Mummy Jalapeno Poppers are stuffed with a savory cream cheese and Monterey Jack filling, wrapped in crescent dough, and baked until golden for a fun Halloween appetizer.

“Turned out perfect and so cute! Hubby and I fought over the few leftover ones from our family party!”

—Joyce

How These Mummy Jalapeno Poppers Got An Upgrade

I originally made these mummy jalapeno poppers with candy eyeballs, because that’s what you do when you’re trying to turn a jalapeno into a mummy, right? But candy on top of a savory, spicy, cheesy popper always felt a little weird to me. In fact, the more I made these over the years, the more grossed out I was by this combination.

So now we use whole black peppercorns for the eyes. They soften and mellow as the poppers bake, and the entire appetizer stays savory from start to finish. If biting into a (softened) peppercorn still isn’t your thing, tiny pieces of black olive work, too.

The other thing I won’t compromise on is the filling. Plain cream cheese gets the job done, but cream cheese plus Monterey Jack, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika makes these taste like something I’d go back for seconds of at a Halloween party. Wrap everything in strips of buttery crescent dough, bake until golden, and you’ve got mummified jalapeno poppers that deliver on the gimmick AND the food part.

This Crab Rangoon Pizza gets a head start in the oven before the creamy topping goes on, keeping the crust crisp. Imitation crab, wontons and sweet chili finish it off.

“It was very good pizza!”

—Olga

Crab Rangoon Pizza Started With My Daughter’s Favorite Takeout Order

Crab rangoons have been one of my daughter’s favorite foods since she was barely old enough to have opinions about takeout, so we’ve eaten our fair share of them around here.

Eventually I did what I tend to do with foods my family loves and turned crab rangoon into a few different things, including my Crab Rangoon Dip. This pizza takes that same creamy, savory crab rangoon flavor and turns it into dinner with mozzarella, fresh herbs, crispy wonton strips and sweet chili sauce.

The important part is giving the crust a six-minute head start before the creamy topping goes on. Eight ounces of cream cheese is a lot of moisture to ask raw pizza dough to deal with, and that partial bake is what keeps this crab rangoon pizza crisp on the bottom instead of soft and doughy.

Six savory cottage cheese breakfast bowls with flavorful toppings, smart texture contrasts and practical tips to keep every bowl from tasting bland.

“This was so easy to make and so flavourful – the combination of the ingredients and the bagel seasoning made for a very tasty breakfast bowl that I actually look forward to eating, unlike boring oatmeal and banana, LOL. I trust your recipes.”

—Bruce

Savory Cottage Cheese Breakfast Ideas That Go Beyond Fruit

I’ve never really understood putting fruit on cottage cheese. Growing up, cottage cheese was basically a vehicle for salt and a LOT of black pepper in our house, and apparently that preference stuck. It’s probably also why I’ve always been more interested in things like Savory Yogurt Bowls than sweet breakfast bowls.

The original version of this recipe was one smoked salmon cottage cheese breakfast bowl that I came up with after buying way too much cottage cheese for my then-teething toddler. I’ve eaten that bowl plenty of times since, but eventually I realized the bigger idea was more useful: cottage cheese is a ridiculously good blank canvas for just about any savory breakfast you can dream up.

So I went back to the kitchen and turned one bowl into six cottage cheese breakfast ideas, ranging from completely no-cook smoked salmon and dill, to warm sauteed mushrooms, buffalo cauliflower and sweet potato with turkey sausage. Some lean decidedly brunchy, others are more for the people who will eat any type of savory food for breakfast.

Savory cottage cheese makes an easy breakfast base because its mild flavor works with vegetables, smoked salmon, sausage, herbs and sauces. These six bowls give you options for both no-cook mornings and days when you have 15 or 20 minutes to make something warm. Sorry, but honey, granola, berries, peaches and cinnamon can stay away!

This Lemon Chicken Orzo recipe shows you when to stop cooking the pasta, how much broth should remain, and how to keep the chicken juicy and zucchini firm.

This Lemon Chicken Orzo Is The Kind Of One Pan Dinner I Want

I use spinach in pasta all the time, including my Creamy Salmon Pasta, so for this lemon chicken orzo I wanted to change things up with zucchini. Browning it first gives it more flavor and keeps it from disappearing into the pasta, which I like because I want the vegetables in a skillet dinner to still feel like actual vegetables.

I also almost always choose chicken thighs over breasts when I have the option. They have more flavor, they stay juicier, and they are a little more forgiving in a recipe like this where the chicken cooks first and then goes back into the skillet at the end.

