Elsa M. Jacobson

This Havana-style black bean soup is gonna surprise you with just how intensely flavored it is despite calling for inexpensive everyday ingredients.

An insanely satiating comfort food fix that's as quick and easy as it is inexpensive. Refried beans and cheese atop toast with pico de gallo. Wish we'd known about this a loooong time ago.

You say artichoke. We say carciofi. That's Italian for "pointy leafy thing that turns meltingly tender when cooked like your nonna knows how."

Words sort of elude us when we attempt to describe just how stunning and scrumptious we consider this dish. Just...wow.

Whether you're observing Passover or simply having a tricky time finding flour, these flour-less brownies will satisfy with their ever so slightly crumbly outside and splendiferously fudgy inside.

Sometimes carrots aren't quite as sweet as we'd like them to be. This kid-tested tactic takes care of that occasional oops on the part of Mother Nature.

These shatteringly crisp, undeniably sophisticated potato ruffles—chips, if you will—have no ridges. Nor do they need them. They're intoxicatingly lovely just as they are.

It's no surprise that a traditional Scandinavian cookie would be warming. Chalk it up to an inspired melding of cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, black pepper, and cocoa.

We used to get our gratins and scalloped potatoes confused. But then we tried this gratin. Guess which one is now our favorite?!

Words escape us as to just how incomparable this made-from-scratch grape jam is compared to store-bought. That smile certainly says it all.

Comfort finds us in unexpected ways. Thank goodness for that. And thank goodness for this not-too-sweet, subtly apple-y, kid-friendly quick bread.

When life hands you too many doughnuts—yes, it's possible—make pudding. You heard us. Doughnut pudding.

These uncannily crisp, seemingly shortbreadish cookies from San Francisco's Miette are--and we mean this--unlike any you've ever encountered.

Perhaps the easiest chutney ever, this calls for simply simmering apples, onion, curry powder, tomatoes, and sugar, and then ladling it into jars. See? Easy.

This purple-stained cake—er, what's left of it—calls for just old-fashioned goodness and the season's most compelling fruits. Got milk?

Everything you remember from childhood--slathered with butter, sprinkled with cinnamon, and, if you were lucky, drizzled with honey.

True story: This luscious little number inspired one toddler to dip and dunk his way through an entire bag of baby carrots. An entire bag. Behold, the power of the dipper!

Flaunting an always-stunning, goes-with-anything white, this coconut cake glams up dinner parties, bridal showers, weddings, birthdays, and Tuesday nights.

Named for the time it takes to be beaten into delicious submission, seven minute frosting is delicate yet sturdy, light as air yet luscious as can be.

This little ditty is simplicity itself. Drizzle fresh, creamy goat cheese with a little honey and behold the loveliness of sweet, sweet synergy.