Nadine Redzepi has cooked for friends who just happen to be world-acclaimed chefs. Whether preparing meals for her own growing family, friends, or incredible chefs, she puts flavor first and presents everything in a casually elegant way anyone can emulate, day in, day out. Great meals don’t have to be complicated to be sophisticated.
Even though her husband, René, is the chef of the critically acclaimed restaurant Noma in Copenhagen, Nadine is the one cooking when chefs like David Chang come over for dinner. As René says in his foreword, “Nadine, without ever intending it, embodies the values a cook can sometimes forget when they’ve spent most of their young career as a mercenary in adrenaline-fueled kitchens. If I hadn’t seen her channeling all of her best intentions into making someone happy, I don’t think Noma would have ended up where it has. Her lack of ego and generosity of spirit reminded me, and the chefs whom she would ask for tips or would cook for on their nights off, of the reason people gather around a table.”
Now, in DOWNTIME: Deliciousness at Home (Pam Krauss Books/Avery; October 2017), Nadine Levy Redzepi shares her recipes for family food and relaxed get-togethers that carry the extra touch you generally might reserve for special occasions.
Reflecting her preference for straightforward simplicity, the book is comprised of three sections: 20 starters, 40 mains, and 20 desserts. It’s an eclectic mix of comfort food dishes—some of which she has been eating and preparing since childhood—and easy-to-make dishes with restaurant-level plate appeal. Her only hard-and-fast rules are to use the very best quality ingredients and prepare them in the way that allows their inherent flavors to shine most brightly.
Most of her recipes—such as Breaded Tomatoes with Mascarpone and Sardines, Tonkatsu Chicken with Caramelized Carrots, Roasted Ratatouille with Orzo, Duck Breast Rice Bowl with Tomatoes and Cucumbers, or Kale and Mushroom “Carbonara”—are easy enough to make on a busy weeknight. Her building-block approach allows cooks to master elements like making mayonnaise, browned butter, or deep-fried eggplant and combine those elements in different ways. One cake batter is fashioned into multiple desserts, from a simple loaf cake to a show-stopping Giant Macaron Cake. A tart shell is filled with eggs and sweet potatoes for a savory supper or there is fresh fruit and frangipane for an easy weeknight dessert.
Beautiful photographs by Ditte Isager transport readers to her home kitchen. Filled with pro tips for elevating meals easily, plus sections on pantry must-haves, kitchen tools, and equipment, DOWNTIME is the everyday cookbook a new generation of home cooks has been waiting for.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nadine Levy Redzepi is an enthusiastic home cook, a mother of three, and has spent most of her adult life working with her husband, René Redzepi, at the restaurant Noma in Copenhagen.