Cooking with Shereen—Rockstar Dinners!

By Shereen Pavlides

TikTok sensation Shereen will teach you how to make easy yet impressive dinners to let your inner star shine.

You can have it all: delicious, easy and drop-dead gorgeous dishes without breaking a sweat. Why? Because you’re fancy and because you’ve got Shereen Pavlides’ killer recipes and chefie tips backing your play! With her signature flavah-packed dishes, wholesome from-scratch approach and cheeky wit, Shereen breaks everything down so you can make truly showstopping meals.

Shereen shares everything from quick and easy classics, like Pressure Cooker Mac and Cheese and Philly Cheesesteaks, to Italian favorites, griddled masterpieces and global comfort foods. And she’s even thrown in some after dinner shugá because what’s a rockstar dinner without some dessert?

Bring your appetite and dive into 60 spectacular dishes like:

- Short Rib Ragù Lasagna from Scratch
- Spatchcock Chicken with Za’atar Tahini
- Salmon Burgers with Fennel Slaw
- Mom’s Chicken Cutlets
- Pan Seared New York Strip Steak with Cabernet Pan Sauce
- Pulled Pork Tacos Rojos
- Iced Lemon Loaf
- Homemade Cannoli

With this collection of must-try recipes, you’ll never have to ask yourself “what’s for dinner?” again.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: May 23, 2023
• ISBN: 9781645677505

Shereen Pavlides

Shereen Pavlides is the beloved chef and creator of the hit social media platform, Cooking with Shereen. The bestselling author of Cooking with Shereen from Scratch: Because You Can! she’s appeared on Good Morning America, Live with Kelly and Ryan, the Today show, Access Daily, The Doctors and the Tamron Hall show. Her work has also been featured in People, Teen Vogue and BuzzFeed Tasty. Follow her on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and YouTube @CookingwithShereen. Shereen lives in New Jersey with her husband and kids.

Book preview

IT’S ITALIAN

From Scratch. Some Italian. Some Italian American … Relax!

GARGANELLI ALL’ARRABBIATA

Garganelli is an egg-based pasta similar to penne, and it sucks this delicious spicy sauce into its tubular shape for the perfect bite. I strongly recommend making it fresh, it’s insane! Actually life-changing but certainly, you can substitute for ¾ pound (340 g) dried penne or rigatoni and cook according to the package directions. I have this thing with canned tomato puree; I don’t care for it. It tastes metallic to me. So when using San Marzano tomatoes, don’t use the canned tomato puree. If you like, save for other uses.

SERVES 6

2 (28-ounce [794-g]) jars fresh canned tomatoes (here) or cans whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes

⅓ cup (80 ml) olive oil

6 large garlic cloves - minced

10 to 12 Calabrian chile peppers packed in oil - stemmed and minced (2 to 3 tablespoons [16 to 29 g])

kosher salt

fresh finely ground black pepper

½ cup (12 g) fresh packed basil leaves + 3 tablespoons (9 g) fresh basil - sliced, to garnish

1 pound (454 g) homemade garganelli (here)

3 tablespoons (45 ml) extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons (11 g) chopped fresh Italian parsley

In a medium bowl, crush the tomatoes with clean hands. If using San Marzanos, drain the tomatoes, place them into a medium bowl, and crush them with clean hands. Don’t be a wimp! Fill the cans one-quarter of the way with cold water, and swirl to release the tomato juice from the walls of the cans. Add the tomato water to the bowl with the tomatoes.

In a 12-inch (30.5-cm) sauté pan, heat ⅓ cup (80 ml) olive oil over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, about 30 seconds, add the garlic and chiles. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and sauté until you can smell the gálick, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes to the pan. Season with 2 teaspoons (12 g) kosher salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Add ½ cup (12 g) of the basil and bring to a full bubble over medium-high heat. Reduce to simmer and cook, about 25 minutes until the liquid is reduced, stirring occasionally.

Using a handheld immersion blender, puree the tomatoes in the pan until the sauce is chunky smooth. Taste the sauce and season with additional salt and pepper to your liking.

Meanwhile, bring a 6-quart (5.5-L) pot of salted water to a rolling bubble. Add the homemade garganelli to the boiling water and stir. Briefly cover the pot to quickly return the water to a bubble. Then uncover once it’s bubbling. Don’t let it bubble over. Cook uncovered until tender, 2 minutes. Strain, reserving ½ cup (120 ml) of the pasta liquid, just in case you need it to thin the sauce. Stir the pasta directly into the sauce and simmer, about 2 minutes to marry the two together.

