It’s hard to imagine that 10 or 15 years ago you would have to explain to most Americans what hummus is. Now it’s in every supermarket and a lot of convenience stores, which can make it hard for chefs to make theirs stand out. Jonathan Ho does that by making a completely different dish: Hummus is by definition made with chickpeas and generally tahini, lemon juice and garlic, but at The Landing in New York City he makes them with white beans and without tahini — although it still has garlic and lemon juice. Calling it hummus still makes sense, however, because that’s something that’s so well known that his customers will understand what they’re getting.
In Wimberley, Texas, chef Ryan Hildebrand does his own take on southern tomato pie at Hildee’s Dine-Inn, which does not traditionally use confit tomatoes.
At The Goddess and Grocer in Chicago, pastry chef Alysha Dinatale is baking caramel corn cookies, and in West Hollywood, Calif., John Fraser is making fig French toast using all Californian ingredients at Ardor.
And in Nashville at the new Stationairy restaurant, Sean Foley lightens up lamb shanks with more springlike flavors such as preserved lemon.
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