This stellar cornbread is a combination of all things comfort—from ricotta to white and orange cheddar cheeses to cornmeal, jalapeños, and buttermilk. Serve with my Beef Chili Like None Other or as a treat unto itself. Any way you serve it, you can’t go wrong! (more).

Instead of settling for bland supermarket tortillas, now you can enjoy the best homemade corn tortillas. Here I recount my tips of decades of experience, which I learned from my own trial and error and from Honduran women I met in the Peace Corps.

These apricot crumble bars are out-of-this-world, with a phenomenal pairing of sweet n’ sour apricots, a nutty almond crust, and a pecan topping that will have you pleading for more. This dessert is one of the reasons that I look forward to summer every year! (more).

This showstopper of a salad is a gorgeous dish to serve with alternating warm and cool tones of orange-speckled apricots and green-dappled celery and chives. Given a chance, it will bring out the artist in each of us! I find this salad as tasty as (more).

This out-of-this-world pasta is a delight with its overtones of savory prosciutto, caramelized shallots, and fresh English peas, all deglazed with a splash of dry white wine and thickened with heavy whipping cream. Rich in a complexity of flavors, this pasta hadn’t sparked my taste (more).

This savory English pea soup is a cousin to split pea soup, only you don’t have to mess with a bulky ham hock and lengthy cooking times—what a bonus! In its stead, caramelized shallots, crispy prosciutto, and buttery garlic take the place of ham off (more).

This mouth-watering dish is one of my favorites to date with the winning combination of fire-roasted green chiles, mildly sweet corn tortillas, and melted cheddar cheese. Yet the secret ingredients are the creamy chive cream cheese, tempered by sour cream, and the earthy black olives. (more).

These green chile and cheese pastry poppers will melt in your mouth as the epic southwestern flavors of cream cheese, sour cream, olives, cheddar cheese, and chilies are complemented by flaky, pastry puff sheets. It will be a surefire hit of any party, as your (more).

I find that salsa verde can be unpleasantly acidic, but here, I temper the typical sour note by omitting the lime juice and pairing it with ripe, charred tomatillos and a dash of salt instead of sugar. Use this as a dip on chips or (more).

I was first introduced to this luscious banana smoothie while in the Peace Corps in Honduras. Ever since, it’s been a longtime favorite and is easy to make, taking only 3 minutes to prep and using only 3 ingredients. Plus, it’s naturally sweet, consisting solely (more).

Sometimes I feel that I have the best hobby in the world. What can beat taste tasting margaritas until I hone the perfect combination of sweet limeade, sour lime juice, and briny sea salt? This recipe took various iterations to perfect, but my family was (more).

This nutrient-rich Mexican cobb salad is packed with protein and fiber with over 65 and 27 grams, respectively. Plus, it’s delicious with buttermilk dressing offsetting the smoky achiote chicken, sweet corn, seasoned black beans, hard-boiled eggs, avocado, and mozzarella cheese. What a slice of heaven! (more).

This buttermilk dressing is so delicious that you’ll be licking the back of a spoon! This dressing was a failed attempt at making ranch dressing, but what came out of this experiment was a huge win! Try this dressing on my Zesty Mexican Cobb Salad (more).

Although pearl couscous was invented in Israel, I give this salad a tropical twist with the complement of cashews to a curry dressing. Top it with dried apricots, golden raisins, and shredded carrots, and you’ll have a meal that your family will clamor for more! (more).

This vegan French lentil salad is nutrient-rich in fiber with 31.2 grams per serving and packed with plant-based protein with 32.8 grams per serving. Plus, it is delicious with a sweet hint of maple syrup, apricots, and carrots caramelized in balsamic vinaigrette. It’s a great (more).

These Mexican soy tostadas are fast and easy to make, requiring only 18 minutes and using just 6 ingredients, one of which is water. The crumbled Mexican soy is a good source of protein and makes this dish vegan if paired with vegan sour cream. (more).

This homemade red enchilada sauce is so addictive that you’ll be topping it on a plethora of recipes, like my Mexican Soy Tostadas.  It’s also a nice accompaniment to eggs, like the traditional dish of Mexican huevos rancheros. Try it for yourself and tell me (more).

Who can’t enjoy seven layers of heavenly chocolate, creamy butterscotch, nutty coconut, earthy walnuts, creamy butter, and a flaky, graham cracker crust, all held together by condensed milk? This bar is a slice of heaven, and once you taste it, you’ll know what I mean! (more).

As a young girl, I’d sprint one block to my grandma’s house and we’d spend the afternoon, immersed in one of our favorite pastimes: baking, Needless to say, I grew up on these legendary peanut butter cookies, which are decoratively crisscrossed and sprinkled with sugar. (more).

A spin-off of my Asparagus, Potato, and Leek Frittata, this Bacon, Asparagus, and Cheese Frittata is stupendous with its savory bacon and shallots, garlic, and veggies cooked in its flavorful drippings. Then, add a heap of cheeses and you have the perfect Sunday brunch dish! (more).

I call this apple crisp, three’s a charm, as it took three tries to perfect. It was one thing or another —either too many apples, not enough topping, or forgetting the brown sugar. But the third time was a charm and well worth the blunders, (more).