Strawberry Neapolitan Cookies

These strawberry Neapolitan cookies are a mix of chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla cookie dough squished together to form a delicious combination of flavors, just like your favorite childhood ice cream flavor. 

These cookies are fun to make and even more fun to eat. Everyone will enjoy taking a bite from each flavor. Do you start with the strawberry, chocolate, or vanilla? Do you start with your favorite flavor or save it for last? Or do you make sure to include every flavor in each bite? Decisions, decisions!

Strawberry Whiskey Sour

This Strawberry Whiskey Sour is so frothy and refreshing. It's sort of like a grown up smoothie... with whiskey! Even if you normally don't care for bourbon or whiskey cocktails, give this one a try. 

Doesn't this drink just scream strawberry? I love the thickness from the fresh fruit, combined with the traditional whiskey sour flavor. It's a wonderful cocktail for an al fresco Sunday brunch or dinner. Use the freshest, juiciest strawberries you can find.

Jicama Slaw with Carrots, Cucumbers, and Bell Peppers

This jicama slaw with carrots, cucumbers, and bell peppers is a refreshing, crunchy, and tangy salad you can serve as a side dish for meat, poultry, and seafood. 

With a fresh dressing made with lime, olive oil, and rice vinegar, and spiced up with chile powder, this jicama slaw goes great with juicy meats such as barbecued ribs or slow cooked brisket.  

Overnight Sourdough Sandwich Bread

This overnight sourdough sandwich bread is just right for your everyday bread. 

With a mildly sourdough flavor and made with a 30 percent whole wheat dough, this bread is great for toast and sandwiches. The crust is soft and the bread is lightly sweet with just a bit of honey. Plus, it's easy to slice! 

Shrimp and Veggie Summer Rolls

These Shrimp and Veggie Summer Rolls are so fresh and light, and are the perfect appetizer or light dinner. 

Besides shrimp, these summer rolls also include lots of veggies. These rolls are so incredibly easy to make. Just don't tell your guests, because the dish is also elegant and delicious and you'll love how impressed your guests will be. 

Fresh Artichoke and Spinach Dip

Who doesn't love spinach and artichoke dip? It's such a classic. How about making it with fresh artichokes and fresh spinach!? It makes such a difference! 

Using fresh artichokes and spinach adds a bit of "fancy" to this popular dip without a lot of sacrifice in effort. Yes, you'll need to cook the artichokes and spinach first, but the little bit of extra time is worth it. 

Mini Ice Cream Cakes

You can make these mini ice cream cakes with any flavor ice cream and cake you like. They are great for a birthday party, dinner party, or just to have individual-sized desserts in your freezer as a fun treat. 

These are a great make-ahead dessert. You can serve them directly from the freezer without any extra preparation too. 

Pasta with Green Beans and Ricotta

This pasta dish with green beans and ricotta is a wonderful side dish or even a great main dish. The pasta and the beans are tossed with lots of Parmesan or Romano cheese and herbs, and then combined with generous dollops of ricotta cheese. 

This pasta dish is pure comfort food. It's creamy, a little bit spicy, and loaded with freshly blanched French green beans cut into one inch pieces. You can even eat it from a bowl with a spoon while streaming your favorite show. 

Carrot and Cheddar Gratin

This carrot and cheddar gratin is easy to make and makes an impressive and amazing side dish for when company's coming for brunch or dinner.

This carrot gratin begins with carrots steeped in cream and lightly browned onions, topped with cheddar cheese and buttered and herbed bread crumbs, and then baked until golden-brown. 

Potatoes Boulangère

These potatoes boulangère are a wonderful lightened up potato dish. You can serve these potatoes for dinner as a side for roasts, steaks and chops, and poultry, or as a side dish for a celebratory brunch. 

With Mother's Day, Father's Day, and graduation celebrations coming up, save this recipe and add these potatoes to your menu. 

Cranberry and Tangerine Scones

Dress up your brunch table with these Cranberry and Pixie Tangerine scones. They are easy to make and super flavorful. 

These scones are tender and citrusy. They are soft and moist on the inside with crispy crumbly edges. They are tasty on their own or split and spread with butter or jam. 

Green Beans with Shallots and Tomatoes

These green beans with shallots and tomatoes make a wonderful vegetable dish that you'll be tempted to eat with your fingers, kind of like French fries. 

I know this is pretty much a side dish, but I first enjoyed it on its own for a light lunch accompanied by a tasty buttered Italian croissant, and it was plenty. Of course, my portion was a bowlful, and I'm not ashamed. 

Summer Squash Succotash

This summer squash succotash is a great recipe for using all of the wonderful produce that your garden produces in the summer. 