Remove the pan from the heat. Add the 3 tablespoons (45 ml) extra virgin olive oil and parsley, because you’re fancy. Stir and transfer to a large family-sized pasta bowl. Garnish with the sliced basil because you’re extra fancy.

CHEFIE TIP

Eliminate the chiles and you have a classic marinara (makes about 32 ounces [946 ml]) for pizza (here), pasta or Eggplant Rollatini (here)

SHORT RIB RAGÙ LASAGNA FROM SCRATCH

This recipe takes time, so plan ahead for a Sunday or make it for Christmas like I do. It’s comforting and absolutely delicious.

SERVES 10 TO 12

2 pounds (907 g) bone-in short ribs (4 to 5) - excess fat trimmed

kosher salt

fresh finely ground black pepper

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil

3 (28-ounce [794-g]) jars fresh canned tomatoes (here) or 1 (28-ounce [794-g]) can whole

peeled San Marzano tomatoes and 1 (28-ounce [794-g]) can crushed tomatoes

1 medium yellow onion - finely diced (about 1 cup [160 g])

5 to 7 garlic cloves - minced

½ cup (120 ml) chardonnay

1½ teaspoons (1.5 g) dried oregano

1½ teaspoons (1.5 g) dried parsley

1 large egg

3 pounds (1.4 kg) whole-milk ricotta cheese

⅓ cup (33 g) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano + more to taste

¼ cup (15 g) chopped fresh Italian parsley

½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 pound (454 g) homemade lasagna sheets (here)

12 ounces (336 g) part-skim mozzarella cheese - grated on large hole of box grater (3 cups)

fresh oregano leaves - to garnish

Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Dry the short ribs really well with heavy-duty paper towels and season both sides with 1¾ teaspoon (10.5 g) salt and ½ teaspoon pepper.

In a 5½-quart (5-L) Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the short ribs. Sear until they are nicely browned and caramelized, 2 to 3 minutes, on three to four sides. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Carefully degrease the pot, leaving ¼ cup (60 ml) of the oil.

In a medium bowl, crush the tomatoes with clean hands. If using San Marzanos, drain the tomatoes, place them in a medium bowl, and crush them with clean hands. Add the crushed tomatoes to the same bowl. Fill the cans one-third of the way with cold water and swirl to release the tomato juice from the walls of cans. Add the tomato water to the bowl with the tomatoes.

Add the onions to the Dutch oven and season with ½ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper. Sauté until tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Deglaze with wine and cook until it’s reduced by half, about 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes, dried oregano and dried parsley to the pot. Season with 2 teaspoons (12 g) salt and ¾ teaspoon pepper. Stir. Return the short ribs to the pot, nestling them under the sauce. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the sauce to a gentle bubble. Cut the heat and cover the pot.

Place the pot in the oven and cook until the short ribs are uber tender, falling off the bones, 2 hours to 2 hours 15 minutes. Remove the pot from the oven and shred the meat into the sauce, discarding the bones (or keep the bones in a freezer-safe container and store them in the freezer to use for making Homemade Beef Stock).

Taste the sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper, if needed.

Meanwhile, in an extra-large bowl, whisk the egg. Add the ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano, parsley, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and stir until combined. Cover and refrigerate; remove the cheese mixture from the refrigerator 30 minutes before assembling the lasagna.

Make the lasagna noodles (here). The recipe will make 8 (12 x 6–inch [30.5 x 15–cm]) sheets of lasagna. Spread 2 to 3 (½-cup [120-ml]) ladles of sauce into the bottom of a 9 x 12 x 2½-inch (23 x 30.5 x 6–cm) baking dish.

Bring a 6-quart (5.5-L) pot of salted water to a rolling bubble. Use several ladles of this water to thin the ragù, as needed.

Boil the lasagna noodles, 2 sheets at a time, making sure they don’t stick together, until par-cooked, 30 seconds. Use two pairs of tongs to remove each sheet, grabbing one at each end, dripping off the excess water. Place the noodles on a sheet of parchment paper until cool enough to handle. You can use kitchen gloves to protect your hands from the hot noodles as you