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Condiments + Sauces + Dips

Slather, dip, dunk, repeat! We’re huge fans of sauces, spreads, and dips over here! It makes no difference to us whether it’s a French dessert coulis, Italian béchamel, perfect guacamole, or my Mom’s southern giblet gravy! We like to call them, meal-makers. Because a really great condiment or sauce can elevate almost any dish. From sweet to savory, thick to thin, and mild to spicy, you’ll find just a little bit of everything here.


top down view into a jar of orange-red colored homemade strawberry-nectarine-apricot jam.

30-Minute Strawberry-Apricot-Nectarine Jam (Without Pectin)

If you love strawberry jam as much as we do and are just getting into learning how to make homemade jam, this unique fresh summer fruit jam recipe is for you! This isn’t just any strawberry preserves recipe, it also includes nectarines and fresh apricots to give it an almost […]

top down view into a mason canning jar filled with pizza sauce from scratch.

Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce Recipe (With Video)

This pizza sauce recipe uses just 4 ingredients (plus salt) and is so simple to make you won’t ever need to buy store-bought pizza sauce again. In fact, this is the best pizza sauce recipe ever for any kind of homemade pizza (except, of course, Neapolitan pizza and classic Italian […]

wonton chip in a shallow dip ramekin with Spicy Sichuan Party Dip drizzled with Sichuan chili oil

Spicy Sichuan Gold Cream Cheese Dip (w/Homemade Wonton Chips)

This spicy Sichuan party dip has everything we love about our favorite Chengdunese wontons in chili oil except in a totally unexpected creamy, spicy, crunchy dip that’s perfect for scooping up with homemade crispy-fried wonton chips (or any chips!) or crudité. I like to call this stuff Sichuan gold because […]

a spoon full of homemade strawberry jam being taken out of the widemouth mason Ball jar

Easy 30-Minute No-Pectin Strawberry Jam (With Video)

This quick and easy homemade strawberry jam recipe (aka strawberry freezer jam) is delicious! It tastes as good slathered toast as it does drizzled over ice cream or used as a strawberry cheesecake topping. And it’s what I use to make one of our all-time favorite strawberry desserts –this Italian […]

homemade Sichuan Chili oil with the last of the oil added.

Chef Liu’s Sichuan Chili Crisp Oil Recipe (Xiangla Hongyou 香辣红油)

This is one of the best toasty Sichuan chili oil recipes you will ever make. I learned how to make this Xiangla Hongyou (香辣红油) from Sichuanese Chef Liu while living in Chengdu and it’s still one of my all-time favorite condiments (ever). This highly addictive sesame-flecked red chili oil is […]

shallow oval ramekin dish with hot golden brown bubbly spinach artichoke dip with a single artichoke heart in the middle.

Best Spinach Artichoke Dip (The Ultimate Hot & Creamy Party Dip)

This oven-baked easy spinach artichoke dip recipe is creamy, melty, and chock full of artichokes and spinach. It’s ready in about 35 minutes, making this the ultimate hot party dip that’s just as good for game night as it is for your holiday parties and Sunday suppers. Plus, you can […]

homemade chipotle in adobo sauce just mixed in a glass bowl sitting on top of a brightly painted terra cotta Mexican artwork plate

How to Make Easy 2-Minute Chipotle in Adobo Sauce

If you’re in the mood to make your favorite chipotle recipes like tinga tacos or other Mexican or Tex-Mex dishes but don’t have a can of chipotle in adobo sauce lying around — don’t fret. You can get the same spicy, tangy, smoked jalapeño flavors with this easy DIY version. […]

top down view of widemouth mason jar filled with bright orange homemade pumpkin purée sitting on top of a dark grey linen apron

Best 20-Minute Homemade Pumpkin Purée (100% from Scratch)

You may be wondering why you should make homemade pumpkin purée from scratch when you can just pick up a can or two at the store. For starters, this all-natural (seriously delicious) pumpkin purée recipe is probably the simplest thing you’ll do all year. Beyond that, it yields an intensely […]

Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad (Homemade Dressing w/Parm Croutons)

If you’re a fan of Caesar Salad, (like Chili’s Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad circa the late 90s and early aughts), I think you’ll love this homemade grilled chicken Ceasar Salad recipe. Each component is incredibly simple to make from scratch — homemade Parmesan and herb-coated (featherlight) crispy croutons, umami-rich Caesar […]

a heart-shaped white ceramic dish with black chickpea hummus covered in olive oil and surrounded by sautéed borretane onions, carrots, asparagus, olives, pickles, and sun-dried cherry tomatoes

Easy Black Chickpea Hummus (using Canned Black Chickpeas)

Black Italian chickpeas from Puglia and black Japanese sesame paste are the base for this beautifully dark, smooth, and creamy hummus. It tastes just as good as regular hummus but is a bit more dramatic-looking. I created this recipe to close out our “Go Gray in May for Brain Cancer […]

a glass bowl filled with homemade french onion dip with green herbs throughout and a silver spoon in the bowl

All-Natural Homemade French Onion Dip (Better Than Store-Bought)

This easy homemade French Onion Dip recipe is tangy, creamy, and tastes just like my whole family’s favorite brand (Hiland French Onion Dip). I use a technique that helps it firm up just like the store-bought stuff without needing any unnatural ingredients. This French onion dip recipe is also free […]

How to Make The Best Tacos al Pastor at Home

If you’ve ever eaten Tacos al Pastor shaved right off of a rotating trompo (vertical spit), then you know how delicious they are and this authentic recipe does not disappoint. Ok, so we’re not in Mexico City and this recipe will never taste as good as the original tacos from […]

a glass Weck tulip jar filled with strawberry blood orange sauce on a pink and gold vintage venetian wooden tray with the lime green mini cypress trees behind it

15-Minute Easy Homemade Strawberry-Blood Orange Sauce

This easy homemade strawberry-blood orange sauce is a super tasty way to top all your favorite cheesecakes, pancakes, french toast, strawberry shortcake scones, and ice cream sundaes. Avoid buying storebought syrups or sauces which can be full of preservatives and loaded with sugar because all you need is fresh (or […]

classic italian tomato sauce

Simple and Velvety Italian Tomato Passata Sauce

This naturally (intensely) sweet tomato Passata Sauce recipe is in a word, delicious. We use it for making all kinds of toothsome pasta dishes and in some of our favorite lasagnas. You can use any type of jarred tomato purée for this recipe, but today (and for as long as […]

a ladle full of deep red tomato pasta sauce

How to Make Simple Classic Italian Tomato Sauce for Pasta

If you need a quick and easy tomato sauce for pasta this recipe is the most essential (and delicious) of them all.  Made with basic pantry staples — a jar (or can) of high-quality San Marzano (or Mutti brand tomatoes), extra virgin olive oil, onion, garlic, and a little carrot, […]