While I don't have room for a garden, I am just lucky enough to have a cousin who is a horticultural genius, and grows an amazing variety of fresh produce in her almost cantilevered hillside garden. 

Yeasted Honey Cornbread

This yeasted honey cornbread is a cross between a sandwich bread and a slice of sweet corn bread you might enjoy at a barbecue. 

 

This bread will remind you of sweet cornbread. In fact, if you're in the sweet cornbread camp, you definitely need to try this bread with a big bowl of chili or a plateful of ribs. Definitely slather warm slices with honey butter for a heavenly experience. The sweet corn flavor comes through. 

Honeynut Squash Soup with Apple and Bacon

This honeynut squash soup with apple and bacon is velvety and smoky with sweet notes from the honeynut squash and the apple. 

This soup takes less than 45 minutes to make and is wonderful for lunch with a salad or for dinner as a first course or the vegetable course. It is also easy to make in advance and reheat for later, although it won't last long once you taste it. We polished this soup off in no time. 

Cornetti Dolci (Italian Croissants)

These cornetti dolci are slightly sweet, light, and amazingly airy. They are wonderful filled with jam or dusted with powdered sugar, or both!

These cornetti are made with a laminated dough, similar to croissants. From what I understand, both cornetti and croissants have similar roots. Cornetti, besides being Italian and not French, typically tend to be slightly sweeter, have eggs in the dough, are a little fatter in the middle, and often are baked with fillings such as apricot jam, almond paste, or pastry cream. 

Stir-Fried Cilantro with Bean Sprouts and Shrimp

This stir-fried cilantro with bean sprouts and shrimp takes just minutes to make, and the results are fresh and flavorful. 

This stir-fry is amazing. It is a vegetable dish with about 8 ounces of small shrimp. The only seasonings you will need are fresh ginger and garlic, plus a little salt and sugar. 

Asian Pear Slaw

This Asian Pear Slaw is a refreshing and light make-ahead salad that stays crunchy and sweet in the fridge until you are ready to serve it. 

This Asian pear salad is wonderful as a side dish to meats, fried chicken, and barbecue fare. It's so refreshing. 

Golden Diner Pancakes with Maple Honey Syrup

These pancakes with maple honey syrup are a copycat of the ones people line up for at the Golden Diner in New York City's Chinatown. They are big and fluffy and topped with a fruit compote, maple honey butter, and smothered in a maple honey syrup. 

These pancakes are made with a yeasted batter and are cooked in individual skillets. They are so thick that they are finished in the oven so that they are cooked all the way through. The pancakes are tall like Japanese pancakes, but a little more sturdy. 

Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Bake

This green chile chicken enchilada bake is an easy and delicious way to capture the flavors and textures of enchiladas without having to roll the tortillas. It's more like a chicken enchilada casserole. 

This green chile chicken enchilada bake includes stacked corn tortillas layered with chichen, cheese, and sauce, similar to a lasagna.  

Fresh Strawberry Snacking Cake with White Chocolate Chips

This fresh strawberry cake is perfect for whenever you have a craving for something simple and sweet. It's great for a midmorning or afternoon snack. 

I will admit that both my husband and I enjoyed it for breakfast a couple of days in a row and I don't feel guilty. After all, it's filled with fresh strawberries. 

Chocolate Raspberry Marble Pound Cake

This chocolate marble pound cake is a sweet way to say hello to spring by pairing the flavor of raspberries with the chocolate. The hint of raspberry is a wonderful complement to the chocolate. 

This cake gets its raspberry flavor from raspberry jam. You add some to the vanilla batter and brush the finished cake with a thin layer of the jam before glazing it with a chocolate ganache. 

Bow Tie Cookies with Strawberry Jam

Welcome spring with these bow tie cookies with strawberry jam. They are little poppable tasty treats. Everyone will be eating these one after another after another. 

These bow tie cookies are tiny little bundles of cream cheese dough filled with strawberry jam and dusted with confectioners' sugar. They are the perfect size for sharing too. In the Midwest, they are called kolaczki. 

Lomo Saltado | Chinese Peruvian Stir-Fried Beef, Tomatoes, and French Fries

This lomo saltado is a tasty mixture of beef, tomatoes, chiles, onions, and French fried potatoes. It is typically accompanied with white rice. 

Lomo Saltado is a traditional Chinese Peruvian stir-fry, and another example of how Chinese emigrants adapted the local ingredients of their new land to their cooking style. 

Brazilian Feijoada - Black Bean Stew with Beef and Pork

There are likely many versions of Brazilian Feijoada, with each family claiming that their tradition is the right one. After all, it is a national dish with roots in the country's past, including making the most of whatever ingredients are on hand. 

