Author: Chef Jen

Anyday Dinner

Anyday Crispy Tacos

This is a throwback to those crispy shell, ground beef tacos of my childhood, but oh! so much better! There is nothing authentic or traditional about these tacos. The hard-shell taco is an American invention, and these definitely blow the processed, pre-packaged taco mix out of the water. In my humble opinion, my family heartily […]

Sunday Supper, The Sauces

7 Steps To Simply Roasted Chicken

A simply roasted chicken is a go-to for your dinner toolbox. Whether it’s for a Sunday Supper or mid-week fare. It will reward you with juicy meat, everyone’s favorite piece, shatteringly crispy-salty skin, and the best is the leftovers for lunches, salads, sandwiches, and bones for homemade chicken broth. This is not really a recipe […]

Dessert

Blackberry Mascarpone Pie

This is the pie I dream about, and you will too, long after blackberries are out of season. When I was a kid we had a ridiculous hedge of blackberry brambles that ran all along one side of the house and edged around the field that was behind us. I would go out before they […]

Dessert, The Basics, The Sauces

THE Pie Crust

There are few words to say about this pie crust except that it is amazing! It’s flaky and buttery and everything you want in a crust. THE Pie Crust recipe is more about the technique than the recipe itself. The ingredient list isn’t unusual or very different from what you generally see in a crust […]

1000 Calorie Salad

Jeweled Winter Squash and Bitter Greens Salad

This is the first installation of my 1000 calorie salad series. To be completely transparent, this is missing one very important component…protein, but that can be easily added. What’s a 1000 calorie salad? It all started with my good friend Joe…he pinned the term for any salad that is an entire meal in itself. There […]

Dessert

The Cheesecake You Never Knew You Needed

For my son’s 21st birthday he requested cheesecake. I knew I wanted to make him a decadent, luxurious, and overly impressive version. I came across a recipe on Epicurious originally published in Gourmet’s November 1999 Issue. This became an instant family hit. This cheesecake recipe is based on the version from 1999 and has become […]

Anyday Dinner

Anyday Meatballs and Sauce

When I think about where my love of cooking comes I always go back to my Grandma Frasca, and nothing reminds me more of her than Meatballs and Sauce with fresh homemade pasta. My grandmother was an amazing cook and spending hours in the kitchen with her during their annual summer visits is my all-time […]