BRING ON THE MUFFINS If you need a meal prep breakfast that travels well, you can’t do much better than these healthy egg muffins. Just heat up a couple and carry them out the door or take a container to work with you to throw in the microwave. Or, if you are kind of crazy like me, you can even eat them cold. For some reason I don’t mind eating these egg muffins cold....

I’ve seen plenty of recipes for pear butter, but most of them look like apple butter to me, heavily spiced with cinnamon and cloves. Pears are more floral than apples. I wanted to see them with ginger, and nutmeg, and maybe some cardamom. So when my pal Hank offered me a a bagful of Bartletts freshly picked from his backyard tree, I was all over it. This pear butter is similar to apple butter in that it is a spicy, sweet, tangy spread, great over buttered toast (there is no “butter” in apple butter or pear butter), but with a distinctly different taste coming from the pears (obviously) and the seasonings of star anise, ginger, lemon, cardamom, and nutmeg....

Still, I like to occasionally throw a curveball into the mix. Brussels Sprouts for the Holiday Table Brussels sprouts are always a standard on my holiday table. Mostly I keep them simple, either roasted with salt and pepper and a sprinkle of Parmesan, or shredded into a light starter salad and tossed with apple cider vinaigrette and dried cranberries. These roasted honey chipotle Brussels sprouts will fit right in on your table spread, but they bring a fun twist....

The key to cooking a delicious batch of from-scratch beans on the stovetop depends on two things: the age of your beans and knowing when to salt them. The rest is up to you. Which Dried Beans to Cook I use this simple stovetop method for small, medium, or large beans such as the following: Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)Navy beansBlack-eyed peasBlack beansPinto beansGreat Northern beansCannellini beans. Note: This method will not work for lentils or split peas, which are not really beans per se but still in the legume family....

How to cook sausages in the oven How to store Leftover sausages can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 days If you’re looking for an easy and effortless way to cook sausages, then baking them in the oven is the way to go. This cooking method is ideal if you’re feeding a large group of people, as it’s a hassle-free way to cook multiple sausages at once....

Buy Choice or Prime Grade steaks for best results. What temperature should steak be cooked to? Whether you like your steak practically raw on the plate, or dry as a bone, this steak doneness chart should help you out. The chef’s standard level of doneness is medium-rare. At this point it will be tender, juicy, and if you do it just right the steak will melt in your mouth. With practice you can tell how cooked a steak is just by feel alone....

With this method for refrigerator pickles, you don’t need to get out the canning equipment or have any special pickling know-how. They’re made with a simple brine and pickle in just 24 hours right in the fridge. They’ll keep for up to 1 month—if they last that long! Video: How to Make Easy Refrigerator Pickles The Best Pickling Spice Blend You can make your own pickling spice blend, or use a store-bought blend....

What kind of jar or container should I use? When pickling any kind of vegetable, you should use containers that are suitable for fermentation and pickling. These include stoneware, glass, and food grade plastic containers. Mason jars are the most commonly used containers for pickling for home cooks. Can I make different flavors of pickled red onions? Yes you can! You can use a very basic recipe for pickling and then add other items to the container to change the flavor slightly....

Except that butter melts more easily. Ay, there’s the rub! Butter starts to melt around 89.5°F, but the average body temperature is 98.6°F. Many-a hopeful pie maker has been thwarted by pie dough that became greasy, sticky, or soft enough to fall apart as they handled it. That’s why food processors gained ground as the tool of choice: they cut down on the time your warm hands get pawsy with the dough....

Here’s a little tip that you may or may not know about ginger: it is very helpful for nausea. It is the only thing (and believe me, I’ve tried everything) that helps me with sea sickness. Pregnant women I have known swear by it. The root itself is rather gnarly, and can be a little bit challenging to peel and cut, so I’ve put together a quick how-to, starting with this short video of my preferred way to peel ginger, with a spoon!...

