In the Kitchen with Meghan Markle: The Unusual Way to Cook Spaghetti and Three Recipes We Love
The new Netflix series, "With Love, Meghan," explores the Duchess's approach to cooking. Here are her recipes.
Meghan Markle smiles in her white suit, chopping cherry tomatoes with her friend and makeup artist Daniel Martin. I'm excited to see "With Love, Meghan," the new eight-episode series airing on Netflix, which features the Duchess of Sussex experimenting with recipes, gardening, and serving guests.
The series, available from March 5, offers insight into Meghan's daily life, sharing tips on cooking, gardening, and lifestyle, highlighting the importance of appreciating the beauty of the little things in everyday activities. In each approximately 30-minute episode, the Duchess welcomes several guests, including chef Roy Choi, actress and writer Mindy Kaling, and chef and food writer Alice Waters. Along with Meghan, the guests prepare lunch, tend to the garden, and make decorations for the house, like candles and balloon garlands.
But my curiosity quickly turns to perplexity when Meghan begins preparing a dish called "spaghetti in padella." As an Italian living abroad, I've seen plenty, but I've never seen dried pasta placed directly onto a plate of feta and cherry tomatoes. Meghan does just that, and goes on to say she used an entire packet of spaghetti and "about three and a half cups of boiling water." In short, a rather bizarre way to cook pasta: adding boiling water from a kettle to "raw" pasta goes against every foundation of Italian cuisine.
Another moment that could shock all of Italy? When the Duchess calls the popular Italian pasta "noodles." Not a good start. But while I probably wouldn't recommend this first recipe, here are a few others you can try. And what we liked
Honey Lemon Layer Cake with Raspberry
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
Zest of 2 lemons
3/4 cups olive oil
3 tablespoons honey
For the honey lemon syrup:
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup water
Zest of 1 lemon
For the buttercream frosting:
3 cups unsalted butter, softened
5 cups powdered sugar
A pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). In a large bowl, sift together the sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, oil, and lemon zest. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir in the honey. Mix gently until combined. Divide the batter between three cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the pans and let each cake cool completely on a wire rack.
For the honey-lemon syrup: In a small saucepan, bring all the ingredients to a boil. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Use this syrup to brush each cake layer just before assembling.
For the buttercream frosting: Mix all the ingredients together until light and fluffy using an immersion blender or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
Brush each cake layer with the honey-lemon syrup, then place the first cake layer on a plate. Use a piping bag to pipe the buttercream and raspberry jam. Create a border of buttercream, then alternating swirls of buttercream and jam until the surface is covered. When the first layer is ready, place the second layer on top and repeat the process. Finally, add the third and final layer. Use the remaining buttercream to decorate the top of the cake. Garnish with fresh raspberries and leaves.
Tulip Toasts
Ingredients
Rye bread
Herb goat cheese
Chives
Small basil leaves
Nasturtium flowers
Toast the bread and let it cool. Spread the herb goat cheese on the bread.
Use the chives to create the tulip "stems" on the toast. Arrange some of the small basil leaves on the toast to create the tulip "leaves." Arrange the nasturtium flowers on top of the "stems" to complete the tulip. Arrange on a plate and serve.
Garden Salad
Ingredients for the salad:
Mixed lettuce
Optional: chive blossoms
Optional: cornflower petals
Ingredients for the vinaigrette:
1 or 2 garlic cloves, cut into thirds
A pinch of kosher salt
Sherry vinegar
5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Juice of ½ lemon
Wash the lettuce thoroughly and dry it by placing the leaves on a kitchen towel, placing another towel over each layer until all the leaves are used. Finally, gently roll the lettuce to remove excess moisture. While the lettuce dries, prepare the vinaigrette. In a mortar, crush the garlic with a pinch of salt, then add a few teaspoons of sherry vinegar and continue crushing. Let it steep for a few minutes, then stir in a few tablespoons of olive oil, using about half the amount of vinegar. Season with salt, mix well, and add the juice of half a lemon. Taste and, if necessary, balance the flavors with more oil to tone down the acidity, more vinegar for more flavor, or more salt if needed. Place the dried lettuce in a serving bowl, drizzle with a little vinaigrette, and toss gently with clean hands to distribute the dressing evenly. If desired, garnish with chive blossoms and cornflower petals. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Together with the launch of her new TV series, Meghan Markle introduced the first collection of items on the As Ever website. As she explained in her Instagram announcement, "As Ever" means "as it has always been," reflecting her love of food, gardening, entertaining, and finding happiness in the little things. What will it sell? Currently available are crepe mix, butter cookies with flower-shaped decorations, herbal teas, limited-edition wildflower honey, and raspberry jam. Prices have not been released, but the products will be available this spring.
