The millennial bible for everything baking and cooking
Cookies and Cream is one of the best dessert combinations ever. So its only natural that we turn this classic combination into a cupcake. I tend to make cupcakes as opposed to cake because its easier to portion out based on number of people. Additionally it doesn’t carry the guilt of taking too big of …
I think this is one of my best ‘so I’ve got this random stuff in my fridge, what can I make’ recipes. I’d gone a bit produce crazy at my corner veggie stand and needed to make lunches for the week. I had a bunch of peppers, a huge eggplant, some leftover rosemary from a …
Ever since I was about 12 I loved Starbucks. Growing up, on any given weekend you would find me and 10 of my closest friends there for hours sipping on frappachinos. Well not much has changed, we still do that when we get together. Although these days we sometimes choose an espresso or latte instead. …
Salad. Wow. Exciting. Groundbreaking. These were my exact thoughts as I attempted to make this salad. People tend to dismiss salads as boring or too simple. But this recipe is anything but boring. However it is simpler than it looks! What I love about this salad is that you can make a lot of it …
This classic Italian dish looks complicated because of the number of ingredients. But when you get down to it, the basics of this recipe is a breaded chicken. EASY! And the sauce which is made of spices hidden in the back of your spice rack and of course the sweet Marsala wine. Which surprisingly can …
It’s the end of summer and watermelon is in season. I love watermelon, but usually don’t buy them because I hate carrying them home from the grocery store. One of those peculiar inconveniences of living in New York City. Well this week I just really wanted some watermelon so I made the extra effort and …
This week Im celebrating the last official weekend of summer with these fantastic fresh crab cakes. Although in my opinion these crab cakes can be enjoyed year round! Canned crab meat is readily available in most supermarkets year round. And could also be a refreshing change from the typical meat and potatoes winter foods. Although …
Nothing is more irresistible than fresh out of the oven pretzels. Nothing. Every Aunties Anne’s shop is proof of this. Today I made Homemade Pretzels. The trick with this recipe is having patience to let the dough properly rise, and having a trusty thermometer to ensure that the water for the yeast is the proper …
I’ve been dying to get creative with my waffle maker. I love waffles in almost any form and there have been numerous posts on social media showing people cooking crazy things in their waffle makers. Now I didn’t want to get too crazy, but I figured why not give it a shot and try cooking …
Its summer and there is nothing more summer-y and refreshing than lemon cookies made with cool whip! This is an easy recipe using box cake mix as a quick shortcut. Cause if you are like me, you want to be outside as much as you can and measuring ingredients will only slow you down. Just …
Hollandaise Sauce is famous for complimenting and topping eggs benedict, salmon or, in this recipe, asparagus. The challenge and technique of making it the right consistency with the right balance of lemon, butter and egg yolk. For this recipe we place the ingredients in a metal bowl over a boiling pot of water as a …
I was looking for a recipe to jazz up my boring morning oatmeal when I came across this recipe that only called for banana, oatmeal and chocolate chips. What could be easier! Although I did cheat and add in some raisins on my second attempt so technically there is 4 ingredients. But I argue that …
I love cheesecake, but having a whole cheesecake lying around in my fridge means I’d probably be eating way more than I should. I wanted to find a way to give into my cheesecake craving for a little less calories. To cut the sugar and avoid having to turn the oven on I figured I’d …
So often can potato recipes feel greasy, unfulfilling and just all around bleh. This recipe is colorful, healthy, and fresh. The garlic is good for lowering cholesterol and gives it a hearty kick. The lemon adds a refreshing twist and cuts the heaviness of the potatoes. All while the parsley bonds the two flavors. Just …
Another recipe inspired by my desire to create something super simple, low-cal and use up extra items in my pantry. I’d been wanting to make a pineapple cake or dessert for months and the can of pineapple and box of pineapple jello in my cupboard kept staring at me begging to be transformed. I couldn’t …
This is a one pan recipe which means more flavor and less dishes. Who could argue with that? I always find that there is a subtle complexity to Asian cuisine. Which makes it so fun to make once you learn all the tricks. For this recipe the key is to crisp the edges of the steak. …
This is going to be your new favorite guilt free chocolate indulgence. Simple, cheap and convenient ingredients all combined to create an extremely flavorful, moist and decadent chocolate dessert that you’d never guess is low-fat, low-calorie and not too sweet. This recipe came about because I had some extra carrots in my fridge (the whole …
