One Pot Penne Pasta

Today’s penne pasta recipe is brought to you by…our dishwasher! Here’s what happened: Our dishwasher recently broke, which has made me realize just how many dishes we (mostly I) use in a day. For example, I start with a big glass of water first thing in the morning before I make a smoothie. Next comes iced cold brew coffee. When it’s time to make lunch, I’m usually too lazy to go upstairs to get my previously used water glass, so I’ll grab another. In case you aren’t keeping track, I’m up to 4 glasses by about noon. There’s also one by…

I know you love cookbooks as much as I do, so I’m excited to share this recipe from Kristen Donnely’s new book, Modern Potluck. I met Kristin about a year ago while she was an editor at Food & Wine Magazine. When she told me about the concept of her book, I knew I’d want to share it with you I love this… In her intro, she talks about the perfect dinner parties (with perfect hosts) that they would feature in the magazine, and how she’d always felt embarrassed that she didn’t grow up knowing how to throw a “proper” dinner party.…

First off, I wanted to say a big THANK YOU for nominating us in this year’s Saveur Blog Awards! I’m so flattered and thrilled that you find our little corner of the internet to be an inspiring place. It’s times like these that I really don’t know what else to say besides thank you, thank you, thank you! If you have a second, it would mean the world to me if you could click here and go vote. Scroll down a tad to the “Most Inspired Weeknight Dinners” category. You can vote every day until August 31st. I owe you big 🙂 Speaking of weeknight dinners,…

Today I’m sharing my new favorite summer treat: chocolate pudding pops! I got the idea to make a healthier version of the classic pudding pop from memories of hot summer days when I was growing up. When my sister and I were younger, our goal in life was to catch the ice cream truck. We’d play outside in the yard with our neighbor friends all day until one of us yelled “sshhhhhhhh!!!!” and then we’d all run to opposite ends of the yard to figure out which direction that whimsical sound of The Entertainer was coming from. When we would close in on the…

This watermelon gazpacho recipe is the perfect dish for hot summer days. In the past few weeks, I’ve gone from hot Austin to hot New York to hot Chicago. Now that I’m visiting my parents in Chicago’s west suburbs, I’m making this recipe as much as I can. I can’t think of anything as refreshing and hydrating as watermelon, so this cold soup really hits the spot. If it’s warm where you are, try it ASAP! And just a heads up, this recipe makes a lot of watermelon gazpacho. It gets better as it chills, so I love to keep…

Last week, I was in New York speaking at a Random House event with (one of my favorite bloggers ever), Jenny from Dinner a Love Story. We chatted about our shared love for the simple tomato sandwich and how you shouldn’t complicate things that are as beautiful as summer tomatoes. I forgot that I had this post in the queue – because I absolutely LOVE this slightly fancier tomato-with-other-things sandwich. This reminds me of a juicy caprese sandwich except, well, there’s no cheese here. Instead, there’s a good slathering of this edamame spread that I’m still obsessed with. This time I made it…

Tell me, who doesn’t love a variety of yummy mix & match toppings on little pieces of grilled bread? Here’s a party idea that you can easily pull off this weekend: grill some bread to make a big batch of crostini, chill some rosé, gather a bunch of toppings (and a bunch of friends)… and you have a fun, casual crostini party! How to Make Crostini Crostini may seem fancy, but making them is actually simple. If you’re not familiar with them, they’re thin slices of grilled or toasted baguette that are great for serving with a variety of toppings. To make…

If you’re the salad-bringer in your family or circle of friends – this one’s for you. It’s super easy and also really bright & flavorful. It goes great with whatever you’re grilling and packs up well for picnics. You can make it in advance which, in my opinion, is a key element to summer salad-ing. My Tabbouleh Recipe Twist This is not a traditional tabbouleh recipe because, as you see, I’m using dried tart cherries (which are also sometimes called sour cherries) in lieu of tomatoes. I just love the pop of sweet bright flavor they bring here – it contrasts so nicely…

This creamy pumpkin pasta sauce recipe comes from my first cookbook. Even though I developed it years ago now, it’s still one of my favorite fall and winter recipes. Fresh pumpkin puree (or kabocha or butternut squash) blends with cashews to create a super creamy, super comforting sauce. Yes, it looks like mac and cheese, but this surprising pumpkin pasta sauce is something else entirely. Roasted garlic, onion, and fresh sage give it a nutty, complex autumn flavor. Personally, I think it’d be a fantastic option for a vegetarian Thanksgiving dinner, but it’s so simple and cozy that you’ll want…

This stuffed poblano peppers recipe might be my new favorite summertime dinner. It has all the best parts of stuffed bell peppers – a fresh, flavorful filling, fun garnishes, and juicy roasted peppers – but the poblanos add an extra layer of heat. The whole thing is super fresh, super flavorful, and really darn fun to eat. If you’ve never cooked with poblano peppers before, they’re a chili pepper with a mild to medium heat level. On the Scoville scale, which measures how spicy peppers are, they range from 1,000 to 2,000 Scoville heat units. For context, bell peppers score…

This is one of those “it’s good to be home” meals. I love vacation, and I love eating out, but after traveling for awhile, I just can’t wait to get home and get back to my regular healthy eating routine. You know, the one that includes a morning smoothie instead of a croissant, and light vegetable-packed dinners like this one instead of multi-course dinners with wine pairings. Not that I’m complaining AT ALL, btw… but it’s time to get back on track and I’m doing that by eating the rainbow: We’re partnering with Almond Breeze as part of their Serve Up Your Best campaign.…

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