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Fortnightly 5

Taking It for a Spin

The next time you might be tempted to take for granted a tomato, bagel, bowl of ramen or spaghetti, or big ol’ hunk of meat, think about this quintet of five new favorites and realize what a pro can do by re-thinking a process.

Different Strokes

This fortnight’s round of favorite eats is highlighted by less-common takes on the familiar, bringing delights either demure or double-barreled.

Up with Down-to-Earth

To be loved, a food doesn’t have to be earth-shattering or served in posh surroundings or sport pricey, luxe ingredients. It can be as down-to-earth as vegetables, fruit, bread, fish and beans can be and still rise to the top of our charts.

Flavor, Forward March

What’s ripe and ready at this moment of harvest and what comes from well-honed skills following tradition or riffing on old ways rise to the top in this round of favorites from the two weeks just past.

Heroes of Sincerity

It’s the highest compliment in food and the favorites of the two weeks just past have it in spades: the best blueberries, a braised pork Thai stew, Japanese cucumbers, earthy red lentil balls, and an Indonesian breakfast soup.

Digging Around a Prime Peninsula

Cape May’s greats hit the heights of all eaten during the two weeks just past. Soft-shells, tilefish, mustardy shrimp, lesser-known berries and a force of nature from Chiapas in Mexico top our list.

A Little Yin Amid the Yangs

Distinctive healthy eats highlight the dining docket of the two weeks just past, along with one guilty pleasure in the form of a many-layered wanna-be hand-held.

Old-Gen/Next-Gen Homey

There’s something embraceable and warming about each of the favorites in this round, be it something reminiscent of the past or looking ahead to new ways of preparing a food that’s fundamentally old school.

Farms’ Freshest

Three members of spring’s brigade of top-flight produce and dainty eggs with extra-rich yolks lead the pack of favorite eats of the past two weeks. There’s also Turkish pide, which begs a side of something newly harvested and green.

All Is Bright

They come from a variety of sources, are devised from various traditions, but each food in this go-round’s quintet of favorites has a specific quality in common: exhilarating brightness. It’s a winner every time.

Stepping Right Up

We know shrimp, bagels, spreads, sandwiches and stuffed savories; they’re some of the foods of our lives. But give those common foods a new look, a new touch or maybe even just deserved respect, and you’ve got something to fall in love with all over again.

Twists Worth Shouting About

The favorites this go-round all come courtesy of doing something a little different with a basic of varying origins, including cornflakes, crabs, cabbage, a standard spread and a dumpling flattened yet not tasting flat at all.


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