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Rosemary Parmesan Focaccia Bread This Rosemary Parmesan Focaccia Bread is my go to whenever we go out to eat at a sandwich place. The woodsy Rosemary and buttery Parmesan cheese pair well together in a simple dough that bakes up to perfection and is really tasty for just about any sandwich. This is a fool proof bread recipe to try if you’re experimenting with baking. It’s the perfect side to so many soups and salads and also delicious cubed and served with dips....

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I don’t know how that label came about (does this mean we’ve been dirty eating all this time? hmm, maybe I shouldn’t go there). But I do know that when I stay away from dairy and bread, and when I eat vegetables, legumes, and simple protein like shrimp, my body feels not so weighed down. Do you ever find that to be true for you? This is a summer salad perfect for those midweek cravings for something light yet still filling....

The following recipe is based on one for jerk chicken that my father found in Fine Cooking magazine. Wonderful flavor and the drumsticks cook up quickly. Coat the bottom of a broiler pan (under the perforated top part of the pan) with oil. (Note that a broiler pan really works best here. A regular baking pan may warp under the high heat of the broiler.) Arrange the drumsticks on the pan and sprinkle generously with salt....

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For $50, the entire vibe and functionality of my kitchen was massively upgraded, with no costly investment in fixtures, no electrician bill, no spackle and paint, and no cabinet demolition of any kind! A DIY Under-Cabinet Lighting Solution for the Kitchen I needed enough lighting to light six feet of countertop, and a cool (but not too cool) temperature for utility and photo lighting. This set from E Shine ($50) ticked all the boxes....

The one glaring example of where this convention does not hold true, and in fact begs to be broken, is with a classic Greek dish called shrimp saganaki or shrimp santorini. It pairs shrimp with tomatoes and feta cheese and is absolutely delicious in every rule-breaking way. We found a beautiful example of this classic dish in a recipe by Ellie Krieger in a publication by Fine Cooking several years ago....

Banana Cake I know the first thing that pops into your head when you see over-ripe bananas is banana bread. However, let me introduce you to Banana Cake. You can take those same bananas and bake them into a super moist cake and top it with a creamy cream cheese frosting. Are you convinced yet? It’s the nutty flavor of banana bread with the sweetness of cake with delicious frosting. We have been making this banana cake recipe for years and my family absolutely devours it!...

I first encountered the idea of a slump in a cookbook about the cooking of Newport, Rhode Island, in the first chapter on colonial cooking. Apparently, this dessert goes back to colonial days. It’s synonymous with a “grunt”, and which word you use, slump or grunt, depends on the locale. In Rhode Island, slump is used. In Massachusetts, grunt is more common. Etymology aside, what’s cool about slumps is that they are like cobblers, except they’re made on the stove-top instead of the oven, and they have dumplings instead of biscuits....

Blueberries have been found to be a “superfood”, so good for you that you should go out of your way to eat them. (As if we need a reason, right?) They neutralize free radicals, protect your heart, improve your vision, and protect against degenerative brain diseases. (See the whole story at The World’s Healthiest Foods website.) Blueberries come into season in early summer, but they freeze well, and you can easily make this pie with frozen berries....

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Everyone in my family is a big fan of Mexican and Tex Mex, and tostadas are always happily greeted by guests—it’s lively food that instantly turns dinner into a party. What Is a Tostada? A tostada can refer to a fried tortilla by itself, though often (as in this case) it refers to the Mexican dish made with a fried tostada at its base and toppings piled on top. Corn tortillas provide great flavor and crunch, and are usually gluten-free (but check the label to be sure)....

Pieces of cold butter whisked into a reduction of white wine, vinegar, and shallots creates a buerre blanc sauce. If you’ve ever added cold butter to thicken a pan sauce, you have made a warm butter emulsion—it’s the same technique used in making this sauce. Here, like many modern chefs, we break with tradition and use a portion of cream to create a more stable sauce than butter alone. The sauce should be just thick enough to coat the back of the spoon....

It can be cubed and roasted to eat as a side dish or added to a leafy green salad. When pureed, it can be used to make soups, to fill or top pasta, or baked into breads, cakes, and muffins. It can also be used as a filling for veggie tacos and enchiladas! Butternut’s slightly nutty, sweet flavor really comes out when the squash is roasted in the oven. When compared to other winter squashes such as pumpkins, butternut’s smooth skin makes it easier to peel and its smaller pockets of seeds are easier to clean out....

This is mostly because tiramisu is one of two desserts that my mom always orders at restaurants (the other being crème brulee; she likes a classic). I’d honestly never encountered tiramisu outside of a restaurant setting! But a few years ago this changed when we hosted our first Christmas dinner and my mom requested tiramisu for dessert. I was definitely a little fearful but went into “what’s the worst that could happen?...

The Traditional Ingredients for a Mai Tai Nutty, you say? That’s right. If you’re going to make a proper Mai Tai, the essential ingredient is orgeat (pronounced ohr-zsa, like Zsa Zsa Gabor), a sweet almond syrup made from almonds, sugar, and orange blossom water. The Mai Tai belongs to the family of drinks called sours, which are made with a base spirit, a sweetener, and citrus. A lot of classic drinks are based on the sour, like the vodka sour, the whiskey sour, and the margarita, which is a tequila sour....

For Thanksgiving, my mother is in charge of the roast turkey and stuffing (they’re the BEST), my father the mashed potatoes, and I the pies. Dad and I split the sides. My dad shies away from anything resembling a Brussels sprout (why dad? you’re denying your German heritage, just think of it as a mini cabbage!) but everyone else loves them, so I make sure they make an appearance. With all the cooking that needs to be done our mantra is Keep it Simple....

Since I’m trying to keep the number of times I have to venture outside to a minimum, that means making sure my pantry is stocked and my recipes are versatile enough to handle a change of plans. I’m also doubling up several dishes so we have plenty of leftovers. Alas, I’m saying “See you later” to my grill until warmer months, but it also means having more time with my toasty oven!...

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