ArcaMax

We started our slice-and-bake mocha-peppermint cookie dough with melted rather than softened butter. This allowed us to skip the usual creaming step and simply stir in the sugar along with an egg yolk and peppermint extract.

A little baking powder opened up tiny air pockets in the dough and kept it from being too dense. The yolk’s proteins ...Read more

This meatless version of the Indian-inspired British colonial soup includes parsnip and squash to keep it hearty and satisfying. Skip the naan flatbreads to make this recipe gluten free.

Winter Vegetable Mulligatawny Soup

Serves 4

Active Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 medium onion, ...Read more

The question of nature vs nurture usually refers to a person’s personality and character and asks which one is most likely to determine who you will be as an adult. But the question of nature vs nurture is also relevant to your risk of developing certain diseases.

Your genetic makeup, passed onto you from your parents, determines everything ...Read more

The holidays are over, and what most of us want are Seriously Simple recipes that are full of flavor that don’t keep us in the kitchen. This turkey breast, bathed in fragrant, slightly Asian flavors will satisfy our desires.

I have embellished this basic recipe with a few of my own flavor components. You can make this in a few minutes on a ...Read more

We all expect steak to be special at a steak house. Indeed, the dry-aged beef and bison cuts at the Mercantile Steak in Kalispell, Montana, are beyond exceptional. But it’s their giant popovers and decadent herbed garlic butter that we can’t forget.

Deeply tanned, crackly crisp on the exterior, with a pillowy soft interior, these are the ...Read more

I’m all-in on easy weeknight dinners, but sometimes you just want to tuck into a meal that looks and tastes a hair fancier than your everyday fare and is still simple enough to pull off after a long day (like these stuffed pork chops or this ...Read more

I’ll admit that I’m not the biggest sweet potato fan. Sure, I like them just fine in a pot of chili, but I rarely pick them over other sides (with the exception of...Read more

Hints for Traveling on a Diet

One of my husband’s favorite sayings is “Don’t fuel your body where you fuel your car.” Remember how you used to run in and grab a packet of those peanut butter crackers and a Diet Coke? Maybe you even added a bag of licorice strands?

Well, if you want to maintain your weight, I suggest you not do ...Read more

Nothing offers a taste of nostalgia like cooking a favorite childhood meal for your own family.

Take chicken and biscuits. Many of us grew up with this classic comfort food that allowed budget-minded cooks to stretch yet another dinner out of a roast chicken, or this time of year, turkey.

You don't need much meat to give some heft to the ...Read more

Curly endive, or frisee, is my go-to salad green through winter. The frizzy emerald leaves and creamy interior are lightly bitter and sturdy, and add oomph to rich, hearty cold-weather dishes.

Best known for its role in the French bistro salad Lyonnaise, made of tossed frisee, lardons of bacon and topped with a poached egg, this endive is open ...Read more

These Reese’s Frozen Fruit Banana Slices taste like a decadent snack, but they really aren’t that bad for you.

That’s because hidden inside a layer of milk chocolate and a thin ring of peanut butter is a full banana slice. They taste as good as they sound, and two pieces are just 90 calories.

You’ll have to store these in the freezer...Read more

Steve Hoffman was living a very ordinary life in a very ordinary suburb of Shoreview, Minnesota, when he decided to do something quite extraordinary in 2012 — take a six-month hiatus from his job and move his family to the rural French countryside.

The father of two insists it's not as crazy as it sounds. A lifelong Francophile who speaks ...Read more

Enjoy this holiday season with a special sweet and savory treat. Honey, soy sauce and spices flavor quick cooking flank steak. Mushrooms cooked with shallots and topped with fresh chives make a perfect side dish with the steak. Open a bag of washed ready-to-eat salad to complete the meal.

HELPFUL HINTS:

Onions can be used instead of shallots. ...Read more

PITTSBURGH -- The best meals are also often the simplest meals made with just a handful of everyday, easy-to-find ingredients.

And if they're both fresh and local, even better.

The pasta with clams in white sauce that Steve Hoffman perfected while living with his family in the small village of Autignac, France, is a classic example.

As ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — I recently had the best doughnut of my life — a life happily spent looking for the best doughnut.

It cost six dollars. It was a doughnut, and it cost six dollars.

And I’m pretty sure that it was worth every penny.

It was a brown butter-glazed cake doughnut from Damn Fine Hand Pies in St. Louis, and it was so good that my ...Read more

I know. There’s a lot out there to make price-sensitive wine lovers shiver, not least of all inflation and the Trump administration’s looming threat of tariffs.

Yet, when I thumbed through my tasting books for 2024, I was once again surprised by how many wines are still relative bargains: succulent, savory reds; crisp, elegant whites; juicy...Read more