This easier yet tasty cassoulet is a nod to the traditional version. It’s a simple bean dish in a flavorful tomato broth that calls for bacon, chicken thighs, and Italian sausages. It’s a truly comforting meal that can be easily accomplished on a weeknight if you have just 40 minutes to spare. Bring on the snow and cold, this cassoulet has got you covered! How to Make Cassoulet on a Weeknight Cook the bacon, onions, and garlic, and brown the bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs and Italian sausages in a skillet....

It’s also a great idea to check out whether the recipes that catch your eye can be easily divided in half. Sometimes recipes are easy to scale down or make small batch versions. For instance, when you think of lasagna, you think of a huge casserole, but we’ve provided you with a small batch recipe that’s made in a loaf size pan! So you’re able to take a recipe that typically feeds a crowd and scale it down....

You cook it much like you would prepare a rice pilaf—sautéing garlic and onions first, adding the farro and water and simmering until done. This recipe comes from my chef friends Kathi Riley and Brenda Ruiz, who prepared a similar dish for a recent local fundraiser to benefit Sacramento’s Food Literacy Center (a non-profit doing amazing work here inspiring children to eat good food, check them out!) Out of all the fabulous dishes that evening, this one was my favorite....

These satisfying salads, like Italian Panzanella or this Middle Eastern fattoush, are made by tossing together leftover bread, colorful vegetables, and a tangy dressing. What Is Fattoush? Fattoush is a version of bread salad made throughout the Middle East using leftover pita bread. The pita flatbreads are cut into pieces and either fried or baked before being tossed with fresh vegetables and dressing. I like baking the pita since this avoids the need for a vat of hot oil....

Ways to Make the Chocolate Shine The cake itself doesn’t require too many ingredients, but there are a few that set it apart from other recipes you may come across. A tiny bit of espresso powder and vanilla extract amplify the chocolate flavor without overpowering it.A combination of light brown sugar and granulated sugar gives the cake a fudgy texture and a rounded flavor with a certain je ne sais quoi....

My mom’s old Kitchen-Aid from 1970 (bought second-hand, and still works!) was having a heck of a time turning the dough and I swear I could smell it overheating. After making who knows how many shapes and 2 hours struggling to put it together I lost patience. My decorating job was jaw-dropping in its sheer ugliness as I was never any good at arts and crafts. By the end, I was pretty well ready to bite the head off of little gingerbread baby Jesus out of frustration and call it a day....

If you are familiar, you likely have connections to the Midwest, where they’re a favorite. Imagine oatmeal peanut butter cookies studded with chocolate chips and M&Ms. Once you try them, you’ll agree that they should be making them in all 50 states! In general, cookies are great for feeding a crowd because one recipe yields dozens, but scooping, shaping, and baking them in batches takes time and effort! If you spread your entire bowl of cookie dough out on a sheet pan instead, you can get the job done in one go....

Butterflying Your Chicken Breasts Butterfly the boneless, skinless chicken breasts and get multiple benefits. This makes them thinner, which speeds up the cooking. It also increases the surface area, so they absorb more sauce and get even more tasty charred grill marks. The butterflied breasts are in the marinade for as long as it takes you to prep the vegetables for the grill, so it’s an efficient use of your time....

If you know the best way to approach each herb, removing the leaves doesn’t have to be a chore. Some might even call the task speedy and—dare we say it—satisfying. Here’s the best way to approach a handful of common herbs, in no particular order. Rosemary Rosemary stems are quite woody, so you definitely don’t want them making an appearance in your stews or sauces. To remove the edible portion from the woody stem, simply separate the stems and remove any branches, then run your fingers down the stem in a straight line....

Why Blind Bake a Crust? Some pie and tart recipes have fillings that are not cooked at all, and need to be put into a fully cooked pie shell. Some recipes like quiches recommend partially cooked pie shells because the baking time wouldn’t be long enough to fully cook the dough otherwise. Pre-baking a crust can ensure that your pie or tart crust will be fully baked and browned, and not soggy....

And the easiest way method for cooking your chicken? In the Instant Pot, of course! Instant Pot Chicken Is So Easy! Cooking chicken in the pressure cooker or Instant Pot works similarly to poaching. The biggest difference is that you use less liquid and you can press a button and step away while the pot is doing its thing. The chicken cooks in water, seasoned with salt, bay leaves, and garlic for a little bit of extra flavor....

My own diet has evolved quite a bit since then. As a registered dietitian, I’ve learned the benefits of a plant-rich plate. Plus, two of my children are now vegetarians, which has pushed me to explore the culinary riches of meatless meals. I still eat meat and poultry, just a whole lot less than my parents did. If you’re new to the idea, here are a few reasons why a more plant-based diet might be a wise move, and tips to get you started!...

What is Self-Rising Flour? Self-rising flour is all-purpose flour with a leavening agent (baking powder) and seasoning (salt) already added. The baking powder causes the batter or dough to expand into a beautiful muffin or biscuit, while the salt seasons the flour and the final baked good. This type of flour is used in all types of baked goods, but you will mostly find it in the ingredients of biscuits, scones, and muffins....

We recommend honing your knife at least a few times a week if you cook regularly, and many chefs hone each time they enter the kitchen. With a proper honing technique, you will only have to sharpen your knife a couple of times a year. Keeping your knife sharp mitigates the likelihood of injury from a dull knife. What Type of Honing Steel Should I Purchase? Honing steels can be made of different materials and sizes....

If not at school, we kids were always on that street, kicking a soccer ball, hitting a four in cricket or flying kites. Come dusk, a gentle wind would blow and bring with it the aromas drifting out of the kitchens. Aunty Anwari lived in the house right across the street from ours, and the days we would smell biryani were the days we’d be eating dinner at her place....

This easy Instant Pot recipe will be your go-to for using up leftover wings either from eating out or when you make them at home. Chicken wing ramen is essentially a bonus meal from your initial wing-fest…but psst, I like chicken wing ramen even more than the wings themselves. The bulk of work is making wings in the first place (which is EASY) and picking the meat and skin from the bones....

I had some gorgonzola cheese begging to be eaten, some puff pastry in the freezer, and my mother’s book club potluck event at our house coming up. Apples and walnuts we always have on hand. Apples, walnuts, gorgonzola, thyme, and honey make up the filling of these mini-turnovers and let me tell you, this is a great combination! Put the filling on a pizza, keep the apples fresh and make a gorgonzola version of Waldorf salad, or place it on a flour tortilla and roll it up and eat it as a wrap, whatever you do these ingredients belong together....

Mojo has a zippy bite because of the grapefruit and lime juice that it’s made with. Copious amounts of garlic add nothing but Latin flavor to the kebabs. As a result, this might become your go-to marinade for all your grilled proteins. Childhood Memories of Kebabs My childhood memories are filled with kebab fundraisers to support my mom’s or dad’s Air Force units. We stayed up all night impaling chunks of pork on sticks to grill the following day....