What’s New

Vote in the Away from Home Cooking Contest! — Cooking while traveling: kind of an impossibility, right? Nope! That’s because at Extended Stay America hotels, every room has a kitchen. Not a mini kitchen, a real “kitchen kitchen” (equipped with pots, pans, bowls, utensils, a cutting-board, knives and an Away From Home Cooking cookbook — among other essentials.) That’s why I shared this video recipe, about three minimalist but delicious ways with polenta, here. Don’t miss it! (more…)

Welcome — If you’ve arrived after seeing Barefoot Contessa, I’m so happy to have you! To stay up to date on all things BGSK, follow me on twitter, facebook, and instagram or sign up for the weekly newsletter. Happy holidays!

mike’s hard recipe inspiration, coming your way! — Hi all! Popping in today to give you a preview of a holiday recipe I’ll be sharing next week. It’s part of a partnership with mike’s hard lemonade. Though it’s definitely satisfying in the summer, there are fun new flavors in a mike’s party kit that make a bottle really lovely to drink around the holidays. One of those, the mike’s hard cranberry lemonade, was the festive wintry inspiration behind a dessert I contributed to a dinner party this weekend, and which I’ll be sharing with you next week, as part of this collaboration. Let me just tell you that it involves swirls. Pink swirls. Can’t wait to share!

Around the Web: Hunter Boots and Cup of Jo — Happy Thanksgiving! Big Girls, Small Kitchen has been getting some awesome pick-up around the web, and I wanted to share some links with you. Fitting on this day of thanks, since I’m so grateful for old and new readers. Thanks for being here!

Joanna featured my Blue Cheese Rotini with Spinach on Cup of Jo.

I’m wearing a pair of Belize Hayden Short Boots and sharing my pumpkin clafoutis recipe over on Hunter’s U.S. website.

Shana wrote a lovely profile on Greatist…we cooked some pasta together, and I especially love how she summarized my obsession with cooking at home.

I wanted to tell you about my partnership with Seven Daughters: I’ve been working with the wine company to develop fun cooking tips around wine, like adding whole bottles to your stews or sipping a glass of wine while you cook!

A sweet Slate piece about why, sometimes, you do need as many desserts as people at your Thanksgiving table.

Around the Web: Spice Cabinets and Homemade Milks — Here’s what I’m reading on the foodie internet this week. I haven’t done one of these in a while - hope you enjoy!

A solid set of pantry spices will transform your cooking from meh to delicious. Here’s how to build an essential spice cabinet, even on a budget.

It’s soup season! A dozen of my favorite soups to sip.

Since I got my Vitamix blender, I’ve been obsessed with making homemade non-dairy milks. They’re so easy and delicious. Here’s the recipe I follow for my favorite-cashew milk. And here’s how to make my second favorite, coconut milk.

The bok choy at Tasty Hand Pulled Noodles in Chinatown is outstanding, and this video‘s got the secret to recreating the garlicky greens at home.

File under irresistible: Gaby’s Chicken Parm Panini.

Around the Web: July 4th and Best American Recipes — Here’s what’s keeping me occupied on my way out to the beach for fireworks, barbecuing, and all-around relaxation. Have a great 4th!

I put a twist on 8 all-American favorites for LearnVest, from burgers to potato salad.

Not far afield, First We Feast published my curated collection of the Best Classic American Recipes on the Entire Internet, presented so that you never have to suffer subpar meatloaf or cakey brownies from a badly Googled recipe again.

In the competition to make the best red, white, and blue dessert, TheKitchn’s July 4th trifle gets my vote.

Indoor s’mores, which take the form of chocolate bark.

How to tell if your avocado is ripe without cutting into it, long before a hard avocado thwarts your guacamole making.

And, this visually poetic formula for what to do with spring and summer vegetables lingering in your fridge. (I made a clean-out-the-fridge version last night.)

Around the Web: Easy Recipes on Cosmo and Why Your Dinner Doesn’t Taste As Good As It Looks — Here’s what’s keeping me occupied these days in between stuff I’m, you know, supposed to be doing.

My grilled cheese obsession got literal about the time when Martha threw a round of Brie on the barbecue.

I contribute a couple clever (or so I’d like to think) cooking tips to this collection of kitchen know-how in Women’s Health.

Pretty sure that this pantry-friendly tuna-avocado bowl is going to be my next dinner-for-one addiction.

As a food blogger who sometimes has to photograph brisket in the morning, I found this meditation on blogging, photography, authenticity, and good food to be really thought provoking.

And I had a blast helping Cosmopolitan think up delicious meals and snacks to make with only the random stuff you have sitting in your fridge.