If you’re interested in more take-out style creations from my website, try my Mongolian Beef, General Tso’s Chicken, or Sweet and Sour Chicken. I can’t say that any of my Chinese-inspired recipes are authentic, so check out Red House Spice or China Sichuan if you’re looking for really authentic Chinese food recipes! Why I love this recipe: Restaurant Quality – Kung Pao Chicken is my favorite thing to order at Chinese resturants in America, and I think this recipe is a big winner!...

Easiest Chicken Pasta Dish This family-friendly comfort food recipe is easy, ready in no time, and the penne pasta is perfectly al dente and wonderfully buttery. The chicken is tender, juicy, and has so much flavor from the garlic and fresh parsley. Lemon adds a wonderful brightness to the dish and we all know anything tossed in butter, especially lemony butter, automatically tastes great. I finished the lemon garlic chicken pasta recipe with a handful of freshly shaved Parmesan cheese because obviously there wasn’t enough fat going on after the lemon butter....

comment icon 37 more comments They come out of the oven hot and steamy, with the crisp skins and the super comforting potatoey insides, and they can shine with nothing more than butter and salt. But why stop at butter? Let’s make them REALLY shine, like glitter and neon lights style. Let’s Bring These Baked Potatoes To The Next Level These loaded BBQ baked potatoes are filled with a creamy garlic herb spinach and potato mixture and then loaded with BBQ chicken, caramelized little pan roasted mushrooms, bleu cheese crumbles, crispy onions, and chives....

I did, however, have frozen mango chunks on hand. I always have those on hand. I included sour cream in the muffins that I had intended to use in the blueberry donuts because sour cream not only gives a tiny bit of tang and zip, it also keeps baked goods moist. So the blueberry sour cream donuts became mango and sour cream muffins. Not a bad trade. There was no way I was going to bake muffins without adding a streusel topping....

Easy Mango Salsa Salmon Recipe This mango salsa salmon recipe is perfect for busy weeknight dinners and since the salmon is made on one sheet pan, it makes clean up a breeze. The recipe is also delicious and fancy-looking yet fuss-free so you can serve it when you’re entertaining. Make the mango avocado salsa in advance, pop the salmon under the broiler, and dinner is ready in a flash. We adored this salmon recipe and even though it may be a bit more of a summery-feeling recipe, I wouldn’t mind this any time of year....

Hip hip! Time to look back at all the deliciousness that came to life in 2022! This is essentially my recipe version of the Spotify Top 10 – showing off what was most made, most eaten, and most thought about in my food life this year. It’s hard to choose when you love all your children, but there were some clear favorites for me this year. Here’s my top 10 list of new recipes in 2022!...

Do you love Mediterranean-inspired recipes as much as I do? Try these Beef Gyros, Hummus, or Chicken Shawarma Bowls! Why I love this recipe: Quick – This Orzo Pasta Salad is ready to serve in just 20 minutes! Nothing beats 30-Minute Meals in the summer! Versatile – Since it has cooked chicken, I like to enjoy it as a light lunch or dinner with a side salad or slice of artisan bread, but it compliments practically any main dish so I often take it to BBQ’s and potlucks....

I love the flavor and lack of kitchen cleanup that occurs whenever we fire up our favorite grill recipes, like Carne Asada Tacos, my favorite Grilled Chicken, or Grilled Pizzas! I have several grill master influences in my life and there’s one thing I’ve come to learn from all of them: there’s a standard procedure to follow when firing up the grill, and if you follow it, you’ll have great results every single time!...

Want more pasta recipes? Try Shrimp Alfredo, Short Rib Ragu, or American Goulash! Why I love this recipe: Flavor – If the best alfredo sauce married your favorite marinara sauce, this would be their baby! This recipe is inspired by the incredible pink sauce pasta from Mama D’s in Newport, CA. Easy – Restaurant quality, but you can make it at home so easily. Pantry Ingredients – No unusual or special ingredients; you probably already have everything you need in your kitchen!...

comment icon 49 more comments Minnesota in the fall might be the most divine places on earth, but, ugh. Summer. WHY. The struggle is real. Regrouping in 3… 2… Today we’ve got a teeny fun lil video to prove to you how easy it is to make a pitcher of margaritas for your next crowd, whenever they might find you, like probably in one and a half days for the holiday weekend!...

