I don't know the unfortunate young man's name, so I'll just call him Bob.

Poor Bob liked blooming onions, similar to the Bloomin' Onion famously served at Outback Steakhouse.

You're probably familiar with blooming onions, at least in theory. They are large sweet onions that are cross cut almost down to the root, dipped into batter and deep ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Chicago’s sandwich legacy runs deep. There is the Italian beef, doused in gravy, the Maxwell Street Polish stacked with green onions and the jibarito, a sandwich that swaps bread for twice-fried plantains.

Piled with steak, lettuce, tomato, garlic mayonnaise and cheese, the jibarito is undeniably Chicago. Created by Puerto Rican ...Read more

These chocolate chip scones are the ideal breakfast treat: They’re flaky, moist, and not too sweet. Think of them as a marriage of cream scones and chocolate chip cookies, complete with the tender texture you love in scones and the melt-in-your-...Read more

I’m a big believer that at the center of any good celebration is a delicious cake, and while the options are essentially endless, there’s a reason some cakes are classics: they’re straightforward, approachable, and sure to please a crowd. This white cake ...Read more

I love the ritual of a big Sunday dinner. Whether it’s a perfectly roasted chicken, a slow-simmered Sunday sauce, or a big pot of ...Read more

Leah Koenig’s latest book celebrates desserts, featuring 100 Jewish sweets to enjoy throughout the year — for holidays, Shabbat and everyday occasions. I chose this recipe for its moist texture and gently sweet flavor. Growing up, my family’s dessert table always included a loaf of honey cake from a local Jewish bakery, which I carefully ...Read more

Even this late in the season, our local farmers markets motivate a big shop and plenty of homemade goodness. In addition to heirloom tomatoes, patty pan squash and sweet corn purchases, the kitchen counter also holds a bevy of zucchini and sweet-as-candy cherry tomatoes from the gardens of friends and neighbors.

Leafy green salads can be ...Read more

Q: What is fenugreek used for?

A: Certain foods that we use in the preparation of our meals not only provide flavor but often have health-promoting benefits. An example of this is fenugreek, a plant that is used in Middle Eastern and Indian cooking.

Fenugreek is found within commercially available blends of curry power and can also be found in...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Sesame-seeded rolls are in at Jim’s South Street — and out at Pat’s King of Steaks.

The opposite moves by two of Philadelphia’s best-known old-school cheesesteak shops expose a divide increasingly shaped by social media. Tourists arrive expecting the crusty, seeded rolls they see online, while many longtime customers ...Read more

The liver is one of the body’s most important organs. It helps clean the blood, process nutrients from food, make bile to digest fats, and manage how the body stores and uses energy. Because it does so many jobs, the liver is strongly affected by what we eat and drink every day.

The good news is that you do not need special “detox” drinks...Read more

These last days of summer call for tomatoes, corn and sweet peppers at their peak, and this colorful cod dish makes the most of them. The sauce comes together first, with clam juice added at the end for a light, briny consistency, and crisp bacon is folded in for smoky depth. Best of all, the sauce can be made a few hours ahead, so the fish only...Read more

Whipped feta cheese is a thing of beauty. Light, yet rich; comforting, yet flavorful; and oh-so-versatile. Slather it on a toasted bagel, serve it as a dip with celery and cut vegetables, fold it into an omelet, or add a dollop to a hot, grilled steak and watch it soften. Or do as we do: Lace it with cucumber and mint, then spread it as a ...Read more

If there was one dish I wanted every single year on my birthday when I was growing up, it was enchiladas verdes. To this day, it’s one of my absolute favorite meals. While making enchiladas can seem a little daunting (especially the traditional kind), ...Read more

A cinnamon roll is something I almost always order when I try a new bakery. I love tasting baker’s iterations and interpretations of the classic treat. My favorite ...Read more

If I could make just one dessert all year long, it would be apple crumble — no question. (It’s not to be confused with apple crisp, which is similar but has oats mixed into the topping.) In my book, a really good apple crumble tops the charts of homeandleisure/recipes/varietymenu/s-4288609">Read more

I recently made tacos for dinner. And then I almost regretted it.

It's not that the tacos were bad. In fact, they were probably the best I've ever made, not that I've made them more than a handful of times in my life.

The problem was that it was a Tuesday. Taco Tuesday. I unintentionally made tacos on Taco Tuesday.

I may never live down the ...Read more

We already feel a sense of melancholy for a summer gone by. Time to celebrate with friends instead. This Labor Day, we’ll fire up the charcoal grill and skewer beef tenderloin in the backyard. With beef prices at a premium, skewers offer elevated casual entertaining along with portion control.

Beef tenderloin may be the most ...Read more

Every year, as summer winds down, I like to improvise on my late summer salad. Sometimes I use baby gems — a cross between butter and romaine lettuce — along with radicchio and arugula; other times, I return to the classic recipe that follows.

It features a mix of flavorful greens, including arugula, spinach and sweet romaine, tossed with ...Read more

Deep, vibrant green broccoli, its large flowering heads arranged tree-like atop thick stalks, stand tall as one of the healthiest and widely consumed vegetables.

The folklore

This native to the Mediterranean was derived from cabbage by the Etruscans, an ancient Italian civilization. Its name comes from the Italian word “...Read more

I’ll be completely honest; I didn’t grow up with boat dip. In fact, I had never heard of boat dip until recently. Like most new obsessions of mine, I came across it while perusing my TikTok feed. At first, I was confused. Was it a fishy seafood dip? An ancient Viking recipe? Was it supposed to be eaten out of a gravy boat? I ...Read more