Merlyn Cafaro, Recipe Tester

A list of all the recipes Merlyn Cafaro has tested.

A platter of Azorean carne assada--chunks of roasted beef, carrots, and sausage on a white plate.

Portuguese Carne Assada

A traditional Azorean dish that boasts meltingly tender oven-braised beef, potatoes, chouriço, and onions. It’s a rustic, homey, Sunday supper sorta dish from David’s VERY Portuguese mom.

A platter with several crab cake burgers topped with tomato in a soft roll.

Crab Cake Burger

Fresh crab necessitates only Old Bay and very little in way of other ingredients. That’s exactly what you’ll find here.

Several Swedish cardamom buns cooling on a wire rack.

Swedish Cardamom Buns

The hardest part about making these delightful Swedish pastries is choosing which combination of butter filling and sweet glaze you want.

A bowl of easy queso dip with a person dipping a chip into it

Easy Queso Dip

Whether you prefer to dip, dunk, scoop, or smother, one thing is for certain. This is the dip you want to do it with.

Hands grabbing pieces of skillet pepperoni pizza with two glasses on the side and a bowl of parmesan and pepper flakes

Skillet Pepperoni Pizza

There’s no need for takeout when you can make this deep dish skillet pizza that’s laden with blistered tomatoes, pepperoni, and mozzarella.

A blue plate with a serving of creamy French chicken stew served over rice and garnished with parsley.

Creamy French Chicken Stew

This simple chicken stew, which is chock-full of vegetables, chicken, and served in a light cream sauce, feels decadent but is surprisingly virtuous.

A fork resting in a tangle of gorgonzola and walnut linguine on a green and white plate with a bowl of toasted walnuts on the side.

Gorgonzola and Walnut Linguine

An indulgent pasta made with toasted walnuts, cream, mascarpone, and gorgonzola. Worthy of a special occasion but on the table in just 25 minutes. Boom.

Three stacks of chewy molasses cookies on a white marble cake stand.

Chewy Molasses Cookies

The holidays incarnate. That’s what these cookies are to us. They’re magnificently and traditionally spiced and are crinkly and chewy. All in the best possible sort of way.

Fig jam thumbprint cookies in rows on a sheet of parchment paper.

Fig Jam Thumbprint Cookies

A more exotic take on the traditional thumbprint, the addition of fig jam takes these beauties to an even better place. Sweet, warm, and gorgeous.

Pecan tassies in close-up, piled on top of each other.

Pecan Tassies

Here’s another recipe for those of you that desire a higher crust to filling ratio. Tassies are really just tiny pecan pies, y’all.

A wire rack with a blueberry coffee cake and 2 slices on it, glazed and with a spoon sitting beside it.

Blueberry Coffee Cake

Breakfast, snack, dessert–blueberry coffee cake does all that and more. Full of berries and topped with sweet glaze, you’re going to love it.

A close-up of a white plate on a wooden table, filled with white wine linguine covered with black pepper and shavings of Parmesan.

White Wine Linguine

Elegant yet exceedingly simple, this white wine linguine beguiles with its rich, silken flavor despite the absence of cream and a touch of butter.

A skillet filled with sloppy Joe meat mixture, flanked by a filled, untapped sandwich with a toasted top and a bag of sesame seed buns.

Sloppy Joes

Sam Sifton’s recipe for sloppy Joes is quick and, honestly, quite superb. Full of flavor and just as messy as you remember. And just as tasty.

A blue bowl filled with chickpeas, diced tomatoes, ditalini pasta, and parmesan, flanked with a crueset of olive oil and a bowl of Parmesan.

Pasta with Chickpeas and Tomatoes

A simple, rustic, and flavorful vegetarian dinner that only takes a handful of ingredients and 45 minutes. Also, it tastes really fantastic. What’s not to love?