Hummus with Lamb (Hummus B’lahmeh) is one of my favourite Middle Eastern starters. The combination of creamy hummus with the fragrant lamb and the crunch of pine nuts scooped up with fresh pita bread will change your view forever about the humble hummus. There are many versions of this dish across the Middle East. Yotam Ottolenghi’s version from Jerusalem: A Cookbook is made using lamb neck which is finely chopped and marinated in spices before frying....

If you’re trying to throw together a meal last minute, this side dish is quick, easy, and pairs really well with baked or skillet chicken meals. Get some rice going, and you now have a balanced meal the whole family will love. We hope you’re ready for this next phase of your life where you embrace your broccoli! Can I use frozen broccoli florets? Yes. The average head of broccoli should yield three to four cups of broccoli florets when removed from the head, and this is the amount you’ll want to use if substituting with frozen broccoli florets....

It takes just under two hours for the beef to cook to perfection, so it’s tender yet sliceable without falling apart. With a generous pile of pressure-steamed cabbage, carrots, and potatoes on the side, you’ve got a full Irish-American dinner to celebrate the holiday. What Is Corned Beef? Corned beef can be made with brisket or round, but brisket is my favorite since it tends to be more tender. If you’re lucky, yours will come with a nice fat cap on top, which keeps things extra moist....

A Quick, Vegetarian Weeknight Meal A pressure cooker makes quick work of this vegetable-packed Pasta Primavera— and I love my Instant Pot! Broccoli, carrots, and bell peppers add a rainbow of colors and flavors to a big pot of penne pasta. Then it all gets tossed with olive oil and Parmesan cheese. The veggies steam in just 10 minutes in the pressure cooker, and then the pasta takes about 20 minutes more....

This recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, and healthy if eaten in moderation. Let me show you how to make rice and beans together in your instant pot pressure cooker. Instant pot rice and beans recipe I talk about how I use my instant pot and pressure king pro pressure cooker to cook beans without soaking them first a lot. I eat beans at least once a week and I love it....

The recipe inspiration This recipe is kind of personal to me, because it is loosely based on a recipe from Betty Crocker’s Cookbook (aka the BIG RED cookbook). This is the oldest cookbook I own (circa the year 2000) and it was given to me by my Mom. I remember when she gave a copy to my brother, sister and I for Christmas, it must have been 2000 or 2001. For me, this was when I was just starting out in college and really cooking a lot on my own for the first time....

This is a cookbook exclusive recipe! This recipe is exclusive to my debut cookbook Dinner which includes a how-to video for every recipe. Just scan the QR code! Just to explain…. I know, it’s confusing! You’re so used to getting recipes on my website – there’s over 1,200 of them, after all. And here you are looking at a tasty recipe video and I haven’t provided the recipe. 🙀 I’m not just doing this to torture you, I promise....

There are times I think much of the world would like to box me in and believe that I’m a chef only capable of making Asian cuisine, purely based on how I look. It’s the first question I’m usually asked whenever anyone knows of my profession, and I try not to get irritated by it each time. But there’s always a few unknown truths to consider for any chef’s background, and there are a few of my own that just might make folks laugh....

Bacon: This recipe calls for cooked and crumbled bacon. My favorite way to cook up bacon is to bake it. It’s super easy, and doesn’t require me to babysit it at all. Perfect bacon every time! Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Lay strips of bacon out in a single layer, placing them as close together as possible to fit an entire pound of bacon onto one baking sheet. Place the baking sheet into a cold oven and set the temperature to 400 degrees....

Pressed for time? Make this quick Lemon Cake with Lemon Glaze. Lemon Cake This is a three-layer Lemon Cake with a beautifully tender crumb that’s adapted from my Vanilla Cake batter. The Vanilla Cake batter is one of my master recipes that I adapt to all sorts of cakes. It could be blueberry-studded ones, a pink, real strawberry cake (in the works!) or even a layered chestnut cream Mont Blanc Cake....