144 yummy recipes

Authentic Greek tzatziki with strained yogurt, salted and squeezed cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, and olive oil. The proper way: 24-hour drain, no shortcuts. Vegetarian dip or sauce.

Amaretto pancakes built on a five-ingredient Bisquick batter with milk, eggs, and a splash of almond-scented liqueur. A boozy brunch upgrade with optional sliced almonds folded in.

Mini nut tarts with a flaky cream cheese crust and a brown sugar pecan or walnut filling. Bite-sized pecan-tassie style cookies that bake in mini muffin tins for holiday cookie trays.

My son brought this recipe home from work one day some years ago and asked me to please make these cookies for him. His friend Brian had given him the recipe. Brian's mom had made the cookies and he would bring them in to work and give my son some. My son William said that they were so good that he wanted me to make some for him, so I made them and I loved them as well as my husband, my daughter, my sisters, and everyone else who ate them. Well, then my daughter's friends wanted me to make some cookies for them, so I just gave them the recipe and said go for it yourselves, they are so easy to make. I know you will love these cookies too because they are not the regular chocolate chip cookie variety. They melt in your mouth and you can't eat just one. Thank you to my son's friend Brian and Brian's mom for sharing this delicious recipe with me, wherever they may be.

Homemade granola with rolled oats, sliced almonds, shredded coconut, wheat germ, and cinnamon, lightly bound with maple syrup and oil. Bakes in 10 minutes flat. Toss in golden raisins or dried cranberries after toasting.

No-cook gazpacho made with Roma tomatoes, cucumber, red bell pepper, garlic, and white wine vinegar. Five-minute blender soup, vegan, naturally low-calorie, and ready as soon as it chills. Summer in a glass.

Fudgy chocolate brownies: dense, rich brownies built on six squares of unsweetened baking chocolate and real butter. The bake-sale champion that crackles on top and stays gooey inside.

Unsweetened chocolate melts into butter for simple brownies with walnuts that bake low and slow into fudgy squares.

Classic gazpacho, the chilled Spanish tomato soup with fresh tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, garlic, and a bright lime-and-lemon finish. No-cook summer dish, ready after a 2-hour chill.

Lion's head meatballs are large Chinese pork and beef meatballs wrapped in bok choy leaves and steamed in the microwave, glazed with stir-fry sauce. Easy weeknight Chinese dinner.

Avgolemono is the classic Greek lemon-egg rice soup, a silky chicken broth thickened with whisked eggs and fresh lemon juice. Light, restorative, and ready in 35 minutes.

The kids will love these scrumptious brownies that even they can help make!

Chewy coconut macaroons with crispy golden edges, made with just four simple ingredients and slow-baked until the shredded coconut turns toasty and sweet.

Easy kimchi for first-timers: salted napa cabbage fermented with green onion, garlic, ginger, and dried chile in a simple brine. No fish sauce, no special paste. Let it bubble on the counter, then chill the funky, sour, crunchy result.

Fresh bruschetta topping with Roma tomatoes, basil, oregano, capers, red onion, and balsamic vinegar. No-cook, vegetarian, and ready after a one-hour rest.

Easy chocolate fudge with sweetened condensed milk, no candy thermometer needed and no boiling sugar to watch. Five ingredients, one double boiler, ready to chill in 10 minutes.