Feijoada actually has roots in Brazil's slaveholding past (Milk Street Magazine, March, 2022) and it was made with whatever bits of meat, pork ears, tails, feet, and tongue that were leftover from the slaveholders meals. The meat was cooked low and slow with black beans. 

Cod, Leek, and Potato Chowder

This cod, leek, and potato chowder is super creamy and comes together very quickly. Pair it with a glass of chardonnay for a wine that holds up well to the richness of this soup. 

This cod chowder is a wonderful combination of a creamy fish stock base along with leeks, celery, carrots, potatoes, onions, and herbs. It all comes together in less than 30 minutes if you prep your ingredients in advance. It's the perfect recipe for a quick weeknight dinner. 

Pan di Ramerino (Rosemary Raisin Buns)

Pan di Ramerino are little rosemary, olive oil, and raisin buns from Tuscany, originally served on Holy Thursday right before Easter. Now you can find these sweet and savory treats in Tuscan bakeries any time of year. 

These buns are lightly sweet from the raisins and a bit of sugar. They also have a savory side with rosemary infused olive oil added to the dough. They are easy to make and can easily be prepared in just a few hours. They would be definitely be a fun project to make with kids.  

Tangerine Ricotta Cake

This tangerine ricotta cake is a dessert that you can bake ahead. It is actually better and more moist on the second or third day. 

I love the moistness that ricotta brings to desserts. Some of my favorites include blueberry lemon ricotta tea cake, ricotta chocolate chip cookies, and tangerine ricotta cookies. Of course, I love it for making savory dishes such as lasagna or breakfast tomato and ricotta toast. 

Chicken Pot Pies

These chicken pot pies are pure comfort food and totally tasty. They are a wonderful "go-to" meal for family gatherings and dinner parties. 

I have made this recipe quite a few times. Everytime I serve these chicken pot pies, those at the table quickly earn memberships to the "clean plate club." 

Corn and Edamame Salad

The flavors in this corn and edamame salad go together so deliciously, and the dressing has become one of my new favorites. 

This salad is so colorful and the flavor is so bright. With an array of crunchy vegetables and a dressing that includes hot sauce, this salad stands out on its own. 

Kung Pao Noodles

These kung pao noodles are easy to make and loaded with flavor. The sauce, flavored with seasoned rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil, adds a sweet and tangy flavor to the noodles. 

These noodles are also loaded with tasty and crunchy vegetables, along with a sprinkling of roasted peanuts. 

Cracked Wheat and Bran Bread

I love the flavor of this cracked wheat and bran bread. It has a great whole wheat flavor that is balanced by bread flour. The cracked wheat and wheat bran add all of the benefits of whole wheat. This is an excellent tasting and performing whole wheat bread recipe.

Originally, I made this bread to use an ingredient I found in my freezer. Little did I know how delicious this bread would be. 

Parsnip and Leek Soup with Cumin and Mustard Seeds

This parsnip and leek soup gets its wonderful flavor from cumin and mustard seeds that you toast in hot oil with garlic. You stir it into this soup just before serving. 

I really loved the flavor the fried garlic, mustard seeds, and cumin seeds added at the end. If you make this soup, don't skip this step. The technique for adding the spices is an Indian term called "tarka." The oil draws out the flavor but leaves the whole spices intact to add texture to the dish. 

Chocolate Covered Sandwich Cookies with Dulce de Leche

These chocolate covered sandwich cookies with dulce de leche have roots in Argentina, where soft sandwich cookies filled with dulce de leche are a popular sweet treat. 

These cookies are similar to my orange-scented alfajores, but with a chocolate ganache coating. In addition, these cookies include a lot of whole wheat flour and are only lightly sweet to counteract the dulce de leche and the ganache. 

Rosemary Lemon Pain de Campagne

This Rosemary Lemon Pain de Campagne is a large, naturally leavened loaf flavored with fresh rosemary, lemon zest, and extra virgin olive oil. 

The Bread Baking Babes are baking versions of Pain de Campagne. Our host kitchen is My Kitchen in Half Cups. This marks 18 years of baking bread together. 

Chinese Almond Cookies

These Chinese Almond Cookies are a tasty take on the traditional Chinese take-out cookie that symbolizes good fortune and good luck, especially for the Lunar New Year. 

 

The round cookies represent coins and the almonds on top represent good luck. 

Extra Gooey Sticky Buns

Serve these extra gooey sticky buns for a special breakfast for Valentine's Day for your whole family or for that special someone. 

