When a winter chill hits the air, there is nothing more cozy, comforting, and warming than a big pot of chili simmering on the stove (plus, it also makes your kitchen smell amazing at the same time!). While there are an endless variety of chili recipes to choose from, I always come back to the classic beef and bean chili. This tried-and-true recipe is flavored with onion, garlic, tomatoes, and warm spices — and even better, it cooks in just an hour.
What Beans Go in Chili?
Kidney beans are the classic bean of choice for chili. For ease and convenience, this recipe calls for drained and rinsed canned kidney beans. But if you happen to have a couple of cans of black beans or any variety of white beans in your pantry, they’ll work just fine. And if you’re strongly opposed to beans in chili, then Texas chili — made with cubed beef chuck roast and absolutely no beans — will be right up your alley.
How Do I Add More Flavor to Chili?
The secret to packing your pot of chili with tons of flavor has to do with both ingredient choice and the cooking process.
Here are some tips for making the most flavorful chili.
Use ground beef with a higher fat content. Fat equals flavor, so 80% to 85% lean ground beef are good choices for chili.
Cook the tomato paste. This is the key to really getting flavor from tomato paste. Plan to cook the tomato paste until it takes on a deep red flavor and is fragrant; the process takes just a few minutes.
Bloom the spices. Same goes for the spices. After adding to the pot, stir to coat the meat with the spices and cook for at least a full minute, at which point the mixture will be very fragrant.
Include unsweetened cocoa powder. A tablespoon of this pantry ingredient adds a deep, rich flavor to chili.
Finish with a spoonful of apple cider vinegar. A teaspoon is all you need. If you find that your chili tastes flat, a little bit of acidity really brightens up and rounds out the flavor.
If you’re firing up the grill this weekend, why not make it count? Whether you’re already a backyard pitmaster or just ready to level up beyond burgers and basic grilled chicken, these next-level grilling recipes are worth the time and effort. These aren’t your average weeknight grill recipes — they’re the kind of dishes that make you excited to tend the coals, try a new technique or tackle that longer cook time. So stock up on charcoal, prep your meat thermometer and get ready to turn your next cookout into something unforgettable.
Save money while making quick, easy, and delicious meals in your air fryer with these 175 low-cost, healthy recipes that are good for you and your wallet.
The “I Love My Air Fryer” Affordable Meals Recipe Book provides budget-friendly meals that are quick, easy, and delicious using only one kitchen appliance—your air fryer. Inside you’ll find 175 fool-proof air fryer recipes that cost less than $3 dollars per serving. Each recipe contains a cost estimate so you can easily stay on budget and manage food costs. You’ll also find beautiful photos, a guide to getting the most out of your air fryer, and practical, easy-to-follow ways to spend less and save big at the grocery store.
Kindle Customer 4.0 out of 5 stars Good ideas and many challenges Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2022 Format: Kindle Verified Purchase I am just a beginner with using an air fryer so reading all these recipes has given me lots of ideas and challenges! Since I'll need to covert everything to gluten, dairy, and sugar free, I will have to experiment with substitute ingredients and hopefully, I'll be able to achieve good results! I was disappointed that several of the recipes used refrigerated biscuit dough? Haven't seen any gluten free subs so will have to try subbing; wish me luck!
If there was a prize for the breakfast that delivers the highest reward for the least amount of effort, overnight oats would be the clear winner. Stir a few ingredients together, let them mix and mingle in the fridge while you sleep, and come morning you have a satisfying breakfast all ready to go.
This one is sweet and simple. It’s dotted with juicy blueberries, crunchy walnuts, and protein-rich chia seeds, and can be made with either regular milk or dairy-free milk. It’s easy to make, easy to carry with you to work or school in the morning, and even easier to eat: Just grab a spoon, give it a stir, and dig right in.
A Quick & Simple Formula for a Feel-Good Breakfast
You’ll love how how adaptable this recipe is. The berry and nut formula can be mixed and matched depending on your mood or what’s in your kitchen. Swap in raspberries or chopped strawberries for blueberries, opt for pecans or almonds instead of walnuts, and even try flax seeds in place of chia seeds. Regardless of how you assemble it, the result is a satisfying breakfast that will give you the energy you need to get through the morning and take you to lunchtime without having your stomach grumble at 10 a.m.
