Jennifer V., Recipe Tester

Jumble together pasta, tomatoes, eggplant, ooey gooey mozzarella, and a splash of cream in just 35 minutes. Jamie Oliver’s quick pasta dinner also makes a mean casserole.

Summer at its simplest, not to mention its most splendid. Five minutes of effort yield a meal that rivals round-trip tickets to Italy.

This five-ingredient fix, a restaurant classic as well as a simple weeknight dinner, will have you practicing your acceptance speech for the best dinner ever.

Mind-bogglingly crisp oven-fried chicken. And it’s sooo easy. Just shake, shake, shake chicken thighs in a bag of seasoned flour and bake unattended for a little while.

It may seem criminal to bathe the walloping nutrition of lentils and mushrooms in anything but wholesomeness, but there’s something to be said for quality of life. Hello, bacon!

There’s a reason this effervescent mingling of stout and Champagne contains the word “velvet.” It’s sooooo smooth and subtly sophisticated. Sip for yourself.

Chewy, buttery, and teeming with toffee flavor, these are a sophisticated take on those made-from-a-box blondies you scarfed down with your carton of milk in the school cafeteria.

Drama. Intrigue. Aroma. Ease. These, too, can be part of your weeknight routine with this simple, surprising tactic to cooking fish.

A ridiculously rich, unthinkably creamy kin to mozzarella, burrata brings understated bling to every little thing. Prepare to swoon.

We believe in feeding kids real foods. But when you think about it, how much more real does it get than fish and bread crumbs?

Because sometimes on Thanksgiving, you need something a little stronger than wine. Especially this year. We know we will. *hic*

Mint. Muddled. Mine. When we’ve got this gin-based mojito on our minds, those are about the only words we can muster. Well, maybe add “More.”

There’s a week or two midsummer when peak blueberry and tomato seasons overlap. You’ve been warned. Go.

A simple, satiating, summery Vietnamese tradition known as ca phe sua da, this seductive classic is simply coffee, ice, and sweet, sweet, sweetened condensed milk. Here’s how to succumb at home.

Succulent. Crisp-skinned. Simple. If that’s what you seek in a roast hen, your search stops with this ooh- and aah-inducing technique.

There’s lots to love about these crowd-pleasing twists. How they look. How they taste. How they come together with ease. (Need we go on…?)

This risotto, straight from Rome, gets its flavor and color from spinach, arugula, and parsley. Its smoothness is a product of butter, cream, and cheese.

A sprightly summer cocktail, this vibrant variant on a Pimm’s Cup is a wham bam grand slam of booze, orange, lemon, cucumber, mint, and lemon-lime soda.

“Delicate.” “Flaky.” “Perfect.” “I could not stop eating it!” That’s what folks are saying about this hors d’oeuvre that’s a cinch to make—and devour.

A spoon-it-straight-from-the-jar-and-slather-it-on-everything sauce with the taste of tradition, the seduction of sophistication.