Jim Dixon wrote about food for WW for more than 20 years, but these days most of his time is spent at his olive oil-focused specialty food business Wellspent Market. Jim’s always loved to eat, and he encourages his customers to cook by sending them recipes every week through his newsletter. We’re happy to have him back creating some special dishes just for WW readers.

We were in New York City for a wedding last month, and while Judith was digging for treasure at an East Village thrift store, I happened to walk by Via Carota. You might’ve heard about the small, unassuming Italian restaurant. The New York Times named it the fourth-best restaurant in the city, and in 2019, owners and married couple Jody Williams and Rita Sodi won the title of Best Chef: New York City at the James Beard Awards. Famous food folks from Samin Nosrat to Nancy Silverton to Alice Waters say it’s their favorite restaurant anywhere. And Taylor Swift eats there all the time.

To be honest, I didn’t really know any of this, but a couple of our kids had eaten at Via Carota the week before and said it was good. Our evening plans included a subway ride out to Brooklyn, so we decided to eat early and managed to get a table after a relatively short wait. (I heard the host tell another hopeful diner that the dinner waitlist opened at 5 pm; by the time we sat down around 4 pm there was a line down the block just to get on the list.)

Via Carota’s food follows the basic Italian approach: Use the best ingredients you can find and don’t mess with them too much. Sodi and Williams say that layered simplicity drives their recipes, and they wanted the mostly vegetable side dishes that Italians call contorni to be the menu’s focus.

Our meal consisted of several contorni, and these charred leeks were one of the best things we ate. While you can find the actual Via Carota recipe online or in the owners’ award-winning cookbook, I’ve simplified it just a little, and while serving the leeks whole like they do at the restaurant makes for a more dramatic presentation, they’re hard to cut (ask for a steak knife if you go to the restaurant). For easier eating I like to cut them into bite-sized lengths after they’re cooked. After that, you can arrange them on a platter as if they were whole, or you can mix everything together in a bowl. Either way tastes great.

Charred Leeks With Feta

2-3 leeks

1 tablespoon sherry or red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus more for the pan

Pinch sugar and kosher-style sea salt

1-2 ounces feta cheese, preferably sheep’s milk

1-2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, optional

Make the vinaigrette by dissolving the sugar and salt in the vinegar, then stirring in the olive oil. Set aside.

Trim the leeks by cutting off the top about where the outer leaves begin to fan out. Cut any long, shaggy roots off but keep the root end intact so the leaves don’t fall apart. Slice them in half from the root to the top, then clean them under running water, spreading the layers apart to rinse out any trapped dirt.

Drizzle a little olive oil on a sheet pan or baking dish large enough to hold the leeks. Add the leeks, cut-side down, and use your fingers to rub a little of the oil on the uncut side as well. Sprinkle them with a bit of salt, then place under the broiler until the tops are charred and brown (you could do this on the grill, too).

Remove the pan, set the oven to 400 degrees, sprinkle the leeks with a bit of water (roughly a tablespoon per half leek), cover loosely with foil or parchment paper, and place in oven for about 25 minutes or until the leeks are very soft. Let cool, then transfer to a cutting board and slice the leeks into pieces about 1 1/2 inches long.

If you want the dramatic presentation, arrange the leek halves on a platter cut-side up so they look like they’re in one piece, then spoon the vinaigrette over them, sprinkle with parsley if using, and crumble the feta over everything. Or, combine the sliced leeks in a bowl with dressing, parsley, and cheese. These are best at room temperature.