Within the first few moments of interviewing Alexis deBoschnek, author of the new cookbook Nights and Weekends, I confess my terrible secret: I did not know how to turn on an oven until I was 27.
Alexis laughs, and assures me that this is exactly the kind of person who should pick up this cookbook. Perusing through, I am delighted that most recipes have no more than four steps. It’s smartly divided into two sections: one for weeknights—when you need to get meals ready quickly—and the other for weekends—when you can linger over preparation and don’t mind a touch more effort.
The thesis for the book grew out of necessity. “Buckle up,” Alexis tells me. “Three years ago my mom fell off a horse and had a traumatic brain bleed, and my approach to cooking shifted completely. Leisurely contemplating dinner was out the window. I was now thinking, ‘How do I get dinner on the table fast?’”
Accompanying the recipes are gorgeous pictures of Alexis’s 100-acre horse farm. Flipping through them emphasizes that simplicity doesn’t cheapen the romanticism. “You want to be inspired,” she explains, “just because it’s an easy weeknight dinner doesn’t mean it has to be boring or flavorless.”
She tells me the secret: “It’s all about using smart techniques and ingredients that build flavor—things that are both beautiful and delicious.” As someone who once thought preheating an oven was optional, I can confidently say that Nights and Weekends lets you make meals that are both.
Photographs by Christian Harder, courtesy of Union Square & Co.
