Ruby Francis, Recipe Tester

A list of all the recipes Ruby Francis has tested.

Ruby Francis

Ruby Francis has always lived to eat, and so it was a natural progression that she would find herself in professional kitchens–how else can you get the best midday snacks?

After graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a degree in Animal and Dairy Science and dabbling in cheesemaking in the PNW, she took off on a year-long trip to travel the world, work on organic farms, and taste as many new flavors as possible. For her formal training, she attended the incredible 12-Week Certificate Course at the Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland, where fresh from the cow softly whipped cream was a staple in almost every meal.

Since then she’s spent a summer making tortelloni in Italy, worked as a private chef in Hawaii, and returned home to San Francisco, where she currently works as a pastry cook. Despite working in kitchens all day, Ruby is still a devoted home cook and cookbook enthusiast. Joining the recipe testing team at Leite’s has given her endless inspiration along with a real appreciation for the beauty of a truly good recipe; all of which furthers her enthusiasm in pursuing recipe testing and development professionally. You can find her on Instagram at @rubyfrancis.

A metal skillet filled with sausage pappardelle with grated Parmesan on top.

Jamie Oliver’s Sausage Pappardelle

This easy one-pot pasta meal from Jamie Oliver features fresh pasta and sausage smothered in a luxurious tomato sauce. Our testers are calling it a “quick, elegant, comforting meal.”

An oval platter filled with carrot fries and a small bowl of chipotle dipping sauce.

Carrot Fries with Chipotle Sauce

Need to get your fry fix without breaking your diet? These carrot fries are easy to make, healthy-ish, and come with a sweet and spicy dipping sauce.

Sixteen date bars on a piece of parchment paper on a round oval tray.

Date Bars

These date bars are a classic for good reason. The combination of sweet, sticky date filling nestled between layers of buttery oat dough is completely irresistible.

An earthenware bowl filled with Friulian polenta and topped with cheese sauce and black pepper.

Friulian Polenta

If you think polenta is supremely comforting on its own, wait until you try it smothered in cheese sauce and topped with browned cornmeal butter.

Dairy-free crispy onion strings on a sheet of parchment, on a white plate, garnished with parsley.

Dairy-Free Crispy Onion Strings

Crispy onion strings make a delish side dish, especially for the holidays. But even better is just eating them, out of hand, dipped in your favorite sauce.

World Peace Cookies 2.0 on white background

World Peace Cookies 2.0

If world peace was possible just from chocolate, cocoa nibs, and bits of raspberry in a sablé biscuit, well, things would be a lot different. Start baking and change the world.

A wooden table, red and white napkins, with a gray plate with cubes of roasted squash, sprinkled with sea salt, thyme sprigs, and pine nuts.

Roasted Squash with Pine Nuts

A sweet and savory side dish that highlights the ever-lovely delicata squash. And pine nuts, those exotic, buttery, little flavor bombs.

Floral pasta bowl, filled with crab pasta, sprinkled with parsley and Parmesan. A cheese grater and larger bowl in the background.

Buttery Crab Pasta

Seafood pasta is always a little luxurious—even on Wednesday night, and even when the pasta in question is ready in half an hour.