On May 13th of this year, my life changed forever. My dearly loved husband of 48 years passed away in his sleep. He’d spent 7 weeks in the hospital before they sent him home. He kept me company for 3 more weeks before passing. I’d had the time and forethought to prepare myself for the many impacts his passing would bring, but I forgot one very important impact. I was suddenly cooking only for one person.
Becoming an “empty nester” is something that all parents face at some point in their lives. Among all the other changes in your lives, you find yourself cooking for just the two of you. So, if you’re at all like me, you start either downsizing your recipes or you look for ones that are already sized for two. You find that the large pans, crockpots, etc., are too big now. So, you downsize your appliances.
Cooking for One now!
I have two different friends who have each lost their spouse in the last few years. Not surprisingly, neither one cooks any more. One woman who lost her spouse just last year, has her son living nearby so they frequently bring meals over to her or invite her to their house. It works well for them.
My second friend lost her husband during COVID pandemic. He’d had Parkinson’s Disease and things just didn’t go well with the isolation. Mona has taken on a number of volunteer activities that she enjoys, including helping in the kitchen for our church’s Christian School. This allows her to bring meals home from work that she can eat later.
Me, I wanted to do something different. I still enjoy cooking, just not every night. To be honest, while my husband was in the hospital, I spent the mornings with him, ran home and threw hamburgers or hot dogs in the Air Fryer and made some kind of frozen potatoes to go with. Dinner would end up being a bowl of salad that I picked up premade from the grocery store. Not exactly healthy or economically sustainable! My doctor had been urging me to change my diet for years so now seems like the best time to do that.
Meal Prepping revisited
My youngest daughter gave me this idea when she came down after her daddy’s passing. She takes one day, and meal preps her dinners for the week. I wanted to do a head slap, why hadn’t I thought of that! I’d previously thought of chopping all the different veggies up and freezing them. So, why not just do that for a week at a time? Duh!
That takes planning, and folks, I can be great at planning. I have a freezer full of meats that have been packaged for two people. So why not start with them?
So, what does all this mean for You?
Going forward from here, you can expect more books that focus on meals for one person, meal prepping for the week, and even some menu planning. I still want to include individual recipes, recipe lists, etc. So, if you find yourself cooking for just one person, hang in there, I’m bring more recipes and ideas for you and me both!
Think fast! Imagine all yourfavorite summer foods. Ever wonder why they’re all seemingly served on a stick? Popsicles and corn dogs are cool and all, but grilled skewers and kebabs steal our heart (and plate space) every year. Next time you’re at the store picking up BBQ supplies, pick up an extra pack of grill skewers. They’re a cookout MUST for a few reasons: They turn average ingredients into something spectacular, make grilling extra easy (especially for those of us who aren’t a grill master), and cleanup is a breeze when dinner is served on a stick. Check out our list of 50 easy grill skewer recipes to see what we mean—it’s kebab time!
You may think that skewering your food is a total no-brainer activity, and while you’d mostly be right, we DO have a couple tips to make sure your kebab experience goes off completely without a hitch. Most importantly, you gotta pick the best grill skewers. Right off the bat, we can tell you that the secret to stopping your ingredients from just spinning around and falling off your stick is using a pointy flat or two-pronged skewer—sorry round toothpicks and blunt dowels, you’re out! For smaller, appetizer-type options, like our Greek salad skewers or our melon prosciutto skewers, use a smaller flat wooden option. For bigger, heavier ingredients, like in our bánh mì kebabs or our grilled chicken kebabs, we prefer to use a metal option, two-pronged if you can manage it. If you do go with something wooden, don’t forget to soak your skewers in water for at least 30 minutes before putting them on your grill—otherwise, they might catch on fire, and you don’t need that. Here’s our best order of operations: Cut your meat and veggies into uniform pieces (bigger than your grill grates); marinate or season everything (for at least a half an hour is best); pat your ingredients dry as much as possible (it will help create that charred crust you want); and lastly, skewer!
