in “Finch.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Food! Glorious Food!

NASA’s Latest Breakthrough: ‘Best Space Tacos Yet’
For the first time, astronauts on the International Space Station cultivated chiles, adding some zing to their tacos.


Mark Vande Hei, a NASA astronaut, helped cultivate chiles on the International Space Station last month.
By DANIEL VICTOR

TRILOBITES
Why Strawberries Turn a Ghostly Shade of White
Researchers unlocked some of the genetic secrets that helped the colorful fruit evolve into so many varieties around the world.
By VERONIQUE GREENWOOD

Fry Bread Is Beloved, but Also Divisive
For Indigenous people, the dish is both a family comfort food and a relic of colonial displacement.

The history of fry bread is rich and complex, but the dish has become widespread among Indigenous cultures.
The history of fry bread is rich and complex, but the dish has become widespread among Indigenous cultures.
By Kevin Noble Maillard

Coffee and Climate Have a Complicated Relationship
Your morning cup may depend on solving issues with a crop that both contributes to and is deeply affected by the changing climate.
By TATIANA SCHLOSSBERG

Vaccination status and Thanksgiving could be ‘a really combustible mix,’ experts say.
By CHRISTINA MORALES

Toni Tipton-Martin Writes Her Own Legacy
The cookbook author, who will receive the seventh Julia Child Award on Thursday, is using the prize money to start a foundation to support women in food.


By KAYLA STEWART

ONE GOOD MEAL
A Nourishing Filipino-Inspired Soup for Fall
To celebrate the publication of ‘Filipinx,’ their new cookbook, the chef Angela Dimayuga and the writer Ligaya Mishan made nilaga.


Bowls of nilaga, surrounded by (clockwise from left) lumpia; a sawsawan, or dipping sauce, of apple cider vinegar, garlic and serrano chiles; sautéed kale with crispy garlic; and a sweet chili sauce.
By MIMI VU

A More Satisfying Meatless Meatball
Once you find the perfect base of beans, vegetables and grains, the possibilities are endless.


By TEJAL RAO

EAT
It’s Apple Season. This Galette Cuts the Chill With a Kick.
Dorie Greenspan makes a savory tart with apple, sweet potato, cheese and a touch of chile pepper.


By DORIE GREENSPAN

Traveling the World for Recipes, but Always Looking for Home
Famous for her scholarly works, the cookbook author Claudia Roden shows off her lyrical side with her latest, “Claudia Roden’s Mediterranean.”


The cookbook author Claudia Roden at her London home. Reading her latest book is like talking with her in her garden, the food writer Nigella Lawson said.
By MELISSA CLARK

Long-Simmering Lamb for Waning Fall Days
Braised shanks, a carrot salad and a molasses ginger cake: This cozy menu from David Tanis, drawing from North Africa, is sure to warm.


Lamb shanks are braised slowly to succulence, recalling a tagine, and paired with a bright carrot salad in this fall menu.
By David Tanis
11 Vegetarian Casseroles to Keep You Toasty This Fall
Tuck into the warm embrace of these cheesy, starchy, comforting bakes.

1. Farro and Cauliflower Parmesan

2. Slow-Baked Beans With Kale

3. Wild Rice and Mushroom Casserole

4. Cheesy Baked Orzo With Marinara

5. Vegan Green Bean Casserole

6. Hearty Whole-Wheat Pasta With Brussels Sprouts, Cheese and Potato

7. Cheesy White Bean-Tomato Bake

8. Three-Cheese Cauliflower Casserole

9. Creamy White Bean and Fennel Casserole

10. Cheesy Broccoli Casserole

11. The Big Lasagna

Lidey Heuck’s cheesy baked orzo with marinara.
By Tanya Sichynsky

FRONT BURNER
The Story of a Craft Beer Pioneer
“The Dogfish Head Book” by the brewery founders Sam and Mariah Calagione, and written with Andrew C. Greeley, recounts 26 years of beer adventures.


“The Dogfish Head Book: 26 Years of Off-Centered Adventures” by Sam Calagione, Mariah Calagione and Andrew C. Greeley (Wiley, $35).
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

FRONT BURNER
A Vodka Rises From the Smoke of the California Wildfires
Hangar 1’s latest spirit is distilled from grapes damaged in the 2020 Glass fire.


Hangar 1 Smoke Point Vodka, $50 for 750 milliliters,
By Florence Fabricant

WINES OF THE TIMES
Your Easy, No-Sweat Guide to Picking Wines for Thanksgiving
The grapes don’t really matter. Neither does where it was made. So long as it refreshes and rejuvenates, it’s the perfect bottle.


By ERIC ASIMOV

Louise Slade, Scientist Who Studied the Molecules in Food, Dies at 74
Her research focused on how to keep dough, bread, cookies and crackers tasting delicious even after weeks on a grocery store shelf.


Louise Slade in 2013. A food scientist, she understood food not as a combination of discreet ingredients but as a system of interacting molecules. That insight led to new standards of consistency.
By CLAY RISEN