The final detail that really makes this recipe work is stopping while the orzo still looks a little brothy. It keeps absorbing liquid as it sits, so that slightly loose texture in the pan becomes the right texture by the time you serve it, instead of thick and gloppy.

This Southwest salad recipe layers flavor instead of relying on dressing alone, with lime-seasoned corn and beans, crunchy iceberg and a pesto ranch that brings everything together.

The Southwest Salad Recipe I Make All Year Long

I make this Southwest chicken salad all year round whenever I want a salad that eats like a meal but still has tons of fresh flavor. Chicken, black beans, avocado and cheese give it enough staying power for dinner, while crunchy lettuce, lime, tomatoes and pickled onion keep the whole thing bright.

But the pesto ranch salad dressing is the hill I’m willing to die on here. I first had pesto ranch on this type of salad at the Grizzly Peak restaurant in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and it forever convinced me that it belongs on a Southwest salad. Basil pesto in the dressing might sound odd when cilantro is the more expected choice for a salad like this, but it works surprisingly well with these flavors! And don’t worry – there’s also chopped cilantro in the salad for another layer of flavor.

There’s one other little thing I do differently. Instead of dumping the beans and corn straight into the salad, I toss them with lime and cilantro first. It gives them a black bean-corn salsa vibe and seasons them before they get tossed with the rest of the ingredients. Add crunchy tortilla strips and you’ve got my ideal kind of dinner salad: lots going on, but nothing difficult.

Skip the bland bagged tortilla strips. These homemade tortilla strips are fried at 350 degrees F for a deeply crisp texture, with simple oil-temperature and frying tips that help you get them golden instead of greasy.

Homemade Tortilla Strips Are Worth The 10 Minutes

I originally started making these tortilla strips to go on my Southwest Chicken Salad. I could have bought a bag, but the store-bought ones always taste so bland to me. Plus, I only need a handful for a salad, not an entire bag destined to sit half-open in my cabinet until the rest go stale.

Making my own solves both problems. I can slice up one or two corn tortillas if that’s all I need, fry them until they’re deeply crisp, and salt them while they’re still hot. They’re fresh, crunchy and properly seasoned, which is really all I’m asking from a salad topping.

And yes, you can bake tortilla strips. I didn’t. If we’re going to the trouble of making crispy tortilla strips, let’s fry them. Culinary school taught me that temperature control is one of the biggest factors in successful frying, so we’re heating the oil to 350 degrees F and working in batches. That gives the tortillas a quick, crisp fry instead of letting them hang around soaking up lukewarm oil.

This Peach Chicken recipe is one you’ll look forward to making every summer. Juicy chicken thighs, ripe peaches and a bright basil gremolata come together in one skillet for a dinner that’s simple enough for a weeknight but special enough for guests.

A Peach Chicken Recipe That Makes The Most Of Fresh Summer Peaches

We’re always looking for new ways to use fresh peaches in savory recipes, and this one started with two things we had in abundance last summer: beautiful peaches and more basil from our garden than we knew what to do with.

After a little testing, we landed on a combination we’ll make every peach season. Juicy chicken thighs are seared until deeply browned, then roasted with peaches and shallots until everything is caramelized around the edges. Just before serving, a bright basil gremolata adds freshness, acidity and lots of herby flavor.

The result is a peach chicken recipe that’s decidedly savory, not overly sweet. It’s weeknight-friendly but impressive enough for guests, and one of our favorite ways to celebrate peach season.

This Hearts Of Palm Salad recipe is made to let the delicate flavor of hearts of palm shine instead of covering it up. Learn exactly how to prep canned hearts of palm, when to add the avocado, and how to keep the salad fresh and vibrant every time.

“I absolutely LOVE making and eating this salad. It has just enough of the special stuff to make it an elegant salad for entertaining and the taste is beyond amazing.”

—Sarit

This Hearts Of Palm Salad Is Bright, Creamy And Ready In 15 Minutes

If you’ve ever spotted a can of hearts of palm at the grocery store and wondered what to do with it, this Hearts of Palm Salad recipe is a great place to start. Tender hearts of palm are tossed with creamy avocado, juicy tomatoes, fresh herbs and a bright lime vinaigrette for a simple side dish that’s ready in just 15 minutes.

The biggest mistake many hearts of palm salads make is adding too many ingredients that compete with the star of the show. After several rounds of testing, we found that keeping the dressing light and using avocado, onion and herbs lets the mild, delicate flavor of the hearts of palm really shine. It’s a fresh side dish that pairs really well with grilled meats, seafood or Tex Mex favorites.