Sometimes food can be so beautiful. These beet and goat cheese "jewels" are simply made by layering those two ingredients. The trick is that the beet coloring — from both golden and red beets — seeps into the goat cheese, which is what gives the terrine that beautiful, varied shading.

Ever since cooking through Indian Vegetarian Feast, we've been inspired to add a tablespoon of panch phoron to everything from sautéed broccoli to a pot of beans or a jar of refrigerator pickles. This five spice mix is so easy to make yet adds tremendous flavor and aroma to Bengali dishes and anything else you can think of. 

Perhaps it's my many years as a vegetarian or my general aversion to the way fried food makes the house smell that have kept me from making fried chicken at home. But really, if I'm honest with myself, the truth of the matter is: I have no clue what I'm doing. 

Hearts of romaine are one of those kitchen workhorse ingredients that rarely get the attention they deserve. We use them to fill out our salads and perhaps add some crunch to a sandwich, and...don't think much of them beyond that. So what can you do with them beyond the usual? I have a few ideas! What about you?

Lately I've had ice cream on the mind. It seems I can't go a week without buying a new pint, and so I've started a list of flavors I want to make at home: Strawberry Rhubarb, Mint Chocolate Chip, Toasted Coconut. But that list went right out the door when I saw this recipe for Blueberry Muffin Ice cream. It boasts six light, fluffy muffins in each batch!

As much as I love eating out at fancy restaurants and watching TV shows like Top Chef, the cooking that is closest to my heart is home cooking — dishes that are humble and maybe a little homely, but feel like the food equivalent of a warm hug. This gingery chicken stir-fry is home cooking at its best: quick and simple to prepare, with a punch of flavor that manages to be both exciting and deeply comforting. Make it once and you may never call for Thai take-out again.

If you have a carton of leftover cream in your fridge and are wondering what to do with it, you are in luck. Tender cream biscuits, the creamiest scrambled eggs, strawberry panna cotta and salted coffee caramel sauce are just a few of ways you can solve the "problem" of leftover cream.

"It's the most powerful food in the landscape of American culinary experience," according to Glenn Roberts, founder of Anson Mills, producer of handmade milled goods from organic heirloom grains. Glenn is a purist. His favorite way to enjoy the delicious milled corn dish is plain, eaten alone and with reverence. I can't say that most of us southerners are so calm around our grits, but we do love them.