Drew made Korean Spicy Chilled Noodles (Bibim Guksu). I usually prefer warm noodles to cold ones, but the moment he uncovered this dish and I got a whiff of it, I was dying for a taste. It turned out to taste as good as it smelled. One of my favorite dishes of the night.

Chris made Fettuccini with Olives and Arugula. This dish has all kinds of ingredients that I love, so I was a bit surprised to find it sort of plain. I think the flavors were all there, but I wanted more of the olives for the saltiness, more of the arugula for its bite, and more garlic and chilies for their kick.

Barbara made Flatbread (Pizza) Dough and provided a variety of toppings to allow people to make their own pizzas and cook them in her outdoor oven with pizza steel. I don’t think I’ve ever had dough that contains yogurt and honey before, but it was good and of course people had a great time making pizzas right there at the event.

Austin made Butternut Squash and Feta with Toasted Pearl Couscous. Everyone I was eating with agreed that it would have been better with more feta. I also think a bit more dill would have helped to amp up the flavors in this dish.

Brian made Lentils with Swiss Chard and Pomegranate Molasses. The tangy sweetness of this dish was really nice, and I liked the crunch of the pickled chard stems.

I made Hot-and-Sour Curried Chickpeas. I liked this recipe, and there was general agreement at the party that it was one of the favorite dishes. Lots of flavor from the garam masala and curry, offset nicely with the quick pickled onion and jalapeño. Sometimes jalapeños can be pretty mild, but this one had a good kick.

Shayna made Tomato-Herb Salad with Sumac. I think this is actually from the Milk Street website, not The New Rules book. It was super heavy on the dill, which sort of overwhelmed all the other flavors. To be honest, I don’t remember much about it except the dill.

Hector made Spicy Beef Salad with Mint and Cilantro (Larb Neua). He used more lime juice and fish sauce than the recipe called for, but still felt that the flavors weren’t as forward as other versions of larb that he’s made before and preferred.

Hector also made Cilantro, Scallion, and Cucumber Salad (Lao Hu Cai). It went really well with the Larb. I liked both these dishes, but tend to agree with Hector that while the right flavor profiles were there, they weren’t as bold as these dishes traditionally are in their flavors.

Amy made Vietnamese Chicken Salad with Sweet Lime-Garlic Dressing (Goi Ga). I loved the presentation and was really excited to eat this beautiful salad. But this was another dish where I felt like the flavors were there, but too scaled back for my liking.

Denise made Shiitake-Sesame Braised Chicken. I believe this one was also from the website, not the book. Regardless, I’m glad she made it because it was really tasty. It reminded me a lot of the Chinese clay pot chicken I ate as a kid, and I’ve always especially loved the mushrooms.

Martha made Southern Thai-Style Fried Chicken with Tangy-Sweet Chili Sauce. The crust on the chicken was crisp and full of flavor, though the chicken itself got a bit dry. I was glad for the chili sauce, which was indeed tangy and sweet.

Jeff made Peruvian Chicken, Rice, and Cilantro Soup (Aguadito de Pollo). Although the flavors were subtle, I found myself eating spoonful after spoonful of this soup. I’m always happy when I get a chance to eat Peruvian food.

John made Apricots, Saffron and Tarragon Chicken en Cocotte. Look at those beautiful golden colors! The sweetness of the apricots and floral notes of the saffron were really nice together. I wish saffron wasn’t so expensive, because it’s so good!

Anthony made Fennel-Brown Sugar Pork Ribs (Rosticciana). They were super tender inside with a perfectly browned crust from the spice rub, and I loved the fennel flavor against the sweetness of the brown sugar. Really yummy – one of my faves.

Revi made a peach, pear, and mulberry tart. As you can see, it was absolutely gorgeous. The peaches and mulberries were homegrown – so delicious!

Erin made an apricot strawberry black pepper pie with an heirloom white corn and butter crust. In case you couldn’t tell, Erin is a pie professional! Black pepper isn’t something I’d typically think to put in dessert, but I really liked the subtle kick that it added.

Barbara made Milk Bar Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies. People were gobbling them up as fast as she could get them out of the oven.