When Cambria asked Faith and myself for some help coming up with a main course for her Spring Vegetarian Dinner Party for Six, at first we couldn't decide. Faith thought it should be creamy and green. Cambria wanted a vegetarian dish that wasn't just another platter of pasta. I advocated for something satisfying and hearty, but still light enough for a spring meal. The final vote was unanimous: a pureed soup of peppery spring watercress served with warm goat cheese dumplings. Done and done. This recipe is a winner.

I love dinners that stretch on into the night. Long after dessert is over and the plates have been cleared, when the candles are burning low but there's still another bottle or two of wine, when everyone's moved into the living room or out on the patio, when people are feeling tired, contented, but not quite ready to go home yet... that's when you put on this playlist. 

Wine Pairing is a more of a wine term or a concept than a wine word. It is also a term that can be controversial, ambiguous and even cause anxiety. I am not one for imposing rigid rules when it comes to wine pairing, so what I offer are tips and guidelines rather than hard and fast rules.

I am always hunting for new warm weather recipes, whether I am hosting a barbecue, attending a potluck, or just filling my fridge with a simple salad for the week. Pasta salad is a particular favorite of mine (you can never have too many in your arsenal), so when a reader requested "copycat" recipes from the Whole Food's salad bar, I jumped at the chance. This version — with smoked gouda, roasted red peppers, and artichoke hearts — is rich, creamy, and one of the best I've made yet.

A few months ago we launched a new monthly series, Gatherings from The Kitchn, showing you the real-life parties we host in our homes, large and small. We started off with Faith's cozy Italian polenta party, followed by Anjali's charming book club brunch. This week I'll be sharing a spring dinner party I hosted in my small Brooklyn apartment. You'll read about my light, fresh vegetarian menu — centered around soup, not pasta! — the simple ways I arranged a few bouquets of store-bought flowers, and how I transformed my living room for the occasion with some clever rearranging and a few twinkling lights.

Are you in the mood for a sparkling spring dinner for six? Then come along to mine!

Q: I am planning my wedding for October and would love to have some homemade desserts. We live four hours from our wedding venue and would need dishes that can travel well and still be good up to 48 hours later. Any ideas for small desserts other than cookies that would work?

Sent by Michelle

I grew up in a household of musical-lovers. My sisters and mother and I spent hours snuggled up under blankets on the couch, watching Singing in the Rain and Brigadoon and other classics. One of our favorites was a 1935 piece of sparkling fluff called Naughty Marietta, with Jeanette MacDonald as a French princess who flees an loathsome marriage — all the way to the New World, where she meets the handsome Nelson Eddy, a militia captain who of course falls for her bubble-headed charm. 

Where is this going, and what does it have to do with roasted vegetables? There is a punchline in Naughty Marietta we loved to quote, giggling, where the practical captain indignantly instructs the princess in disguise, who has no idea how to cook a meal: "You don't cook a radish, you eat it alive!" Sorry, dear Nelson — you could sing the moon out of the sky, but you didn't know too much about radishes. 

When it comes to cooking in the kitchen, there's nothing more fun to make than cake! If you really want to step up the creativity and excitement, try your hand at making a cake with fondant. Whether you make it for a friend's birthday, or just make it for yourself, it's a learning experience that may become a new hobby.

Kids know how to party! Check out the latest festive celebrations from the Apartment Therapy's Family channel, which posts kids' parties every day. We'll be bringing you a roundup of these inspiring parties every week.

• Violet's Pink Zoo Party
• Ashni's Janelle Monae Party
  
• Daxton's Little Explorer Party
• Casper's Animal Safari Theme


• Harper's Pearl Party

Yesterday Emma and I shared a little peek into my new cookbook, Bakeless Sweets, and today I'm going to give you the goods: a recipe! I had a hard time choosing which one to share with you (Pistachio pudding? No-bake creme brûlée? Raspberry yogurt squares? Tiramisu?) but I settled on this tart lemon icebox cake for a very particular reason.