Carrot cake lovers hold on to your hats! This is a seriously tender, moist, and balanced carrot cake made 100% from scratch — perfectly spiced, with the warm toasted crunch of walnuts (or pecans) in delicious harmony with a tangy cream cheese frosting (that has an extra vanilla bean kick). […]
Dumpling wrappers are incredibly easy and inexpensive to make at home And there’s no better time than Spring Festival (春节 Chinese New Year) to make dumplings and potstickers that are a little bit extra special. To celebrate my Sichuan family this year, I’ve made purple, pink, orange, and green dumpling […]
This might be our all-time favorite Asian appetizer and spring roll recipe ever. Crispy, crunchy shrimp spring rolls are crazy delicious and probably the easiest appetizer you’ll ever make. If you’re a fan of chili oil, shrimp, or spring rolls you’ll love making these restaurant-quality these at home without the […]
This strawberry butter is sweet, tart, and chocked full of all-natural strawberry flavor! It’s the only homemade strawberry butter recipe you’ll ever need. With just 2 ingredients this is one of my favorite compound butters to make. Plus, it’s fully customizable, and you can use this recipe to make strawberry […]
Forget any notion you’ve ever had about whole wheat or “healthy cookies” and their lack of texture or flavor! This sweet buttery whole wheat chocolate chip cookie recipe will change your life! Or at the very least, it’ll have you eating less refined carbs while still enjoying every single thing […]
Chewy twirly Abruzzese chitarra pasta is one of the many regional Italian pasta shapes that is almost too good to be true. Simple in its design this beautifully square-shaped pasta is no regular spaghetti! Spaghetti alla Chitarra gets its flavor from eggs and its sturdiness from semolina flour giving it […]
This 3-ingredient Spinach Pasta is incredibly easy to make! Use this spinach pasta dough to make delicious sheets of homemade ‘lasagna verde’ for Bolognese, silky ribbons of green pappardelle pasta, spinach spaghetti, tagliatelle, fettuccine, ravioli, farfalle, mezzaluna, tortellini, or any favorite pasta shape! If you’re new to pasta making, you […]
Candied pecans are a no-frills, no-fuss recipe perfect for topping salads, general snacking, adding to popcorn salads on family movie night, fancying up your holiday cheese or charcuterie board, or giving as delicious DIY food gifts. These sweet glazed pecans are delicious and hard to stop eating — you’ve officially […]
Homemade gnocchi Bolognese or (gnocchi ragù Bolognese) is a pasta bowl full of bear hugs — it’s warm, cozy, and 100% satisfying! Total comfort food. This recipe is made completely from scratch and in the authentic Bologna way which puts it squarely in superstar pasta territory. Pillowy spinach dumplings covered […]
Spinach Gnocchi is a delicious healthy twist on my classic potato gnocchi recipe and it’s just as easy to make! Fluffy as pillows, these bright green tender little dumplings pair with any gnocchi sauce you can think of from the ultra creamy to the super meaty gnocchi Bolognese. Skip the […]
This is my Mom’s Southern Chicken and Dumplings — and it’s hands down the easiest chicken & dumplings recipe you’ll ever make! Filled with fluffy scratch-made dumplings, this chicken soup fed our family (of six) hundreds of times throughout my childhood. With just 6 ingredients (+ salt and pepper) in […]
You will not believe how delicious or easy this 6-ingredient, 30-minute fall soup is! Italian cicerchie, (delicious beans that look a lot like gravel) have an earthy flavor somewhat reminiscent of chickpeas but have an altogether unique flavor and texture. And spicy ventricina (a favorite Abruzzese salami umami bomb) gives […]
This crab pasta is perfect for any seafood lover! Lucious linguine tossed in a silky white wine crab sauce (Italian granchio blu) — this restaurant-quality seafood pasta has everything you could want flavor wise. Based on a Venetian crab pasta dish from one of our favorite restaurants here in Venice […]
This is your one-stop shop for how to buy, cook, and pick blue crabs! Whether it’s Maryland blue crabs (Chesapeake Bay Crabs) or the now-infamous Italian Granchio Blu, you’ll find all you need to know right here. Blue crabs are delicious and can be boiled in just 5 minutes, or […]
This quick and easy homemade vanilla pudding mix takes just 5 minutes to make and it’s the perfect substitute for Instant Jello Pudding Mix when you want to bake cookie or cake recipes that call for using a box of vanilla pudding. Plus, it’s made without all of the highly […]
This paccheri recipe (aka Paccheri con Sugo di Gamberi e Zucchine) was inspired by a handful of paccheri pasta dishes from one of our favorite restaurants in Venice, Italy (Antiche Carampane). Toothsome “slappy” tube-shaped paccheri gets paired with a simple seafood sauce as it’s often served here in the coastal regions […]
Helping busy families cook and enjoy tastier, healthier meals at home. Born and raised in Arkansas, I've lived and worked in NYC, Sichuan China, and now Northeast Italy. Each of these places impacts the way I cook, live, and celebrate life. You'll find a bit of everything here whether you're new to cooking, or you've made it all. If you love to eat, you're in the right place!