Its BBQ season and nothing is more refreshing that a summer pasta salad. This recipe does not use any dairy or mayonnaise so its safe to keep out without worrying if its still safe to eat after an hour in the sun. This salad is light, refreshing and has a balanced taste. The secret to …
When I was making the Marshmallow icing for the S’mores Cupcakes, I had a lot of left over Meringue. Everyone that knows me knows I hate wasting food. Instead of throwing out perfectly good meringue that I worked so hard to get correct. I decided to make Classic Meringue cookies. The difficult part of making …
This week was one of those weeks where I tried something new and hoped for the best. And to my surprise was the most flavorful and complex chicken dish I have ever made. A sweet, spicy, refreshing pineapple chicken had just enough kick to make you say whoa! This recipe is my new slow cooker …
Cheesecake! If you don’t like cheesecake I don’t know if we can be friends (just kidding). But, in all seriousness, I’ve said it before, I love cheesecake and this particular recipe is a twist on a family treasure. This is my great aunt’s recipe for sour cream topped cheesecake, with the addition of a raspberry …
Countless summer’s at Girl Scout camp have taught me the ancient art of the S’more. Slightly melting chocolate and a slightly charred marshmallow between two crisp graham cracker makes for the perfect combination of flavor. This summer I wanted to transform the classic wilderness dessert into a dainty cupcake. This is the perfect dessert to …
This recipe is very simple and originated from a church cookbook contributed to by all the Italian families from my grandparent’s old neighborhood in Buffalo. That recipe book and this recipe in particular, hold a very special place in my heart. Baked Macaroni was a staple at my grandma Jo’s house when I was growing …
Today is the 4th of July, also known as Independence day. The day where we honor the independence of our nation by overeating at BBQs and decorating everything in red, white and blue. Can you think of anything more stereotypically American ? Joking aside, this pie is the perfect dessert for the fourth of July …
Around here, Fourth of July is not only celebrating USA independence day. But also marks the ancient tradition of having male folk gather around the grill, pound their chest, beer in hand and debate the best way to cook a burger. Joking aside, the true test of how good a burger is starts with the …
This recipe was born out of my husbands latest round of the ‘keto’ diet. It’s surprisingly simple, just steak, peppers, onions and some seasoning. But it’s flavorful, fun to eat and easy to pull together. Every time the keto diet comes out I struggle to find ways to keep recipes fresh tasting with enough vegetables. …
I love oats and oatmeal, they are always satisfying and create great moist chewy cookies.Taking inspiration from some old cookbooks while I was visiting my mom I devised this spin on oatmeal cookies. I figured if oatmeal cookies, especially oatmeal thumbprint cookies with jelly, why wouldn’t oatmeal mini-pies be even better! Also, adding in some …
This recipe was per the request of my husband while he was on another keto diet kick. He requested meatballs with blue cheese and bacon, so I got my creative juices flowing and devised this fun skewered version! Blue cheese meatballs alternated on skewers with baby bella portobello mushrooms all wrapped in bacon. My mouth …
It’s finally summer !! To celebrate we are making Strawberry Lemonade cupcakes. These cupcakes are the definition of refreshing, balancing bitter and sweet. So basically it is the perfect cupcake to make to impress your friends at the summer BBQs. The key to this recipe is ingredients so fresh it could bite you. Along with …
I love chicken parmesan, but it’s not the easiest to make well and usually best the day it’s made. To satisfy my craving for chicken parm and to make it into a lunch, dinner or snack friendly version I figured why not turn it into meatballs. Besides, I could lighten up the recipe and cut …
Yes, another Jello mold, but hear me out! Jello sounds boring, old-school and might remind you of your grandma, but after giving it a try I have to say these 1950’s housewives were on to something. Jello by itself is a little boring, but replacing some of the water with creamy yogurt and adding in …
We had some left over Kielbasa from Ukrainian Easter so I thought I’d make a recipe that incorporates it. After all there is only so much kielbasa charcuterie you can eat. I’ve always wanted to make a paella, after all at it’s root is a simple dish. Protein + Veggies + Rice = Paella. But …
Technically these are orange jello molds, but I just couldn’t call them that. Calling them jello molds makes them sound like grandma food from 1950 and these treats are way cooler than that. In fact, these orange creamsicle jello slices are my new breakfast obsession. They are low calorie, transportable, fun, tasty, and maybe environmentally …
It’s warm outside and I am here for it. So it’s only right that I get in the swing of summer by making some festive blackened fish tacos. With this recipe, the light fish compliments the crunchy cabbage for a dynamic flavor combination. I’ve never been a fan of any kind of uncooked cabbage. But …
