Bacon-wrapped dates and Mexican hot dogs

These foods remind me of home.

View in browser|nytimes.com September 7, 2024 Kiera Wright-Ruiz's Mexican hot dogs. Tara Donne for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Chris Lanier. Look Ma, no utensils By Ali Slagle Hi everyone, me again. Thousands of miles from my hometown, Los Angeles, I recently made a friend who grew up a few miles from me and shares big feelings for many of the same restaurants back home. The list of dishes that reminded us of being little runts in a big city got so long, we threw a dinner party to recreate some of them. We started with bacon-wrapped dates filled with Parmesan, as Suzanne Goin does at her restaurant A.O.C. There were thin slices of the Godmother sandwich, an Italian hero from Bay Cities that isn't an either-or but a more-is-more situation. Salami, mortadella, capocollo, ham and prosciutto. Dill pickles and giardiniera. Lettuce, tomato and onion. But the real heroes of the meal were Mexican hot dogs (above): bacon-wrapped and decked with charred peppers and onions and zigzags of ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise. (It was a double bacon-wrapped night, chased with martinis made like the ones at Musso & Frank Grill: stirred, absent vermouth and cold.) Featured Recipe Mexican Hot Dogs View Recipe → On the sidewalk outside many games, shows and late-night spots in Los Angeles, you can hear hot dogs sizzling on portable griddles. The smell of sweet onions and smoky bacon sidetracks your footsteps. You don't need a griddle to make them at home, though; in the oven, the bacon neatly renders and curls around the hot dogs while jalapeños char alongside — it's a sheet-pan meal! This dinner-ode to two people's particular Los Angeles was jolly because the dishes didn't make much sense together outside our own memories — and most of it was finger food. When we lose the cutlery, "we feel everything," as Ligaya Mishan wrote in T magazine in February. "The nerve endings in our fingers are triggered; our senses expand. We taste more." So tonight, feel your food. The flakes of chapati outside a rolex. The airy squish of pull-apart milk bread rolls. The bounce beneath rigid shells of peel-and-eat shrimp. The warmth of a chocolate doughnut muffin. And because I'm always thinking about how to reduce ingredients, minutes and dishes in recipes for you over at New York Times Cooking, I can't help but also point out: Eating with your hands also means fewer things to wash. P.S. There are many more finger foods and minimal cleanup recipes over at NYT Cooking. And this month, Cooking subscribers can share as many recipes as they want with friends and family. Happy 10th anniversary to NYT Cooking! Just tap the "Give" icon on any recipe to create a paywall-free link. Kate Sears for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Bacon-Wrapped Dates By Ali Slagle 30 minutes Makes 16 dates Christopher Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Italian Hero Sandwich By Ali Slagle 10 minutes Makes 4 sandwiches Kelly Marshall for The New York Times Rolex (Vegetable Omelet and Chapati Roll) By Yewande Komolafe 25 minutes  Makes 2 servings Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Milk Bread Pull-Apart Rolls By Naz Deravian About 3 hours 10 minutes, plus 1 1/4 hours' cooling Makes 8 rolls Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Peel and Eat Shrimp By Farideh Sadeghin 40 minutes Makes 4 to 6 servings David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Chocolate Doughnut Muffins By Yossy Arefi 50 minutes Makes 12 muffins Sign up for the Five Weeknight Dishes newsletter Fresh dinner ideas for busy people who want something great to eat, with NYT Cooking recipes sent to you weekly. Get it in your inbox Sign up for The Veggie newsletter Tanya Sichynsky shares the most delicious vegetarian recipes for weeknight cooking, packed lunches and dinner parties. Get it in your inbox Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Cooking from The New York Times. To stop receiving Cooking, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. Subscribe to NYT CookingGet the NYT Cooking app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018