ArcaMax

The creamy, buttery, cheesy flavor of Alfredo sauce is always a welcome treat.

For an autumn touch, I added a little pumpkin to the sauce, giving it a subtle seasonal flavor and beautiful color. Fresh tuna cooks in just minutes, making this a quick and satisfying dinner. I used rotini pasta, with its corkscrew shape that’s perfect for ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Walk down a commercial street in almost any Chicago neighborhood or a busy corridor in the suburbs and it’s hard to escape some form of suspect food imagery. Burgers with weird bun patterns, burritos that might induce typophobia (a fear of holes), rice that looks like maggots, cheese dripping over a sandwich in suspicious symmetry, ...Read more

It takes a big man to admit when he is wrong.

Then again, if he says “it takes a big man to admit when he is wrong” when he admits that he is wrong, it sort of diminishes the whole impact of what he is doing.

I worked late the other night; I think I was the last person in the newsroom. I was stressing a bit over the story I was writing, ...Read more

Invite a splash of color and vibrancy to your party with these skewers. Extraordinary Exotic Fruit Skewers are a celebration of nature's candy.

Ingredients Dragon fruit Star fruit HoneyInstructions Cut the fruits into bite-sized pieces and thread onto skewers.

Drizzle with honey before serving.

These skewers ...Read more

This speedy version of the Mexican classic will have your guests shouting 'Olé!' in no time.

Ingredients: 1 cup grated cheese Jalapeños Tortilla chipsInstructions: Melt cheese and jalapeños in a skillet until bubbly.

Serve immediately with tortilla chips.

Quick Queso Fundido is a bite-sized fiesta that's ...Read more

Brown butter and sage are a classic couple that will never steer you wrong. Whether you use the sauce to dress a bowl of pasta or add another dimension to a homeandleisure/recipes/varietymenu/s-4336343">Read more

I have a pantry stocked with ingredients purchased while traveling. Truffle oil, dried porcini, aged balsamic vinegar, unusual pasta shapes from Italy, black currant cassis liqueur from France, paprika from Spain and marmalades from London. All get tucked away for special occasions. This holiday season I’m cooking the hand-harvested wild rice ...Read more

Pumpkin is a nutrient-rich and delicious vegetable to enjoy this season and all year long.

The folklore

Pumpkins are a beloved symbol of autumn: bright orange spheres lazing in pumpkin patches, decoratively adorning porches and tablescapes, carved into jack-o-lanterns, and savored in Thanksgiving pumpkin pie. A Mexico native, ...Read more

After more than 20 years of writing this column, I’m stepping away to pursue new projects. Before I say goodbye, I want to share my all-time favorite recipe: chocolate brownies. They’ve never failed me and embody the Seriously Simple approach — the entire batter comes together in one double boiler. Slightly chewy and wonderfully moist, ...Read more

Whenever I go home to Minnesota to visit my family, there’s one thing that I always request: Grandma’s overnight yeast waffles. To me, these are the quintessential waffles and all others are held to their standard. They’re crispy on the outside and tender in the middle, but they’re also a touch chewy from the overnight rise with yeast.

...Read more

French onion soup is one of my favorite cold-weather comfort foods. These pork chops transform everything I love about the classic into a hearty skillet dinner. The ...Read more

Here’s a fresh take on bruschetta, the classic Italian appetizer usually made with juicy tomatoes spooned over crisp, toasted bread.

For this quick dinner, I turned the idea into a main dish, using seasoned chicken breasts as the base and crunchy croutons as the topping. To keep their satisfying crunch, break the croutons into smaller pieces...Read more

On these busy fall weeks, most cooks have meals they can pull out of their back pocket without much thought.

I make a chili that can go from stove to table in less than a half-hour, and quick chicken-wild rice soup and spaghetti recipes that have become family favorites. Factor in the occasional taco night and breakfast for supper, and mealtime...Read more