Simple Cooking

Here's how to cook 4 pounds of ground beef, then turn it into pasta sauce, casseroles, tacos, chili, and more in the weeks to come.

Meet your new favorite, cold-weather one-pan salmon dinner. It’s warm and creamy with coconut milk and just spicy enough with green curry paste, ginger, and garlic.

Cutting leeks into large pieces gives them a presence equal to disks of potato, while cooking the vegetables separately before combining—the leeks are braised in butter, the spuds are simmered in milk and cream—preserves their distinct flavors.

A standing rib roast combines deep beefiness with marvelous tenderness and, naturally, has a price tag to match. But don’t be intimidated. It’s still a roast, after all, and that means it’s easy to cook.

It doesn’t take much to make slender, tender green beans memorable—lemon zest and orange zest warmed in olive oil provide sensational sparkle.

Fuyu persimmons, which resemble tomatoes in shape, are best enjoyed while still firm and slightly crisp. The sweet, meaty wedges make a gorgeous counterpoint to the tangle of peppery greens.

Bay scallops—which are smaller and sweeter than sea scallops—are found in estuaries up and down the Eastern Seaboard, from New England to the Mid-Atlantic region. Any of them will work here, but if you really want to pull out all the stops, search for those from Nantucket Bay, which are prized for their candylike succulence. Celery purée swirled with black truffle butter enhances the delicacy of the seafood.

Sure, you could pour a glass of sparkling Prosecco, but turning it into a celebratory punch rich with fruity, tart pomegranate juice and citrus takes things in an even livelier direction.

Crisp pickled vegetables go brilliantly with cocktails (or with sandwiches, a hunk of cheese, a juicy steak...the possibilities are endless). Fresh ginger and dried chiles give them a bracing boost and orange juice plays up their natural sweetness.

A simmer and soak in sugar syrup glazes kumquats and liquifies their interiors so they taste like delicious shots of marmalade.

This spicy Ethiopian dipping sauce is made from whisking berbere spice blend honey wine, beer, arak, or even just a mixture of water and honey.

Great pimiento cheese is all about spice. Red peppers and hot sauce are essential to cutting through the richness of the cream cheese and cheddar.

Essentially rows of buttery shortbread encased in a rich chocolate ganache, we suggest having a slice of this dessert by the fire with a strong cup of coffee.

Who says oatmeal needs to be sweet? Prepare the oats as you traditionally would, but instead of adding berries and sweeteners, toss in greens and kimchi, then top with an egg, hemp seeds, and avocado.

Serve this easy-to-make “toast” just as you would traditional toast and top it with your favorite toppings, such as avocado, a poached or fried egg, microgreens, tahini, fresh berries, hemp seeds, a nut butter, bananas, or strawberries.

Butternut squash is one of my all-time favorite ingredients. It has a beautiful orange color, is very filling, is great for heart health, and perhaps best of all, it’s great for healthy skin and eyes. An ingredient that’s beautiful and makes you beautiful? Yes, please!

These cookie bars are studded with the best parts of traditional fruitcake (orange zest and dried fruit) and spiced up with lots of fresh ginger.

This prep-ahead dinner can be served layered in bowls or deconstructed for picky eaters with the ginger, scallions, and cilantro sauce on the side.

Crunchy tender carrots tossed in a tangy-sweet dressing meet soft and blackened dates for literally everything you want in one bite.

Blanching the chopped orange in boiling water before cooking it with the cranberries removes any bitterness from the peel and pith.