Who doesn’t love bread? Also, who doesn’t love fresh, warm dinner rolls? Yes to both! I love bread, especially garlic bread. But as I’ve said before I also don’t usually have the patience to deal with yeast. So I’ve been perfecting my beer bread, or in this case, beer roll recipes. I was preparing dinner …
I recently went to San Francisco to visit a cousin whom recently moved to the west coast for a new job. While exploring San Francisco we decided to take a spontaneous road trip to Sonoma. After a fair amount of wine tastin, we stumbled across an olive oil and balsamic tasting. It wasn’t until that …
Who doesn’t love bread? But, who doesn’t know what to do with yeast, it scares them, or it sounds like too much effort? I typically answer yes to all of these. I love bread, as most people do, but I also don’t usually have the patience to deal with yeast. So what’s the answer to …
Homemade Ukrainian Varenyky also known as Pierogies. This is a classic Ukrainian recipe that my grandmother taught me. In my family this was a holiday staple. Somehow it went with every occasion. Easter? Pierogies. Christmas? Pierogies. Thanksgiving? Pierogies. I’m not sure if it’s the pierogies or the excuse to eat a massive amount of sour …
This cake looks super fancy and complicated, but is secretly simple. Made with box cake mix and requiring no frosting this recipe will impress your guests with minimal effort. The most challenging part of this cake is slicing and arranging the strawberries. I love fruit, especially berries, so I’m always finding ways to incorporate them …
Appetizers, they’re fun, bite sized, packed with flavor and usually fan favorites aren’t super healthy. Some of my favorite appetizers or snack foods include tater tots, mozzarella sticks, fried mac n cheese balls. You know, all those super nutritious things. I typically don’t devise as many appetizer recipes, but this one just came to me. …
Did you know when you eat pineapple, pineapple eats you back? That’s right, Pineapples are flesh eating monsters. Frankly I’m surprised that there aren’t more horror movies about rouge pineapples. Okay, that might be a little dramatic. But have you ever eaten a pineapple and wondered why your tongue felt funny? It’s not that you …
With Cinco de Mayo coming up I wanted to make something that is fresh, fun and festive! Like most Americans I plan to overlook the fact that this “Holiday”, although important to Mexican history, is not even celebrated in Mexico (Because no, it’s not Mexican independence day). But instead use it as an excuse to …
Easter was so nice we decided to celebrate it twice! This year Ukrainian Easter falls on the sunday after Easter. Which lends itself to discounted Easter chocolate and jelly beans. Score !! It also means we have another week to take our time in making Paska. Also known as Easter Bread. A lot of cultures …
When the weather finally gets warm I’m always craving light and refreshing side dishes. The veggie that really epitomizes refreshing to me is cucumbers, crisp, juicy, mild and they can pair with just about any flavor. Strawberries were in season when I devised this recipe and I went a bit crazy purchasing more containers …
I’m a big fan of lemon flavored anything and I also love coconut. So why not combine the two for the perfect spring dessert! That’s where these cookies originated from. I wanted something that felt like spring. To make these cookies look like spring I chose to use a daisy shaped cookie cutter and place …
Jesus turned water into wine and I’m turning Strawberries into Carrots. Well, sort of. For Easter I wanted to make something simple, easy, and fun. This is one of those posts where its not the recipe that is complicated but rather how you present it. Sure anybody can make pudding. But its how you transform …
I love Greek food. It all started when a Greek Resty opened up in my hometown when I was in grade school. I’m from a pretty small town, so at that point Greek food was new to me, but after trying it out with my mom it quickly became my favorite restaurant in town! Years …
Who likes bagels? Better question is who doesn’t love bagels. As a New York City resident they are definitely a staple, but I always end up with a few stale leftovers. What to do with the stale bagels then? Make bagel chips! They are the perfect way to repurpose your leftovers and are great for …
Snap. Crackle. Pop. Sweet. Salty. What I love about rice krispies is that they are simple, easy, fast, naturally gluten-free and versatile. There is no baking involved. No oven. No waiting. And you can serve them for any occasion just by modifying the color via food coloring drops and molding into different shapes. Valentines day? …
Chili is one of those staple comfort foods. It always reminds me of cold fall and winter days as a kid. My mom always used to make chili in a crock pot on the weekends. I’d have a bowl after coming in from playing out in the snow or on the couch watching football with …
MANGO. COCONUT. SUMMER. Do I have your attention yet? There is nothing better than some fresh mango salsa and coconut on a warm breezy beach day….. Or maybe just when you are just dreaming of a warm beach day when it’s actually mid winter and you feel like you haven’t seen the sun in months. Today …