Gorgeous, layered, satisfying bowls have become the next wave of healthy eating. From food blogs to Instagram, farm-to-table bistros to chain restaurants, “the bowl” has become part of our culinary vocabulary. And whole grains are not just for hippies and health nuts anymore! Hearty grains like quinoa, farro, millet, and spelt are replacing flour or corn tortillas, bread, pasta, white rice, and mashed potatoes as the base or vehicle for other, richer, more complex ingredients.
Bowls of Plenty brings grain bowls to the home cook, offering more than 75 recipes for hearty, grain-centric, one-dish meals that layer flavorful veggies and delicious sauces and vinaigrettes, with optional meats and dairy on a foundation of whole-grain staples. A mix sweet and savory breakfast bowls, salad bowls that will put an end to the sad desk lunch, flexible composed main dish bowls that work with all diets, and creative dessert bowls, Bowls of Plenty is a modern handbook for healthy and delicious cooking at home.
When I’m doing my meal planning for an average week, I’m looking for my weeknight dinners to check off two requirements: quick and easy. I want weeknight dinners that not only taste satisfying, but don’t require too much time, energy, or extra ingredients.That’s where these 30-minute dinners come in. If you need some meal inspo for the week, then these 30-minute dinners have you covered—every single day.
While I wanted to include recipes that are easy and straightforward, I also wanted to keep things exciting by spicing up pantry staples (looking at you, sheet-pan crispy ramen). Many of these recipes share common ingredients (saving you another trip to the store), but are different enough that you won’t feel like you’re eating the same thing all week. Chicken dinners are our bread and butter, but I’ve also given variety by including vegetarian, seafood, and ground beef dinners.
Whether you follow this meal guide by the day or only use it for some weekday mealtime inspiration, there’s a quick and easy dinner here for you that will be on the table in 30—minimal dishes required.
With its delectable recipes and charming girl-next-door tone, Homemade With Love is sure to be a welcome addition to the kitchens of longtime readers of the blog, In Jennie’s Kitchen. Jennifer Perillo has long written on the pleasures and importance of cooking from scratch, buying local, and eating at home. Jennie shares her love for her farmers’ markets and local purveyors while dishing out a hearty dose of practical culinary know-how for the working parent-or any busy cook.
Jennie has been writing online since 2006, and developing recipes for more than 15 years, even after the sudden death of her young husband, Mikey, in 2011. Gathering her family together around the table was her recipe for healing; though many things about her life have changed, her commitment to eating for nourishment-physical and spiritual-has not. A seasoned recipe developer and personal chef, Jennie has crafted shortcuts (like two homemade all-purpose baking mixes, used as a base for baked goods such as breads, muffins, and cupcakes) to make good eating just a little easier. Try recipes like Orange-Scented Waffles, Carrot Fennel Soup, Lentil Ricotta Meatballs, Drop Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie, Strawberry Blender Sherbet, and Lemon Buttermilk Doughnuts. Simple, soulful recipes for every meal of the day emphasize farm-fresh produce and whole foods. Jennie’s distinctive voice is an evangelist for eating close to home, lingering around the table.
