STREWING FOOD ACROSSÂ a sheet pan and shoving it into the oven feels like giving up to me, akin to wearing sweatpants to the grocery store, or having a third piece of cake.
I use my sheet pans for cookies and biscuits. Or sometimes for bacon, for cooking in parchment or for making a batch of brittle around the holidays. That's about it, and that's as it should be.
Unless. Unless Molly Gilbert is right.
In her new cookbook, "Sheet Pan Suppers," this French Culinary Institute graduate and Saveur magazine recipe tester proclaims that sheet pans are a sleeper, a kitchen powerhouse that can deliver an "elegant, satisfying, complete meal" with "amazing, intense flavor."
That's an irresistible proposition. Plus, without using all those pots and pans, well, you don't have to wash all those pots and pans.
But will making dinner on a sheet pan feel like tent camping in the kitchen?
Gilbert proffers 120 recipes to prove her point, everything from Baked Brie & Strawberries to Herbed Leg of Lamb with Crispy Sweet Potatoes to Baked Apricot French toast.
Not 15 minutes after reading a recipe for Philly Chicken Sausage & Peppers with Basil-Garlic Bread, I'm sliding a messy, oily, foil-covered pan of red pepper strips, whole garlic cloves, sliced onions and sausages into the oven. An hour later, I'm stabbing hot, splurting sausages and draping them with onions and peppers that are caramelized in the middle and charred at the edges.
There's no cheese, which the word "Philly" has primed me for, and no elegance, but it's a solidly acceptable dinner. And all I've got to do for cleanup is crumple up the foil and give the pan a rinse.
Onward to a sheet pan appetizer.
I predict that radishes will soon be the new kale (and kale is currently the new collards). So I couldn't resist the recipe for Roasted Radishes with Chive Butter. Here's all you have to do: trim and halve clean radishes, coat them in a mixture of olive oil and salt, and roast them in a 450-degree oven, with a ramekin of butter and chives set right on the pan to get bubbly and hot.
The finished radishes are a revelation. First, they're elegant, as promised, glistening pink-red spheres that would perk up any plate.
A bite delivers a lesson in the diversity of a root vegetable that has long been shunted into service as a salad fixing or garnish rosette.
After a turn in the oven, the cut side turns creamy, almost caramelized, with a bit more tooth at the core. Roasted, radishes lose the sharpness while retaining the distinctive flavor. Dip them in butter, and they're as exponentially good as anything that's dipped in butter.
But Gilbert's grilled cheese is what wins me over. It's an odd recipe that requires two pans, and calls for a bit more butter than I think necessary. But the resulting sammies are some of the best I've ever eaten. Apples and pear slices soften; cheese oozes onto the pan where it browns slightly, like the crust around the crock of a good French onion soup.
More importantly, the crusts become uniformly brown and deliver a robust crunch that fills your head, while the toasty surface of the bread surrenders to a softness within.
Just in time for end-of-football season festivities, here's a way to make a dozen different grilled cheese sandwiches at once, on one pan, without standing over the stove for an hour.
Sheet pans. Gilbert was right.
Reach Lorraine Eaton, 757-446-2697, lorraine.eaton@pilotonline.com
Roasted Radishes with Chive Butter
Serves: 4
2 bunches radishes (about 1 1/2 pounds total), stems trimmed to 1 inch, cut in half lengthwise
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) salted butter
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees with a rack in the center position. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
Place the radishes in a large bowl and toss together with the olive oil and salt. Arrange them in a single layer on the prepared pan. Place the butter and chives in a 4-ounce ramekin, and place the ramekin on the pan, too.
Roast until the radishes are spotted brown and tender and the butter is quite bubbly, 15 to 18 minutes.
Serve the radishes warm, dipped in the melted chive butter.
Source: "Sheet Pan Suppers: 120 Recipes for Simple, Surprising, Hands-off Meals Straight From the Oven," by Molly Gilbert, 2014, Workman Publishing, $15.95.
Philly Chicken Sausage & Peppers with Basil-Garlic Bread
Serves: 4
Olive oil cooking spray (optional)
2 large yellow onions, sliced into 3/4-inch thick wedges
10 ounces cremini mushrooms, trimmed and halved (about 2 cups)
1 large red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and sliced into 1-inch-wide strips
6 to 8 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
8 Italian-style chicken sausages (or spicy pork sausages, bratwurst or whatever you prefer)
FOR THE BASIL-GARLIC BREAD
1 loaf ciabatta or Italian bread, sliced almost through horizontally (so that the loaf opens like a book)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees with racks in the upper and lower thirds. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper, or use aluminum foil and mist the foil with cooking spray.
Toss together the onions, mushrooms, bell pepper, and garlic with the oregano, salt, red pepper flakes, and 1/4 cup olive oil on the prepared pan. Arrange the vegetables in a single layer, place the sausages on top, spacing them evenly apart, and drizzle with the remaining teaspoon olive oil.
Bake on the upper rack until the veggies are lightly charred and the sausages are browned and cooked through, 45 to 60 minutes.
While the sausages bake, assemble the basil-garlic bread: brush the cut sides of the loaf with the melted butter (like you're making a melted butter sandwich); set it aside.
Combine the garlic, basil, salt, pepper and olive oil in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth and pesto-like. Use a spoon to spread the puree on both insides of the loaf. Close up the bread and wrap it in aluminum foil.
Bake the bread, placing it directly on the lower rack of the oven, for the last 5 to 7 minutes of sausage baking time. It's done when it's heated through.
Remove the pan from the oven. When the bread has cooled enough to handle, remove it from the foil and slice it into four sections. Serve warm, alongside the hot sausages and vegetables.
Source: "Sheet Pan Suppers: 120 Recipes for Simple, Surprising, Hands-off Meals Straight From the Oven," by Molly Gilbert, 2014, Workman Publishing, $15.95.