These sticky buns begin with an extra buttery brioche dough that is amazingly soft and tender. The dough is layered with cinnamon sugar and toasted pecans, and then is baked in a spectacular honey and brown sugar caramel sauce and topped with more toasted pecans. 

Spaghetti with Breadcrumbs, Garlic, and Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

This Spaghetti with Breadcrumbs, Garlic, and Olive Oil is a rustic and wonderful take on the classic dish spaghetti aglio e olio, or spaghetti with garlic and oil, from Naples, Italy. 

This pasta dish is pure comfort in a bowl and is wonderful served as a simple and romantic dinner for two along with a salad or a vegetable. 

Corn Sauté with Pancetta, Potatoes, and Peppers

This corn sauté with pancetta, potatoes, and peppers is a hearty side dish that goes perfectly with fried chicken, fish, or a juicy steak. 

This sautéed corn is so savory and buttery. You can serve it either hot or at room temperature, making it great for potlucks, picnics, or barbecues. You will definitely not regret making extra. 

Pineapple Avocado Salsa

This pineapple and avocado salsa is so simple to make and wonderful for dipping, adding to tacos and nachos, and totally refreshing for topping grilled fish such as salmon or halibut. 

I've tried this pineapple avocado salsa four ways. First, with homemade tortilla chips for dipping, later for topping pan seared cod, and with sourdough toast, like dressed up avocado toast, for breakfast. Finally, I stirred a little into some scrambled eggs. Everything was totally tasty. 

Bouchon Bakery Shortbread Cookies

Bouchon Bakery Shortbread Cookies - they are so simple, yet they can be so elegant, and they are perfect for a simple dessert, a snack, or for gifting. 

These shortbread cookies are a magical combination of flour, butter, sugar, vanilla bean paste, and kosher salt. You can make the dough in advance and refrigerate or freeze it, making baking ahead that much easier. The baked cookies can also be frozen. 

Slow Cooker Butternut Squash and Sausage Soup

With just a few ingredients, you can make this butternut squash and sausage soup in your slow cooker. 

You can prep the ingredients in the morning and serve this soup for lunch by noon. Start a little bit later in the day and you can enjoy this soup for dinner. The spicy sausage, combined with the butternut squash, brings so much flavor to this easy soup. 

Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocados, Tomatoes, and Red Onions

This Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocados, Tomatoes, and Red Onions is a hearty main course salad or side dish that is both refreshing and filling. 

I originally served this salad with cornbread aebleskivers and the combination was great. If you don't want to attempt the aebleskivers (they require a special pan), you conld serve these with a hearty and cheesy cornbread and a green salad. 

Homemade Caramel Corn

Making homemade caramel popcorn is a fun project that results and a sweet and crispy snack that everyone loves. 

This caramel popcorn (caramel corn) is such a treat and is totally hard to resist. It stays crispy and fresh for several days, and is pretty enough to package up for gifts or party favors. 

Parmesan Thyme Popcorn with Browned Butter

This parmesan thyme popcorn with browned butter recipe is a great way to dress up plain popcorn for a party. 

 This popcorn is lightly buttered with browned butter flavored with minced garlic and fresh thyme and then tossed with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. 

Whole Wheat Rolls for Soups and Sandwiches

These whole wheat rolls are wonderful dipped in soups and stews. They also are great for making mini sandwiches and sliders. 

These rolls, despite being loaded with whole wheat flour, are amazingly light and airy, and they have a pretty complex flavor. They are faintly sweet, and also have a hint of sourdough. 

Potato and Rosemary Pizza

I am absolutely crazy about this Potato Pizza. The crust is super crunchy and the potatoes are incredibly tasty.

Amazingly, the pizza is simply topped with thinly sliced potatoes, diced onions, black pepper, and rosemary, all tossed in olive oil. 

Argentine-Style Burgers with Chimichurri Sauce

While these tasty Argentine-style burgers with chimichurri sauce might be a little more work than making a standard burger, they are worth the extra effort. 

The beef for these burgers includes a few mix-ins, including onions, garlic, jalapeño, as well as cumin, oregano, and cilantro. After cooking, they are topped with a tasty chimichurri sauce that takes just a few minutes to make. 

Maple Pecan Oatmeal Scones

These maple pecan oatmeal scones are a wonderful way to start your day. You get all of the goodness of oatmeal in a tender scone. 

These oatmail scones are fabulous for breakfast. While they contain maple in the scone and the glaze, they aren't overly sweet at all. They also have a wonderful toasted oats flavor and also include toasted pecans. After totally enjoying oat-filled gingerbread scones earlier this fall, I definitely needed to give another oatmeal scone recipe a try.