Too often, home cooks fear that producing nutritionally sound meals means spending a lot of time in the kitchen, time that very few can afford to devote out of their already overcrowded and demanding daily work schedules. Perillo respects these boundaries, so she has invented some relatively speedy but appealing dishes that emphasize sound nutrition. Sherry vinegar and molasses help deepen vegetarian onion soup. Tacos recycle leftover roast chicken. A spaghetti dinner proves much less burdensome when the meatballs are frozen ahead of time. Powdered chipotle lends popcorn a uniquely smoky flavor. For breakfast, she recommends getting dressed while boiling a pot of steel-cut oats for a morning cereal so much more satisfying than instant oatmeal. Even a birthday cake needn’t make the harried homemaker resort to a boxed mix when Perillo can offer a quickly mixed and baked cake frosted in a simple buttercream. Symbols quickly identify recipes as gluten free, egg free, vegetarian, or vegan. –Mark Knoblauch
Review
I love the recipes in this collection: The ingredients are common, the cooking techniques simple and easy to learn. There is nothing complicated here except for the melding of flavors and textures that make cooking and baking an art.” Houston Chronicle
A cookbook of healthy, delicious basics, whose warmhearted author shares the joy she finds in cooking for those she loves.” Shelf Awareness
Perillo laces touching personal stories with thoughtful, achievable techniques and recipes that give conventional home cooking a serious upgrade. Drop Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie, Ginger-Lime Slow Roasted Carrots and Rosemary, and Pecorino Popcorn are among the standouts. A great starter book for intrepid, first-time cooks.” New York Daily News
Elise Bauer, creator of SimplyRecipes.com “The proper way to read Jennifer Perillo’s Homemade with Love is curled up in a crocheted blanket your grandmother made, on a comfy couch with a cup of tea or hot chocolate. It’s that kind of book. With gentle prose, simple and delightful recipes that should be in every home cook’s repertoire, and beautifully photographed, this book is one you will cherish.” Melissa d’Arabian, host of the Food Network’s Ten Dollar Dinners Homemade with Love is more than a cookbook. It’s a love song; an ode to family and life on life’s terms, and the nourishing and healing power of food prepared with joy in the heart.” Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs, founders of Food52.com Books about cooking from scratch can sometimes come across as insensitive to the budget and time constraints faced by most home cooks. But in Homemade with Love, Jennifer Perillo shares her best techniques for everything from creamy ricotta to roasted vegetable pizza, filtered through a lens of thrift and common sense. Her thoughtful, beautiful recipes thrum with personal experienceat the same time, they’re perfect for those striving to get dinner on the table every night.”
Isabel Kallman, founder of Alpha Mom”This new how-to bible on cooking from scratch surprises you because it’s so much more. Jennie reinvents the classics of our Brooklyn youths, ensuring these homemade recipes are enjoyed by a more health-conscious generation. To top it off you can create delicious meals without laboring in the kitchen for hours!” Mollie Katzen, author of The Moosewood Cookbook If you are a fan of Jennie’s wonderful blog, you probably have already grabbed up copies of this lovely book for yourself and everyone you love. If you are new to Jennie, you will soon see why she is so popular. Reassuring, unassuming, deeply knowledgeable, open, and as passionate about people as she is about cooking, Jennie will leave her mark on your kitchen and in your heart.”
Heidi Swanson, author of Super Natural Every Day Homemade with Love encompasses much of what makes Jennie Perillo so special: warmth, generosity, know-how, and enthusiasm. At its core this is a beautiful book celebrating the power (and importance) of the homemade meal as an integral part of the fabric of a home.” Luisa Weiss, author of My Berlin Kitchen and creator of The Wednesday Chef “Jennie Perillo’s accessible collection of comforting, everyday recipes will inspire even the most reluctant cook. I, for one, can’t wait to add things like her Lentil-Ricotta “Meatballs,” Olive Oil and Feta Mashed Turnips, and Apricot Butter to my permanent repertoire.”
Nothing’s better than a chicken dinner, whether it’s a weeknight or a special occasion, and nothing’s worse than a sink full of dirty dishes — any night. One Dutch oven is good, but one sheet pan to cook everything from the chicken to the sides? Now that’s a winner winner (you know the rest). We’ve got 27 sheet-pan chicken dinners here to get you started—once you’ve got the technique down, use them as inspiration to make your nights easier again and again.
When it comes to white meat, there are a few flavor combos that always work, and one of our favorites has got to be chicken and lemon. Our sheet-pan lemon butter chicken thighs capitalize on this excellent flavor combo—we add potatoes too, but it’s easy to customize with your favorite veggies for an easy, straightforward meal everyone will love.
It’s not all about straightforward dinners here either. We’ve also got a couple of sheet-pan chicken apps or snacks here too, like our popcorn chicken, our sheet-pan green chile chicken nachos, or our sheet-pan honey mustard chicken. Eat ’em as an afternoon snack, or serve up the whole tray with a variety of toppings and dipping sauces and call it your evening meal—no judgment from us!
Good Food, Good Meat, Good God, Let's Eat! 