When was the last time I pureed food in a blender? Or grilled a panini? Okay, so maybe I don’t fire these up daily, but I like having them. It’s always inspiring to spy a cool recipe that reminds me to play with my toys. This meal plan gives you a nudge to dust off a few of those nifty appliances you may be neglecting. And if you don’t have an Instant Pot, (or a slow cooker or sous vide machine, don’t worry—all the recipes below offer alternative cooking methods for your trusty old range....

If you grow garden tomatoes, what do you do with end-of-season green ones? My mother picks them and lets them ripen indoors. I like making fried green tomatoes, and I may yet try to make a mock apple pie made with green tomatoes. Other ideas? Ways to Enjoy Green Tomato Chutney This green tomato chutney is one way to make excellent use of end of season tomatoes! You can store it in the fridge, or can it for later....

The result is a salad that feels like fall on a plate! This vegan and gluten free salad is hearty enough so be served as a main course any night of the week, but also pretty enough to make an appearance on your holiday table. The sweet earthiness of maple and miso are a fantastic flavor combination with the butternut squash. In the oven, the squash caramelizes like a dream – we call this “squash candy” at hour house....

I’ve seen plenty of recipes for pear butter, but most of them look like apple butter to me, heavily spiced with cinnamon and cloves. Pears are more floral than apples. I wanted to see them with ginger, and nutmeg, and maybe some cardamom. So when my pal Hank offered me a a bagful of Bartletts freshly picked from his backyard tree, I was all over it. This pear butter is similar to apple butter in that it is a spicy, sweet, tangy spread, great over buttered toast (there is no “butter” in apple butter or pear butter), but with a distinctly different taste coming from the pears (obviously) and the seasonings of star anise, ginger, lemon, cardamom, and nutmeg....

Still, I like to occasionally throw a curveball into the mix. Brussels Sprouts for the Holiday Table Brussels sprouts are always a standard on my holiday table. Mostly I keep them simple, either roasted with salt and pepper and a sprinkle of Parmesan, or shredded into a light starter salad and tossed with apple cider vinaigrette and dried cranberries. These roasted honey chipotle Brussels sprouts will fit right in on your table spread, but they bring a fun twist....

The key to cooking a delicious batch of from-scratch beans on the stovetop depends on two things: the age of your beans and knowing when to salt them. The rest is up to you. Which Dried Beans to Cook I use this simple stovetop method for small, medium, or large beans such as the following: Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)Navy beansBlack-eyed peasBlack beansPinto beansGreat Northern beansCannellini beans. Note: This method will not work for lentils or split peas, which are not really beans per se but still in the legume family....

With this method for refrigerator pickles, you don’t need to get out the canning equipment or have any special pickling know-how. They’re made with a simple brine and pickle in just 24 hours right in the fridge. They’ll keep for up to 1 month—if they last that long! Video: How to Make Easy Refrigerator Pickles The Best Pickling Spice Blend You can make your own pickling spice blend, or use a store-bought blend....

Except that butter melts more easily. Ay, there’s the rub! Butter starts to melt around 89.5°F, but the average body temperature is 98.6°F. Many-a hopeful pie maker has been thwarted by pie dough that became greasy, sticky, or soft enough to fall apart as they handled it. That’s why food processors gained ground as the tool of choice: they cut down on the time your warm hands get pawsy with the dough....

Here’s a little tip that you may or may not know about ginger: it is very helpful for nausea. It is the only thing (and believe me, I’ve tried everything) that helps me with sea sickness. Pregnant women I have known swear by it. The root itself is rather gnarly, and can be a little bit challenging to peel and cut, so I’ve put together a quick how-to, starting with this short video of my preferred way to peel ginger, with a spoon!...

It takes just under two hours for the beef to cook to perfection, so it’s tender yet sliceable without falling apart. With a generous pile of pressure-steamed cabbage, carrots, and potatoes on the side, you’ve got a full Irish-American dinner to celebrate the holiday. What Is Corned Beef? Corned beef can be made with brisket or round, but brisket is my favorite since it tends to be more tender. If you’re lucky, yours will come with a nice fat cap on top, which keeps things extra moist....

A Quick, Vegetarian Weeknight Meal A pressure cooker makes quick work of this vegetable-packed Pasta Primavera— and I love my Instant Pot! Broccoli, carrots, and bell peppers add a rainbow of colors and flavors to a big pot of penne pasta. Then it all gets tossed with olive oil and Parmesan cheese. The veggies steam in just 10 minutes in the pressure cooker, and then the pasta takes about 20 minutes more....

There are times I think much of the world would like to box me in and believe that I’m a chef only capable of making Asian cuisine, purely based on how I look. It’s the first question I’m usually asked whenever anyone knows of my profession, and I try not to get irritated by it each time. But there’s always a few unknown truths to consider for any chef’s background, and there are a few of my own that just might make folks laugh....

It’s a fairly straightforward recipe but does require some care when you are tempering the eggs, so they don’t curdle. Go slowly the first time you make it to avoid any errors, and after you’ve added the eggs try to ensure the soup doesn’t come to a boil as that’s what can make it split. Even if you are reheating portions, keep the saucepan over low heat and warm it gently....

No kidding. For realz! Why??? Microwave cooking works by agitating water molecules, meaning that it turns moisture into steam. So the microwave omelette gets cooked evenly and gently, which is exactly what you want when you are making an omelette. An Easy Omelette Recipe A microwave mug omelette is perfect for those times when the day gets away from you and it’s 2 in the afternoon and you haven’t even had breakfast yet (my life more often than I care to admit)....

My first trip to India was for a family wedding. My mother-in-law took us on a two-week trip throughout Northern and Central India, the regions she grew up in. It was an adventure. It was also September before the start of monsoon season, and very, very hot and humid. In the height of summer when temperatures reach triple digits, there is a cooling drink made with salt, citrus, water and sugar called Nimbu Pani that provides a respite from the heat and humidity....

Yes, it does use a lot of oil, but you can reuse it. Just put it in the fridge and use the oil for salad dressings or to fry something else in—it will add a certain “artichokiness” to your next dish. Oil keeps its heat well, so use that to your advantage here: Undercook the artichoke hearts, then keep them in the hot oil until it cools. You run a far less risk of turning them into mush that way....

Crispy deep-fried chicken relies on the perfect oil temperature. Too hot? The breading will burn while the inside remains raw (yikes!). Too cold? It’ll turn out greasy and not crispy. So I take a quick and easy route to perfectly crispy fried chicken: the oven! A good oven-fried chicken is just as rewarding, and a bit healthier than deep-fried chicken. For this recipe, the chicken is marinated in buttermilk and dredged in panko breadcrumbs....

Fish escabeche is similar to ceviche, but the fish is cooked a bit first. Because of the acidity of the marinade, the dish lends itself to fatty fish, especially mackerel. When I first had this version of escabeche, prepared by Chef Sean Bernal in the Bahamas, it was with a wahoo fish, and all I could think of was how good it would taste with mackerel. Unfortunately for me I haven’t been able to find any fresh mackerel (or herring, or sardines for that matter) in Sacramento....

But, this is simply the best, most wonderful cheesecake I have ever had, and have ever made. It is based on a master recipe, from the master of baking herself, Dorie Greenspan. Homemade New York Cheesecake This is a classic New York-style cheesecake with a graham cracker crust and high sides. It is rich, dense, and light at the same time, and serves a small army. But watch out! Just when you think you’ve made enough for your gathering, so many people will go back for seconds that you may be left without a piece!...