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.

Q: How can I recreate at home Heinz baked beans with the red tomato sauce, typical of english breakfasts? My little brother loves the taste.

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Making authentic Mexican food can sometimes feel out of my comfort zone, but after discovering delicious carne de puerco at a favorite local joint, I knew it was high time I try. Now that I know how easy it is to achieve this dish of tender pork smothered in a charred tomatillo sauce at home, I may never again need to "go out" for Mexican ever again.

Any trip to Texas will likely include an experience with chicken fried steak and Cholula hot sauce. Chicken fried steak (lovingly called CFS) is a southern classic, while Cholula hot sauce (introduced to the states here in Austin, TX) is a popular condiment that adds a Texas kick. See what happens when these icons get hitched in this new take on a Lone Star tradition.

Sometimes I come across something online and think to myself, "Well, it's about time!" And this is exactly how I felt when I stumbled across a recipe for a simple do-at-home bánh mì sandwich last week featuring ingredients you should be able to track down at your local well-stocked grocery store or Asian food market. Say goodbye to the days of paying for Vietnamese take-out, and hello to economical and delicious do-it-yourself bánh mì. 

Have you ever become so totally obsessed with an ingredient or recipe it completely takes over your life? Because that is exactly what happened when I recently sampled an ethereal Chocolate Hazelnut Torte at a local Atlanta restaurant. That particular sweet and nutty flavor combination is always a favorite, but it was the crispy, creamy wafer crust that had me at hello.

I've never in my life come across bad mashed potatoes. (I take that back. Potato flakes and a blender are coming to mind.) But usually my taste buds do not discriminate: cream, buttermilk, garlic, and Parmesan are all welcome additions to my favorite spuds, and I will never turn my nose up at cream cheese, truffle oil, even powdered ranch. I can assure you that I will eat any mashed potatoes — all mashed potatoes — with joyful glee. However after devouring these gouda smashed potatoes for the second time, my standards may have just changed. More

Even chefs have to eat. And, boy, do they eat! Staff meals, served family-style in the dead zone between the lunch hour and arrival of the first dinner guests, are made of the odd bits and leftover scraps from the restaurant's regular menu dishes. But don't think this means that these dishe are boring, sloppy, or otherwise unexciting. The quirky and creative staff meals served at some of the world's best restaurants, gathered in this cookbook by Christine Carroll and Jody Eddy, show that sometimes the cooks eat best of all. More

I recently had the best Pad Thai of my life. It was one of those restaurant meals where the person cooking takes us under her wing and simply says, "How about I just cook for you?" Chef Ngamprom "Hong" Thaimee of Ngam in NYC's East Village then brought out plate after plate of regional Thai cuisine from her native Chiang Mai, Thailand, and I was floored.

Normally when I have this kind of meal out, I try to savor it as just that: a meal out that I will probably not make at home. But this was different. In particular, Hong's Green Papaya Pad Thai was a game-changer. Replacing the traditional rice noodles with shredded green papaya isn't a new trick — and one that's gaining a wider audience thanks to its lower carb count — but I'd never thought to make it that way at home. So I called her the next day and asked her to please teach me. This week, I visited her kitchen. More

Oh, monkey bread! How we love you — little pull-apart nuggets of buttery, gooey cinnamon goodness. And I've been thinking about how easy monkey bread is when you've been making pizza! What? How are they related? Well, leftover pizza dough is a perfect base for monkey bread and other breakfast treats. And even if you haven't been making pizza lately, store-bought, ready-made pizza dough is also a way to get these into the oven (and into your mouth!) that much quicker. More