recipe ideas

For Naomi Betker, baking comes easy. The Woodbury resident has been whipping up sweet treats since childhood—but her favorite hobby took a turn when she was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2014. Read more about Tasty Treats

Kowalski’s has received Best Rotisserie Chicken awards multiple times, including as recently as last October. It’s so convenient. It’s a wonder anyone ever roasts a chicken at home anymore; it can be messy, time-consuming and stress-inducing. But I find cooking a whole chicken to be one of the truest tests of any chef and immensely satisfying. Read more about Don’t be a Chicken

The vegan diet, also known as veganism, has been growing in popularity—and it’s no wonder considering people have been cutting out animal products and byproducts for environmental and ethical reasons, among others. But oftentimes, questions about veganism arise, and finding the answers isn’t always the easiest.

We turned to Kelly Zugay, a St. Paul-based lifestyle blogger, who is vegan and shares her favorite recipes on her blog (kellyzugay.com).

Read more about The Value of Veganism

A few months ago, I happened across a 2017 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report stating that only one in 10 adults meets the recommended federal guidelines of one-and-a-half to two cups of fruit and two to three cups of vegetables per day. Considering how I typically eat, that didn’t come as a shock to me. Rather than wait until the new year, I decided (some might say resolved) to start eating more fruits and vegetables. Read more about Going Green

Stress baking—for some, it results in dozens of chocolate chip cookies or a new interest in sourdough bread. For Jessica Van Hemert, it resulted in a business: Haute Chocolate, a wholesale baking company that supplies local eateries with fresh baked goods. Read more about From Baking Flops to Failsafes

Somewhere, someone in your family or friend circle is already planning this year’s Thanksgiving meal. This annual celebratory feast serves as an expression of gratitude and helps us connect or reconnect with loved ones around a bountiful table of nostalgia-inducing dishes. And, at the center of most Thanksgiving banquets or buffets is most often a turkey. Read more about Let’s Talk Turkey

I don’t mind turkey, ham, etc., but these traditional holiday offerings are just never as exciting to me as practically anything else on the table. Side dishes have all the fun—they’re more interesting to look at, have more texture and offer complicated layers of flavor that turkey simply doesn’t.

Arguably, that’s the critical purpose of a side dish—to provide the crispy, crunchy, creamy mouthfeel a main dish doesn’t. The best sides also provide temperature contrast—a sometimes overlooked element of the taste experience. Read more about A Side of Perfection

The old adage, and once popular book title, Chicken Soup for the Soul, is no joke. Turns out chicken broth truly is a restorative food. Dieticians claim that broth can help keep you hydrated, clear congestion and ease cold symptoms. Bone broth, commonly referred to as stock, may be even more beneficial for health-conscious consumers; and local business owners of Freak Flag Organics and Taking Stock Foods are making bone broths that are a tasty and convenient source of nutrition.

Read more about Taking Stock

For many of us, some form of cereal is a staple in the morning meal rotation. Boxed cold cereals and precooked grains are convenient and can be particularly nutritious when done just right.  The darling of the internet, overnight oats, makes oatmeal easier than ever because you prepare it the night before. It’s a simple, versatile and healthful recipe that’s portable, too! Read more about The Most Important Oatmeal of the Day

The North Star State, the Land of 10,000 Lakes, the Gopher State, the Bread-and-Butter State—though Minnesota has numerous trademarks, its culinary scene is also unlike any other.

We’re no stranger to comfort foods (I’m talking about you, tater tot hotdish!) and easy-to-make meals, but Minnesota also offers unexpected discoveries, such as Indigenous and Asian foods, and crave-worthy dishes. So though our favorite foods may be off the beaten path, these tried-and-true favorites are tasty, homecooked and quintessentially Minnesotan. Read more about Famous Foods