I am so excited that Scott’s coming home from his business trip and that we have nothing much on the agenda this weekend! I actually love the lack of any real plans or commitments on weekends. Just going with the flow is perfect for me lately. The only thing I plan to do is hit the gym hard and do my cardio with my family, get some pool time chaise lounge and reading time in, and just keep it mellow....

Easy Pumpkin and Banana Bread Recipe Well, here you go. My first pumpkin recipe of the season and I’ve got many more where this came from. I’ve held off as long as I can, but now the pumpkin floodgates have opened. Pumpkin puree tends to be a seasonal item even in the US where it’s well-loved. Most other countries don’t get our obsession with pumpkin, and I pity international food blog readers who read US-based blogs for three months a year....

Looking for more pumpkin recipes? Try Healthy Pumpkin Muffins, Pumpkin Cupcakes, Pumpkin Snickerdoodles, Pumpkin Pancakes, or Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread! How to make Pumpkin Spice Eggnog: Simmer Milk: In a medium saucepan add sugar, cream, milk, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg and salt then stir. Cook over medium heat until mixture reaches a bare simmer. Temper Eggs: Whisk egg yolks in a medium bowl. Scoop a ladle-full of the hot milk mixture and slowly drizzle it into the egg mixture, while stirring, to gradually heat the eggs....

comment icon 120 more comments In addition to guiding the wonder that is homemade jalapeño ranch straight into your arms today, I am also telling you how much you will enjoy pouring jalapeño ranch (❤) over a garden treasure trove of vegetables arranged in a little Rainbow Veggie Bowl. Names are almost not even worth discussing since Rainbow Veggie Bowls is absolutely the cutest name for a bowl of vegetables ever, but just in case the Rainbow Veggie Bowls brings to mind things like unicorns and My Little Ponies and you’re one of those, like, sensible people who doesn’t like to think about rainbow things, alternative names for this nutrient-packed beautiful food bomb could include Earth bowls, Garden Harvest bowls, Vegetarian Happy Lunch bowls, Ranch Lovers’ bowls, Full for Days bowls, Get Yoself a Healthy Glow bowls....

Easiest Christmas Cake Idea I am a big fan of poke cakes, but red velvet poke cakes have a special place in my heart. Especially when they’ve got white chocolate pudding poked into the center, are topped with a thick layer of whipped cream, sprinkled with Christmas-themed sprinkles, and garnished with white chocolate curls. If you’re thinking, oh that looks hard, looks complicated…you’re wrong! This red velvet Christmas cake is as easy as it gets....

comment icon 7 more comments Regardless of using pecans or walnuts, this roasted butternut squash risotto had so much rich flavor and texture (think brown sugar, wine, chicken stock, onion, bacon, garlic, lemon thyme). The combination of sweet and savory was perfect! Yet another wonderful thing about this recipe is that it is light. Kind of. In one serving, there are 257 calories and 10 grams of fat. The only problem here is that “one serving” is definitely not enough for me....

comment icon 37 more comments Stuffed tomatoes with roasted corn, basil, and cheese? I ate all 6 of them. So I was really sad to find out that the tomatoes that I’ve been buying in the grocery store are not fairly harvested. In fact, tomato fields in the US have been called “ground zero” for modern-day slavery. Even today, in 2012, the workers who pick our grocery store tomatoes – mostly immigrants from Guatemala, Mexico, and Haiti – are being forced or tricked into working in Florida tomato fields under extremely poor working conditions....

Our favorite girl is back on the blog today, and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the last day of September. Wait, the last day of September?! That snuck by so quickly, didn’t it? but here we are, getting ready to say hello to October tomorrow. I hope you’re holding a pumpkin spice latte right now (or almond milk dark chocolate, half sweet – new obsession – or PUMPKIN CHAI SHAKE WITH TAPIOCA PEARLS – other new obsession) because looking at pictures of Sage in the all her fall glory is just not the same without it....

Salty and sweet, soft and crunchy. A jackpot of contrasting flavors and textures. And since I’m a caramel fanatic, these are my sweet, sticky heaven. In case you haven’t noticed, salted caramel is pretty trendy right now, and the salty-and-sweet craze shows no signs of weakening. So I hopped on the trendy train and made these in five minutes. They’re so easy. From a time and energy invested perspective, this recipe has an exceedingly high return on investment....

comment icon 126 more comments This is not just any white chicken chili – it is a specifically non-authentic, cheap-thrills-style white chicken chili that my friend Sarah made for us a few years ago, and it might be one of my favorite soups of all time. This chili contains several slices of thick bacon and a full block of cream cheese, and thank you for understanding why this is necessary....