Upgrade a simple burger recipe and make it pop with an easy three-ingredient jalapeno cheese topping. Ground sirloin is lean ground beef made exclusively from the center loin cut and makes a super-tender burger. These days, more flavored cheddar cheeses (like jalapeno, chipotle or habanero) are filling up the specialty cheese section. But easy-...Read more

One of the fun things about Asian food is when you’re with friends and everyone gets to sample a little of everything. But you don’t always have the time, or budget, for such a smorgasbord. Fortunately, Asian food at the supermarket has come a long way since the canned chicken chow mein of the 1980s. Between the frozen and international ...Read more

Sometimes I want to have a few friends over for a nice, relaxed dinner. This is the dish I fall back on year in and year out (with some variations along the way). I like to serve this chicken dish at small dinner parties, because I can make it in the morning when it’s cool and reheat it while I’m entertaining my guests. (This may be prepared...Read more

Chances are, your guests, your children, and your best friends say they dislike peas. Especially peas and carrots. Baby carrots bore us all. Challenge accepted.

First off, at this time of the year, ditch the frozen variety. This is the season for fresh, sweet spring peas; markets and some stores sell them already shucked for ease of use. The ...Read more

Wings are one of my favorite parts from the chicken — I could easily eat a pile as a meal. Deep-fried wings are wonderful, but they can be a pain to make sometimes. Grilling, on the other hand, is one of the easiest ways to cook off a lot of homeandleisure/recipes/varietymenu/s-3718024">Read more

When my grandparents moved to the United States from Thailand, they lived in Maryland for a few years before they found that to be too cold — the complete opposite of what their life was like in Thailand — and eventually settled in South Florida. One of the main reasons for this move was the abundance of produce, which reminded them of home,...Read more

This month In-N-Out Burger became the center of the discussion of synthetic additives in foods when news broke that the Southern California fast food chain had stopped using artificial colorings in its Signature Pink Lemonade and Strawberry Shakes and is in the process of replacing its current ketchup made with high fructose corn syrup to one ...Read more

This zesty pasta salad draws inspiration from the flavors of elote — a Mexican recipe with grilled corn on the cob that's smothered in a creamy mayo-based sauce and sprinkled with chili powder, cotija cheese and lime.

Elote-Inspired Pasta Salad

Serves 6

Active Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

6 ounces small whole-wheat pasta such ...Read more

Eating a variety of foods fuels your body with nutrients important for health. Nutrient-dense foods can help by providing a high amount per calorie of vitamins, minerals, and other health- protective compounds. By contrast, highly processed “junk” or “empty calorie” foods provide a lot of calories without much nutritional value that may ...Read more

As the author of “The Cuisine of California” and “The California Cook,” I researched the history of what we know as Chinese chicken salad. It turns out the first sighting of this now-American classic was whipped up at the famous Santa Monica, California, restaurant Madame Wu’s.

Legend has it Cary Grant, the beloved movie star, ...Read more

Every May, delicate sprigs of fresh mint and skinny chives push their way up to the garden by my kitchen door. Inspired to use them before they get overgrown, I add them to salads, scrambled eggs and fresh salsa.

Cilantro grown in Midwestern gardens also tastes sweetest when young. My pots of assorted basils won’t be ready for weeks; ...Read more

There is absolutely nothing in my mind that compares to a perfectly ripe avocado. Well, that was until I tried avocado fries. I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that I was a wee bit skeptical...Read more

Every family makes their own unique version of fried rice, a classic Chinese dish. When I was growing up, my parents always made fried rice the day after we had a big dinner. Leftovers like homeandleisure/recipes/varietymenu/s-3713547">Read more

A Colorado whiskey was crowned America’s best at an international spirits competition, beating out hundreds of other liquors for the title.

Talnua Distillery in Arvada was awarded the top whiskey accolade from the American Distilling Institute’s 2025 International Spirits Competition, which announced its winners on Wednesday. Its Bourbon ...Read more

A mix of cool, crunchy vegetables gives this healthy salad a satisfying bite for a perfect side dish. It’s a great accompaniment to your weekend barbecue menu.

Creamy Cucumber, Radish & Tomato Chopped Salad

Serves 6

Active Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ...Read more

There are a lot of claims about why we should avoid carbohydrates, including the claim that carbs make us “fat.” But is that actually true? A closer look at nutrition suggests that the devil is in the details.

Added sugars, high-fructose corn syrup, and white flour are processed forms of carbohydrates. Carbohydrate-rich foods also include ...Read more

I’ve never been much of a cookie maker, but when my friend Nina said, “Diane, you have to try these cookies,” I said, “OK!” I have mastered my chocolate chip cookie recipe, which results in a crispy and not too sweet cookie, so I thought why not try these oatmeal cookies, studded with finely chopped medjool dates and chopped pecans.

I...Read more

No matter the Memorial Day weather, the grill makes an appearance. The menu shifts as the clouds roll in — quick-cooking, fully-cooked brats when downpours happen, perfectly moist, bone-in pork chops in the sunshine.

Today’s lean pork may be good for our waistlines, but tricky for grillers. The challenge is to reap the ...Read more

The Yucatán Peninsula is a magical region in Southeast Mexico that’s rich in Mayan history and surrounded by beautiful waterfronts and jungles. In the towns, you will find colonial haciendas that are often lined with citrus trees and a very particular one called lima agria. From the outside, it resembles a large lime, though when you try it, ...Read more