Peek Inside the New Cookbook by Influencer Carolina Gelen

If you look at any food or cooking content on Instagram or TikTok, you’ve definitely seen Carolina Gelen’s beautiful, creative, and funny cooking videos. With her uniquely appealing recipes and goofy, buoyant style, Gelen has taken both platforms by storm, earning her legions of loyal fans. In fact, looking through the comments on Instagram, where Gelen has more than 1.3 million followers, it’s not unusual to find ebullient praise from other culinary stars like Susan Spungen and Yotam Ottolenghi.

Her much-anticipated new cookbook, Pass the Plate, hits store shelves on Sept. 24. We have a sneak peek at two of her beautiful recipes, along with some exclusive tips and insights from Gelen.

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One of the things we love about Gelen’s recipes is the joy she brings to cooking. We asked her about some of her cooking habits, her inspiration, and more.

Clean Plates: Your recipes are always so fun and creative. Where does your inspiration come from?  

Carolina Gelen: A lot of my creativity comes from growing up in Romania with very little, so I learned to be resourceful with food, making the most with very little. Even now, I like to go to my pantry, pick 3 random ingredients, and challenge myself to turn them into something delicious. I’m endlessly inspired by my local farm stands and all their seasonal produce I can get.  

CP: What’s your go-to meal when you want something really fast, easy, and also healthy?

Gelen: Turkish eggs! I make them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s a protein-packed meal that comes together in just 15 minutes, so I always find myself coming back to it. You’ve got creamy, garlicky yogurt, [and] soft poached eggs topped with an irresistible spiced butter.

CP: Do you have a dish that you always serve when you have friends over?

Gelen: I love serving freshly baked bread to my guests, so my no-fuss focaccia from Pass the Plate is always on the menu. It’s really easy to make and perfect to nosh and nibble on. Plus, you can pair it with easy dips, like my whipped feta dip with celery and mint or my smoky spiced eggplant dip. I have an entire chapter called Nosh & Nibble for this reason, including the previously mentioned recipes. Dessert is non-negotiable. I gravitate toward ones that are easy to prepare in advance, like my no-churn salted honey lemon ice cream or my easy no-bake milk chocolate pie, also found in Pass the Plate. 

Here’s a sneak peek at two fantastic recipes from Pass the Plate.

Blistered Tomato Toast with Jammy Egg

Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Serves: 1

• 1 large egg
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• Kosher salt
• 1 thick slice sourdough bread or any other crusty bread
• 1 garlic clove (optional)
• ⅓ cup cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, or Greek yogurt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or parsley
• Flaky salt, for serving

1. Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Gently lower the egg into the boiling water and cook for 6 to 7 minutes for a jammy egg, or closer to 9 minutes for a more set yolk. Place the egg in a bowl of cold water to cool.
2. Heat a medium cast-iron skillet over medium heat until gently smoking, about 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and olive oil and let the tomatoes sear, undisturbed, until slightly charred underneath, 2 to 3 minutes. Carefully shake the skillet back and forth to move the tomatoes in the pan. Cook until the tomatoes are blistered and some have burst, about 2 more minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Season with a pinch of kosher salt. Toast the bread to your preference. If using, rub the garlic clove all over the toasted bread.
3. Set the toast on a plate and dollop on the cottage cheese. Sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Top with the blistered tomatoes and any juices from the pan, followed by the herbs. Peel the egg and set it on top. Slice the egg in half to let the yolk run down the toast, and finish with a drizzle of olive oil, flaky salt, and more black pepper.

Notes:

• Tell me the thought of this doesn’t get you drooling: sweet, charred tomatoes bursting with every bite, creamy yolk flooding the toast, the contrast between the hot tomatoes and the cold cheese, and the satisfying crunch of crusty, garlicky bread. This breakfast is a full-on experience from start to finish.
• Now let’s talk cottage cheese. I love the texture, especially of the large-curd variety, and I enjoy its richness and mild dairy taste. That said, I know there are cottage cheese haters out there! There are still lots of ways to love this dish: Simply swap out the cottage cheese for creamy ricotta, tangy labneh, or Greek yogurt.

Honey Chipotle Salmon Tacos Dorados

Prep: 35 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

Cucumber Radish Topping:

• 8 to 10 small radishes, thinly sliced
• 3 Persian (mini) cucumbers, thinly sliced
• 1 small shallot, thinly sliced
• 1 medium jalapeño, thinly sliced
• Kosher salt

Chipotle Sour Cream:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 to 4 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Kosher salt

Salmon Tacos:

• 1 pound skinless salmon filets
• 4 to 6 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
• Kosher salt
• 8 (6-inch) yellow corn tortillas
• ¼ cup neutral oil, such as sunflower or grapeseed, plus more as needed

To Finish:

• Grated zest and juice of 1 lime plus more for the lettuce
• Thinly sliced crunchy lettuce
• Kosher salt
• Crumbled feta cheese (optional)
• Salsa of choice (optional)
• Lime wedges, for squeezing 

1. Make the cucumber radish topping: In a medium bowl, toss together the radishes, cucumbers, shallot, jalapeno, and a big pinch of salt. Using your hands, massage the salt into the vegetables.
2. Make the chipotle sour cream: In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream, chipotles, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
3. Make the salmon tacos: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Cut the salmon filets into ½-inch cubes. In a medium bowl, gently toss together the salmon, chipotles, garlic, honey, flour, vinegar, onion powder, cumin, and a big pinch of salt. Arrange the tortillas on two baking sheets, letting them overlap a bit if needed. Warm the tortillas in the oven just until soft and pliable, 3 to 4 minutes. Stack the tortillas on a work surface and wrap the stack in a kitchen towel to stay soft. Leave the oven on. 
4. Place a tortilla on the work surface and add about 2 tablespoons of the salmon mixture on half of the tortilla. Fold the tortilla in half to create a semicircle, pressing down gently to help the tortilla stick to the salmon mixture. Place the taco on a baking sheet. (If the tortilla unfolds, flip it on its other side.) Repeat with the remaining tortillas and salmon mixture. Using a pastry brush or your fingers, brush both sides of each taco with oil. Return the tacos to the oven and bake until golden and crunchy, about 15 minutes. Flip the tacos and bake again until crispy on top, 3 to 4 minutes. Set the tortillas aside on a wire rack.
5. To finish: Drain the liquid from the bowl with the radishes and cucumbers. Add the lime zest and lime juice and stir to combine. To serve, arrange the tacos on a platter and top with the lettuce. Drizzle some lime juice on the lettuce, and a pinch of salt to season. Top with the cucumber radish mixture and dollops of the chipotle sour cream. If desired, sprinkle with feta and serve salsa on the side. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing.

Notes:

• If the amount of items going into making these tacos feels overwhelming, a way to make things easier is to prep a few of these elements in advance. You can prepare the cucumber radish topping and chipotle sour cream and marinate the salmon cubes in advance. On the day of serving the tacos, all you’ll have to do is assemble and cook them. Easy peasy!
• Speaking of cooking, if for whatever reason you can’t bake them, you can also deep fry them in a hot oil bath or pan sear them like a quesadilla in a little bit of oil until the salmon mixture is cooked all the way through.

Reprinted with permission from Pass The Plate: 100 Delicious, Highly Shareable, Everyday Recipes: A Cookbook by Carolina Gelen. Copyright © 2024 by Gelen Media LLC. Photographs copyright © 2024 by Nico Schinco. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

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