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Spaghetti squash is usually relegated to side dish status on the dinner table. Steamed, roasted, or microwaved, it might be tossed with butter or olive oil and maybe some garlic. There’s nothing wrong with treating this curious squash so simply, but it’s not exactly the kind of dish that makes you crave seconds.This casserole is out to challenge what you think you know about cooking with spaghetti squash. Rather than treating it minimally, it gives the squash center stage, layering it with a flavorful but simple tomato and ground beef sauce. There are plenty of ways to streamline the process,…
On January 1, 1804, Haitians declared independence from the French colonial empire following the Haitian Revolution that began in 1791. Between 1697 to 1791, the French imported 800,000 enslaved people from Africa to work on one of the richest islands in the world, Santo Domingo (the modern Haiti), and maintain their wealth. Santo Domingo was France’s richest colony, exporting tobacco, sugar cane, and cotton all over the world. The History of Soup Joumou Enslaved Africans also cultivated squash or joumou, which they used to prepare soup joumou for their French masters but which they themselves were never allowed to eat.…
As a Louisiana native, I’ve eaten and made jambalaya countless ways over the years, but the classic Cajun-style jambalaya is the version that I enjoy the most! It’s the perfect crowd-pleaser and feeds many people so your effort in this dish goes a long way. And if you’re not feeding a group, jambalaya will give you plenty of leftovers to enjoy throughout the week. There is some prep work involved in this jambalaya like chopping veggies and browning the chicken and sausage, but once those are prepped, everything comes together pretty quickly in one pot! The Origins of Jambalaya Jambalaya…
A few years ago, a coworker asked me if my family and I celebrated Thanksgiving. Heck yeah we do, and we do it in style. Thanksgiving in my Chinese-Vietnamese-American family always had a unique flair, blending the traditions of East and West, catering to the tastes of all the younger generation, third-culture kids. Central to our feast was an umami-ful turkey infused with a marinade of garlic, scallions, soy sauce, a hint of honey, and the secret ingredient: a dash of fish sauce. And of course, we always had white rice on the side, along with blanched Chinese veggies. Flavorful…
Lifting the lid off a saucepan or a clay pot, you see succulent chicken bathing in a liquid symphony of savory and aromatic notes, and each saucy bite delivers a perfect balance of flavors. This is three-cup chicken, or san bei ji, a simple yet elegant one-pot dish perfect for a weeknight dinner that the whole family will love. My Filipino husband Jake and I first had three-cup chicken as a hotpot dish in a Taiwanese restaurant. He loved it and said it reminded him of chicken adobo. I knew I had to make my own three-cup chicken at home,…
These cabbage rolls are stuffed with ground beef and rice and baked to perfection with a tangy tomato sauce. Cabbage rolls are a favorite comfort food from Eastern Europe and are often reserved for special occasions or big family dinners. The Spruce Eats / Ahlam Raffii Freeze Your Way to Tender Cabbage Leaves Instead of boiling the cabbage, there's an easy shortcut to soften the leaves if you plan ahead. The night before you plan to make the cabbage rolls, put the whole head of cabbage in the freezer. Take it out in the morning and give it the rest…
Steak Diane was born back when you really dressed up to go out to dinner and the "best" restaurants served “continental food” (i.e. European food, particularly French, Italian, and Spanish). Why Do They Call It Steak Diane? A flashy way of preparing steak that was all the rage in the 50s and 60s, the dish was named not for a Hollywood starlet but instead may have been a reference to Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt. Steak Diane was originally made with tender game meat such as venison or elk, but the provenance is murky at best. Steak Diane was…
Picture it. You open your lunchbox and find that Mom packed you a special treat—a brownie. But not just any brownie, a Little Debbie’s Cosmic Brownie. You peel open the cellophane package and take a bite of the dense, chewy chocolate brownie. Life is good. Cosmic Brownies made their grand debut in September of 1999. Some say it was the day “a star was born,” and for 90s kids and Little Debbie fans across the United States it’s true—these brownies have left a lasting impression. There are two types of people in this world: People who like fudgy brownies, and…
The classic Cosmopolitan is a very simple drink that undoubtedly one of the most popular cocktails of all time. "Sex and the City" made it famous when the Cosmo became the drink of choice of the show's glamorous Manhattan women. It soon became the ultimate girly drink, even if it's perfect for everyone alike. Though it made it to the pop culture zeitgeist in the '90s, the drink was by no means new. Although its origins are disputed, it seems to have been first mixed in 1985 by Cheryl Cook in South Beach. Most bartenders know how to make this…
You don't need much to make yourself a stack of crispy-on-the-outside, soft-in-the-middle French toast! Just eggs, milk, bread — and don't forget the maple syrup to pour over top! How to Make French Toast French toast is very easy: whisk together eggs and milk, add thick slices of bread for a quick soak, then fry them up in a hot buttered pan. This recipe uses just a few basic ingredients you likely have in the kitchen already. Bonus: French toast freezes incredibly well, so make a big batch of easy breakfasts during the week. The Best Bread for French Toast…
