When I visited my parents in Indiana before Christmas, I helped my mom bake a bunch of cookies to put into holiday gift baskets for their neighbors. I chose these cookies because they are super simple (I've made them before), they remind me of brownies, and covered in powdered sugar before baking, they look like they've been dusted in snow...so...

I bought a family-sized package of cheese tortellini when we made this spinach and artichoke tortellini soup and only used half off it. While the spinach and artichoke version was light and refreshing, this meaty, tomato and pepper version was much heartier and fall/winter appropriate. Originally I envisioned large chunks of sausage or chorizo,...

Another year has come and gone, and we look back over the Best of Wafoodie 2014. Top 10 Savory Dishes Spaghetti Alla Carbonara Pretzel Brats Monte Cristos BLTA Pasta Chicken Burgers with Brie, Balsamic Strawberries, Bacon, and Basil Pistachio Champagne Risotto with Crispy Shallots Spinach and Leek Croque Madames White Bean...

Boy was this a delicious meal. We stopped by our local cheese shop, and on a whim bought some fresh burrata. When we tried to decide what we would actually eat the burrata with, all we could settle on was some kind of awesome pasta. I set my sights on making a damn good tomato sauce and great homemade linguine. It came out great! The pasta...

I made this cake to celebrate my own birthday the night before. I spent my actual birthday giving my 251 research talk in front of my area's department, which is sort of like our version of a master's thesis defense. And it was the last day of the quarter for the year. Needless to say I was a little preoccupied and wanted an easy, homemade...

Puff pastry pizzas make a fabulous dinner or party appetizer, and it's very low maintenance to make. The puff pastry makes such a flaky and buttery crust. Although you could do a variety of toppings (I think a caprese version with cherry tomatoes and basil would be perfect in the summer), this particular variety is perfect for the holiday...

"Cooking the ducks" by making some duck themed meal became a thing for us last hockey season when the Kings played the Ducks in the playoffs. Now any time we watch the Kings play the Ducks, we have to have a meal featuring duck in some way shape or form. When the Kings and the Ducks were scheduled to play on a Saturday around lunch, we decided...

We made these delicious brussels sprouts for Thanksgiving dinner, but they were so simple that we'll probably make them again for Christmas or even just a regular dinner. Who would have thought that we'd be excited to eat brussels sprouts, but they seem to be a trendy menu item at a lot of restaurants (the brussels sprouts with pancetta...

This loaf cake was inspired by one we sampled at The Sycamore Kitchen awhile back, and I knew I'd have to recreate it come the holiday season. The stout (instead of buttermilk) really intensified the deep, dark molasses flavor. I was a little worried swapping out the buttermilk in favor of stout that the texture would be off. But it was...

The very first time I made gingerbread cookies from scratch, it was quite the disaster. I randomly searched for a gingerbread recipe on the internet and decided upon this one entitled "The Most Wonderful Gingerbread Cookies." Sold. These are definitely some of the best gingerbread cookies that I've ever had. I even upped the ginger content a...