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Even just a sprinkle of Parmesan or a crumble of feta can transform an otherwise simple dinner into something truly special. This is what the recipes in this round-up are all about: transforming a few simple, fresh ingredients into meals worthy of a dinner party, a first date, or just an extra-nice weeknight meal to treat yourself after a long day. We have a grilled steak salad topped with Parmesan flakes that will put you on a hillside in Tuscany, as well as easy berry and ricotta parfaits to end the meal....

Alligator Jaw Pastry Alligator Jaws were my #1 favorite pastry when I was growing up. Hands down. In the small town where we grew up, there was an amazing little bakery just off of Main Street called Ron & Chris Bakery. We all loved going there for donuts, cookies, and freshly made sandwiches. Their cherry chocolate chip cookies, ribbon sandwiches, and strawberry cream cheese croissants were among our favorites, but the alligator jaw pastry was the absolute best!...

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When you think about it, it’s strange that we don’t freeze cheese more often. It’s one of the best ways to preserve it and keep it from spoiling, but there are some tricks to getting it right, which varieties freeze best, and how to serve after freezing. Can You Freeze Cheese? Freezing cheese can be a great way to save money and make sure you have the right cheese on hand when you need it....

Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork) Most Chinese restaurants will serve Char Siu as a side dish or appetizer. Long strips of the best cuts of pork have a savory sweet flavor that tastes delicious on its own or served with the main entrée with fried rice. If made RIGHT, it can easily be my favorite part of the meal. More often than not, unfortunately, when I have gotten Char Siu at restaurants it comes out dry....

Cheese tacos are our stand-by what-do-you-make-when-you-haven’t-really-thought-about-it-in-advance lunch. There’s always a stack of corn tortillas in the fridge. There’s almost always cheddar or jack cheese. I’ve noticed that most of my friends regularly make a quick sandwich for lunch. Maybe once a month I’ll make a sandwich. Three times a week I’ll make cheese tacos. (What? You don’t have a stack of tortillas in your fridge?) You Can Put Anything in a Tortilla and Call It a Taco Usually cheese tacos just have cheese in them....

Chicken breasts are first gently poached in chicken stock, to help the chicken hold on to flavor. (You can easily re-use the stock for another recipe, just boil it down for ten minutes before chilling.) Serve with lettuce, on bread for a sandwich, or just as a side. Great for a summer potluck or picnic. Enjoy! Sprinkle a little salt over the mixture and add the oil and vinegar. Toss to combine....

If you’re searching for something reliably delightful for a special evening at home or a gathering with friends, here’s a tiny twist on a traditional cocktail that’s very simple to make, takes just a few ingredients, and yet tastes very sophisticated, indeed. What Are the Ingredients for an Old Fashioned? Your typical Old Fashioned is made with a sugar cube, bitters, and bourbon. I like to muddle a bit of orange peel in mine, but for purists, this is controversial....

To me, this omelette is the quickest route to comfort when I just don’t have the bandwidth to come up with a plan for supper. In fact, luckily for me, my husband mastered the art of the French omelette years ago when we both worked at a restaurant in upstate New York. On our days off, we used to go to a roadside gas station(!) run by a Swiss couple, Pierre and Yvette....

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When Are Green Beans in Season? Green beans can generally be found fresh all year long but reach their peak in the warmer months. Between early summer and early fall, bushels of beans will find their way into simple salads, flavorful stir fries, and pickling jars. Varieties: “Green bean” refers to all long, tender beans that are green in color, but they can also be called string beans, snap beans, bush beans, or haricots verts....

Sure, there are a bunch of bars you can find at the store, but there are a ton of benefits to making your own. You can control the sweetness, come up with your own combinations of flavors, and control what ingredients you’re adding into your bars. Once you master a versatile recipe like this one, the sky’s the limit. While some granola bars are meant to be crunchy, I like mine chewy and this recipe does not disappoint....

It’s basically a simplified strata of sorts, a casserole layering thin slices of rustic ciabatta bread with sautéed kale, mushrooms, and onions, and cheddar cheese, soaked with milk and egg, and then baked until bubbly and browned. It’s the ultimate kale lover’s comfort food. The recipe is from Jennie’s cookbook, Homemade with Love: Simple Scratch Cooking from In Jennie’s Kitchen, a beautiful book with photographs by Penny De Los Santos, heart warming prose, and tummy warming recipes for the home cook....

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These cookies have a crumbly, buttery, nutty texture that just melts in your mouth. Like I said: completely irresistible. The soft, melt-away texture of Mexican Wedding cookies is thanks to a rich, buttery dough and lots of crushed nuts. These cookies don’t have any egg to bind them, so they’re crumbly instead of chewy. This makes them more like shortbread than, say, sugar cookies. Those crushed nuts in the dough also give these cookies their addictive flavor....

Breakfast Cookies for Busy Mornings As a frazzled mother of twin toddlers, I often skipped breakfast out of sheer desperation and plain exhaustion. I’d whip up a bowl of oatmeal for the babies, guzzle a mug of coffee, and call it a morning. Unfortunately, the lack of effort began to show in my overall health. I was cranky in the middle of the day, my energy was kaput, and I was getting sick more often....

It’s a simple little item, one that functions exactly like its name implies. You use it to scrape dough out of a bowl. But this simple tool is incredibly useful when baking almost anything. The Best Uses for Flexible Dough Scraper Though large spatulas have their place in my kitchen, when I work with a slightly stiffer bread dough, or one that is sticky, nothing beats a flexible dough scraper....

It’s taco meat, burrito meat, or just stewy meat to serve with rice and beans or with tortillas. This version of carnitas, adapted from a Sunset recipe for braised pork, is cooked first in a braise of tomatillo salsa verde, or green salsa. It’s delicious served with fresh corn tortillas and topped with a shredded cabbage slaw, Cotija cheese, avocado, and Mexican sour cream. Heat the pot on high and vigorously boil the remaining liquid, stirring, until reduced to 2 1/2 cups, several minutes....

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