Joanna Miller

We love the stuffed cherry peppers we find in gourmet shops, though at upwards of $10 a jar, they can be a bit pricey. But peppers from the farmers’ market come cheap, and with a simple brine, you can get the same results for much less. All you need is buy some fresh peppers, poke the tops, and make the brine – a mix of white vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper. I first discovered pickled cherry peppers at the Ruby Tuesday salad bar.

The Fruit Slinger blog, one of our favorite summertime reads, is back for another season of commentary from the front lines of the Chicago farmers’ markets.But the Fruit Slinger doesn’t just sell the fruit – he knows a thing or two about preparing it, too. Below, he’s shared a salad recipe that highlights our current favorite ingredient: Strawberries!

A few years ago, our attitude toward Brussels sprouts hadn’t changed since childhood. In other words, we didn’t want anything to do with them. But they’ve enjoyed a bit of a resurgence, to put it mildly Personally, I’ve never had a problem with lima beans and happily ate them as a child, but I seem to be in the minority on this one. They’re not so different from other types of beans, though, with a wonderful buttery texture.

If it’s a classic deviled egg you’re looking for, you best keep on moving. There’s no mayonnaise or mustard here, and we haven’t even bothered with any fancy piping. What we do have, though, is one pretty delicious bite. These deviled eggs are made with creamy, tangy Greek yogurt, flavored with smoked paprika and sun-dried tomatoes, and topped with crispy frizzled shallots. Easter in my house isn’t complete without a tray of deviled eggs.

Fries don’t really come to mind when you think about eating healthy, but these are baked in the oven and served with a light yet creamy garlic dip. Plus, they’re loaded with big flavor from a spice that’s having a moment right now. I recently tried a similar dish at a Lebanese restaurant in Chicago’s Albany Park neighborhood.

I try to be organized and prepared in the kitchen, but despite my best efforts, I can be a little scattered sometimes. When I hosted an Easter brunch this past weekend, I changed the menu several times during my preparations and ended up forgetting a few ingredients at the store. With my budget spent and time running out, I was determined not to make another trip. Luckily, as I made do, I stumbled upon a great recipe that I can’t wait to make again.

This is a last-minute St. Patrick’s Day recipe, but luckily it’s a fairly quick one. File this one under Un-Meat – all the rich, hearty goodness of Guinness stew without the beef. This recipe took a bit of tweaking to get the seasonings right, but I think a small amount of sugar is the key to round out the bitterness of the Guinness. And as with most stews, it’s even better the next day.

Last week, we mentioned spring rolls as a possible holiday appetizer that can please a wide variety of eaters. But since spring is several cold and snowy months away (at least here in the Midwest), we thought we’d try a more seasonal variation.We adapted this recipe from Recipe Girl’s Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Seed Rice Paper Rolls with Cranberry Chile Dipping Sauce, which was adapted from a recipe in Veganomnicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

Brie-style cheese might not come to mind when you think about macaroni and cheese. We often reach for the sharpest variety when making a batch, but a soft-ripened cheese like Crave Brothers Les Frères is a great, super-creamy alternative. Especially when it’s paired with earthy mushrooms and a little white wine. Think about eating a Brie-style cheese on its own – it’s great with white wine, and its flavor is accentuated by walnuts and mushrooms.

We get a lot of recipe inspiration from restaurant dishes. One recent meal inspired not only a recipe, but a serving idea, as well. We tried a trio of dips at Chickpea, a Middle Eastern restaurant in Chicago, and the one that really got our attention was a zucchini, mint and yogurt spread called Koosa ma Laban. But we were also quite taken with all the wonderful colors in the restaurant’s decor and serving plates.

We’re big fans of Mark Bittman and his Minimalist approach to cooking. When he came up with 101 easy picnic recipes, we couldn’t wait to try them out. We used his video recipe for edamame salad with fresh mint, lemon and Pecorino cheese a couple nights ago. Paired with bruschetta and a little herbed goat cheese, it was a perfect light summer meal.We liked the recipe so much, we decided to make it again last night to take to an outdoor concert.

We’ve come across two recipes for salt-roasted potatoes in the past few days – is that enough to call it a trend? Maybe not, but it was enough to pique our interest and give it a try. Get our verdict, and a few tips, below.The February issue of Better Homes & Gardens features a recipe for skillet salt-roasted potatoes. New potatoes are roasted whole on a bed of salt and fennel seeds in a cast iron skillet. And what’s most intriguing – it’s all done on the stove top.

Last summer, we talked about Slate’s 12 steps to better pasta salad But step No. 3? “Avoid tortellini.” Well, we think we found an exception to that rule. We can see how tortellini could be a bad choice for a pasta salad. Something meat-filled might be too heavy, and dried tortellini with reconstituted fillings could bring a bad flavor. But fresh tortellini with a light cheese and herb filling? We think that’s just fine.

Earlier this week, we mentioned our newfound love of muhammaraOriginated in Syria, muhammara is a great addition to our usual rotation of hummus, tzatziki and baba ghanoush – particularly when friends stop by – and its bright color and flavors make it a standout. It also has great versatility. Eat it with pita, crudité, grilled meats or vegetables, on a sandwich – the possibilities are endless.And it couldn’t be simpler to make.

We’re not usually big on gimmicky recipes, but the beginning of another school year put us in the mood to make something fun for lunch boxes, even if our own school days are long behind us.We’ve seen a few peanut butter and jelly “sushi” recipes, but they are usually more like thin wraps, and we wanted to make something with a little more structure.

I’m ready to hit the Chicago farmers markets this week and stock up on all the super-fresh local produce I’ve been craving since last fall. I’ll most likely bring home as much as I can carry, and then I’ll be faced with the happy task of finding ways to prepare and eat it. This is one recipe I know we’ll be turning to, especially because it can be so easily adapted to use whatever ingredients look best.

When we came across a decade-old Bon Appétit recipe for Wine-Marinated Grapes, we were intrigued. But when we learned the recipe would yield a ready-made cocktail as well, we simply couldn’t resist.A big bowl of cool, slightly boozy grapes is exactly what we’re craving this hot and steamy weekend.The grapes marinate for at least three hours (up to a day) in a mixture of dry white wine, sugar and lemon zest, and then they’re ready to go.