Yes, you read that right, ‘Man Buns’. I named these delectable breakfast pastries after the ubiquitous hipster male hairdo. Why exactly? Well, for one, they are ‘buns’ and their signature swirl and inspiration from traditional ‘morning buns’ lends them to the name and ‘man’ because they are filled with ‘manly’ ingredients like bacon and peanut …
As a kid I didn’t like Brussels sprouts. It’s not that I didn’t like the taste. I really just didn’t like them because they were smelly. Every time my mom made them, she’d heat them in the microwave and the whole house would get that funky cabbage smell. As the mature child I was this …
Bacon, Cheese, Pie….. What could be better? This was my exactly thought as I finally stumbled upon the perfect recipe to use up the last of the eggs in the carton. In the past, I always found quiches to be too dry and had that bland healthy taste. And really what could be better than …
Matcha isn’t just a faze, it’s here to stay. There is something to be said for a tea that gives you just as much caffeine as coffee, but without the jitters. As well as a whole host of health benefits. Matcha has been linked to support heart health, support brain health, prevents cell damage, support …
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! St. Patrick’s Day has become a quintessential American holiday and something I look forward to each year. I also love it for all the fun holiday decor, food and festivities. While I do appreciate corned beef and cabbage, it’s not the most exciting meal and if I’m going to eat corned …
Bacon, who doesn’t love bacon? Bacon adds so much flavor to cooking and is just delicious on its own too. Yes, I realize everyone doesn’t love bacon. But for those of us that do let’s get down to business and strategize how to make those perfect crispy slices! Tools of the Trade: The key to …
Crème Brûlée when translated from French to English literally translates to burned cream. Hmm maybe we will stick to the exotic sounding name Crème Brûlée for now. The beautiful part of this recipe is that it looks impressive yet it is very simple to make and naturally gluten free. Plus you have the option of …
I love spinach artichoke dip. It’s tasty, flavorful, and feels sort of healthy because it has vegetables and classy because it has that fancy vegetable, artichokes. However, I know that realistically a dinner of tortilla chips and spinach artichoke dip, which traditionally has a lot of cheese in it (shhhh don’t tell anyone), is extremely …
Years ago, I was invited to dinner at a friend’s house. For dessert the host served Palmiers (also known as elephant ears). I almost fell off my chair when she said she made these buttery, flaky, crispy, sweet Palmiers all in about 15 mins. I always regarded these pastries as being so incredibly intricate. Little …
Sometimes you just want MEAT and by meat I mean steak. Don’t get me wrong I love chicken, but sometimes, I really just want something a bit richer, more flavorful and dare I say satisfying? We’ve all had a great steak at a steakhouse, but it’s pretty intimidating to make at home. I also used …
I always wondered why the steaks I had at steakhouses were so amazing, but I could never recreate them at home. My steaks never got that crispy seared outside and juicy center. So what’s the secret? Butter, a really hot pan & finishing your steak in the oven. Now I can’t promise you’ll be making …
This contemporary take on a classic dessert combines my love of chinese food and cheesecake. And honestly I couldn’t think of a better combination. This is the ultimate comfort dessert! The eggroll sized portions also makes it easier to transport and share (if you have any left after trying these). I ended up making …
Valentine’s Day- Happy couples may call it an occasion to express their love and devotion. While cynical singles may call it an over-hyped “Hallmark holiday” . However I personally think the most overlooked part of this day is the fact that it is socially acceptable to consume an obscene amount of chocolate. Now that’s a …
Do you have a last minute get together with friends where you have to bring an appetizer or snack? These spinach puff pastry pockets are sure to wow in taste and in ease (but, you don’t have to tell anyone that). They are a good treat to reheat and you can prep and bake in …
This Non-Mac ‘Mac n Cheese’ actually is the best thing since since sliced bread. And it can even be gluten-free too! It’s cheesy and satisfying and even has veggies in it so you feel less guilty. I’ve always been a huge Mac n Cheese fan, ever since I was a kid. But as an adult, …
This past weekend I went skiing with some friends in Upstate NY. As the song goes, the weather was frightful (about 2 feet of snow and temperatures in the negatives, to be exact). We spent the weekend digging out the cars from the snow, skiing and sitting by the fire at night. But one thing …
Looking to jazz up the regular old canned soup and classic grilled cheese with a gourmet twist? Adding a different kind of cheese and fruit to a panini is one way to do it. Roasting your own veggies and making homemade butter croutons to garnish soup is the perfect compliment to this sweet and savory …
So you got an Instant-pot . . . . Maybe it was a gift from your mother-in-law to be at your wedding shower (a hint that you need to improve your cooking skills), or you felt it was a good ‘adult’ purchase, because its a ‘multi-use’ appliance and apparently cooking is cheaper than ordering …