Smoked Cheddar & Apple Grilled Cheese
Serves: 4 to 6
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter (Lorraine thinks that 3 tablespoons would work just fine)
1/4 cup mayonnaise
12 slices sourdough bread (each about 1/2 inch thick, preferably from a high-quality bakery loaf)
12 slices smoked Cheddar cheese
1 apple, unpeeled, cored and thinly sliced (Honeycrisp and Pink Lady are nice varieties here)
1 heaping cup fresh baby arugula, plus extra for serving
Chips, for serving (optional)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees with a rack in the center position.
Place the butter on a sheet pan, and put it in the hot oven to melt, 2 to 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, evenly spread the mayonnaise over both sides of the bread slices. Lay half of the bread slices on a work surface and top with 1 slice of cheese, a layer or two of sliced apple, and a small mound of arugula. Top each arugula mound with 1 of the remaining cheese slices, then the remaining bread, to form 6 sandwiches.
Remove the hot pan from the oven and carefully tilt it to coat the surface with the melted butter. Place the sandwiches on the sheet pan. Set a second (clean) sheet pan on top of the sandwiches, pressing down a bit to compress them. With the second pan still in place, bake the sandwiches until the bottoms are golden brown, about 10 minutes.
Remove the pans from the oven. Remove the top pan. Carefully flip the sandwiches with a spatula, re-cover them, and return them to the oven. Continue baking until the bread is toasted and the cheese is melted and bubbling, an additional 10 minutes.
Serve the sandwiches hot from the oven, with chips or extra greens on the side.
Source: "Sheet Pan Suppers: 120 Recipes for Simple, Surprising, Hands-off Meals Straight From the Oven," by Molly Gilbert, 2014, Workman Publishing, $15.95.
Tender and the butter is quite bubbly, 15 to 18 minutes.
Serve the radishes warm, dipped in the melted chive butter.
Source: "Sheet Pan Suppers: 120 Recipes for Simple, Surprising, Hands-off Meals Straight From the Oven," by Molly Gilbert, 2014, Workman Publishing, $15.95.
Philly Chicken Sausage & Peppers with Basil-Garlic Bread
Serves: 4
Olive oil cooking spray (optional)
2 large yellow onions, sliced into 3/4-inch thick wedges
10 ounces cremini mushrooms, trimmed and halved (about 2 cups)
1 large red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and sliced into 1-inch-wide strips
6 to 8 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
8 Italian-style chicken sausages (or spicy pork sausages, bratwurst or whatever you prefer)
FOR THE BASIL-GARLIC BREAD
1 loaf ciabatta or Italian bread, sliced almost through horizontally (so that the loaf opens like a book)
4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees with racks in the upper and lower thirds. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper, or use aluminum foil and mist the foil with cooking spray.
Toss together the onions, mushrooms, bell pepper, and garlic with the oregano, salt, red pepper flakes, and 1/4 cup olive oil on the prepared pan. Arrange the vegetables in a single layer, place the sausages on top, spacing them evenly apart, and drizzle with the remaining teaspoon olive oil.
Bake on the upper rack until the veggies are lightly charred and the sausages are browned and cooked through, 45 to 60 minutes.
While the sausages bake, assemble the basil-garlic bread: brush the cut sides of the loaf with the melted butter (like you're making a melted butter sandwich); set it aside.
Combine the garlic, basil, salt, pepper and olive oil in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth and pesto-like. Use a spoon to spread the puree on both insides of the loaf. Close up the bread and wrap it in aluminum foil.
Bake the bread, placing it directly on the lower rack of the oven, for the last 5 to 7 minutes of sausage baking time. It's done when it's heated through.
Remove the pan from the oven. When the bread has cooled enough to handle, remove it from the foil and slice it into four sections. Serve warm, alongside the hot sausages and vegetables.
Source: "Sheet Pan Suppers: 120 Recipes for Simple, Surprising, Hands-off Meals Straight From the Oven," by Molly Gilbert, 2014, Workman Publishing, $15.95.
Smoked Cheddar & Apple Grilled Cheese
Serves: 4 to 6
4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) butter (Lorraine thinks that 3 tablespoons would work just fine)
1/4 cup mayonnaise
12 slices sourdough bread (each about 1/2 inch thick, preferably from a high-quality bakery loaf)
12 slices smoked Cheddar cheese
1 apple, unpeeled, cored and thinly sliced (Honeycrisp and Pink Lady are nice varieties here)
1 heaping cup fresh baby arugula, plus extra for serving
Chips, for serving (optional)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees with a rack in the center position.
Place the butter on a sheet pan, and put it in the hot oven to melt, 2 to 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, evenly spread the mayonnaise over both sides of the bread slices. Lay half of the bread slices on a work surface and top with 1 slice of cheese, a layer or two of sliced apple, and a small mound of arugula. Top each arugula mound with 1 of the remaining cheese slices, then the remaining bread, to form 6 sandwiches.
Remove the hot pan from the oven and carefully tilt it to coat the surface with the melted butter. Place the sandwiches on the sheet pan. Set a second (clean) sheet pan on top of the sandwiches, pressing down a bit to compress them. With the second pan still in place, bake the sandwiches until the bottoms are golden brown, about 10 minutes.
Remove the pans from the oven. Remove the top pan. Carefully flip the sandwiches with a spatula, re-cover them, and return them to the oven. Continue baking until the bread is toasted and the cheese is melted and bubbling, an additional 10 minutes.
Serve the sandwiches hot from the oven, with chips or extra greens on the side.
Source: "Sheet Pan Suppers: 120 Recipes for Simple, Surprising, Hands-off Meals Straight From the Oven," by Molly Gilbert, 2014, Workman Publishing, $15.95.