With warming spices, garlic, and ginger, this roasted carrot soup is a feel-good bowl of comfort. It’s rich, flavorful, and creamy–and there’s no heavy cream involved! Photo Credits: Suzy Karadsheh This roasted carrot soup recipe is all about bringing out the best in simple, fresh ingredients. Instead of boiling the carrots, I roast them in the oven until they’re deeply golden and caramelized. This softens their texture until it’s almost custard-like, making for a luxurious creamy base without heavy cream....

This cozy butternut squash pasta is autumn in a bowl! Roasted garlic, nutmeg, rosemary, and Gruyère cheese make the sauce rich and flavorful with no heavy cream needed. Photo Credits: Ali Redmond Mediterranean cooking lends itself particularly well to the sweetness of butternut squash. We’re all about mixing sweet and savory–from adding tangy feta to beet salad to folding dried figs into braised chicken . I wanted to embrace that Mediterranean balancing act for this butternut squash pasta recipe....

Churro chips dusted with cinnamon and sugar are an easy to make sweet treat. All you need is about 5 minutes and a few ingredients. Make them with pita or tortillas. I’m a big fan of simple sweet goodies, be it a rich pumpkin parfait or a batch of beautiful chocolate-covered dates — and I’m adding churro chips to the list. Traditional Churros are a popular treat, and it’s easy to see why....

These easy roasted sweet potatoes with red onions are the best you’ll try! Perfectly tender and creamy in the center with well-browned, caramelized edges. A few tips make all the difference, be sure to read below for how to roast sweet potatoes. It doesn’t matter what time of the year or what season, I am happy to heat up the oven for some hearty roasted veggies. Some of my go-tos are: Italian roasted vegetables , Mediterranean-style roasted eggplant , roasted cauliflower , or roasted butternut squash , done up with a little lime vinaigrette and crunchy nuts (a must-try)!...

Think of Lahmacun, pronounced Lahamajoun, as super thin, crispy pizza topped with a flavor-packed mixture of minced meat with peppers, tomato, fresh herbs and earthy spices. I take a major shortcut by using quality store-bought pizza dough. But the secret is in the spice mixture! This lahmacun recipe is the perfect prepare-ahead lunch. And it’s a great dinner on-the-go. To serve a crowd, slice it up and serve with other Mezze favorites....

This endive salad combines delicately bitter red endive leaves, sweet orange segments, salty parmesan shavings, buttery toasted almonds, and crunchy homemade croutons. It’s an easy winter salad recipe that’s elegant enough for a dinner party, but so delicious you’ll want to make it for yourself all year round! Photo Credits: Andrea Gralow This beautiful endive salad is my favorite way to take advantage of the juicy citrus available at this time of year....

This vegan French lentil salad recipe is the whole package: full of plant-based protein, fresh veggies, delicious flavor, texture, and it’s even better the next day! Photo Credits: Ali Redmond People often ask me how to incorporate more heart-healthy, plant-based protein into their diet. I have one word for them: Legumes! And if I had to pick just one favorite legume, it would be lentils. I use them in soups, add them to rice dishes like Mujadara , and make the most of vegetables in my fridge like in this French lentil salad recipe....

If bottled supermarket Italian giardiniera is your only reference, you are in for a happy surprise! Enticingly tangy and crunchy, this colorful Italian pickle of carrots, cauliflower, peppers, and other vegetables is surprisingly easy to make at home. Once you’ve had this homemade giardiniera recipe, you’ll never use store bought again. Photo Credits: Andrea Gralow Giardiniera, a popular Italian pickle made from a mix of vegetables, is the perfect addition to a sandwiches, an antipasto platter , tuna or egg salads, or as a jazzy side to grilled sausages, roasts, or frittatas ....

Tiropitakia, the tiny triangle-shaped version of tiropita, are one of the most quintessential and beloved dishes in Greek cuisine. These feta hand pies are a delicious and elegant appetizer that you can easily assemble ahead of time and keep at the ready in your freezer! Photo Credits: Bella Karragiannidis Tiropita ( τυρόπιτα ) is a savory Greek filo pastry made of layers of crispy filo wrapped around a delicious creamy feta cheese and egg mixture....

A green smoothie recipe that’s fresh, creamy, and minty? Yes, please! This vegan green smoothie packs a punch with more than three servings of fruit and vegetables and no added sugar, yet still tastes like a special treat. Photo Credits: Elana Lepkowski This green smoothie recipe with nutrient-rich spinach balances tart and sweet flavors for a refreshing morning wake-up call or much-needed afternoon boost. Wondering how a smoothie can be creamy and yet dairy-free?...

Learn how to make this 2-ingredient pistachio butter recipe to use in cakes, spread on sandwiches and toast, or upgrade your favorite dessert. Photo Credits: Mark Beahm Pistachios are a staple of the Mediterranean diet , giving everything from our crispy rice to sweet baklava a beautiful buttery crunch. So when it came to homemade pistachio butter, I wanted to capture the true pistachio taste I know and love without overcomplicating it or loading it with processed sugar and added oils....

Learn how to grill salmon perfectly so that it is succulent, flavorful, and never dry! Pro tips + two ways for delicious grilled salmon, and seasoning options you’ll love. Warm weather calls for the grill. And if it’s grilled fish you’re after, salmon is a good choice because it can stand up to the heat and won’t fall apart, and it will also keep its distinct rich flavor. Perfect grilled salmon is flaky, charred, juicy, and never dry....

Hearty, healthy, veggie-packed and delicious, this vegetarian Italian lentil soup recipe is the perfect way to welcome the New Year and bring a little good luck with it! Photo Credits: Ali Redmond Italians have a New Year tradition of gathering with friends and family to enjoy lenticchie . Not because they’re protein-packed and nutrient-rich, though that’s a nice bonus! The lentils in this Italian soup recipe symbolize abundance, as their round shape represents Roman coins expanding as they simmer....

Learn how to make the best fresh lemon ginger tea with this five-ingredient recipe! Sweet, spicy, and refreshing, it’s the perfect pick-me-up for when you need a little immunity boost or simply want to wind down for the day. Made with a bold, slightly spicy flavor profile thanks to the ginger root, this homemade lemon ginger tea is sweetened with honey and balanced with a touch of lemon and turmeric for the ultimate soothing hot drink....

My take on limonada: Mediterranean-style mint lemonade as they make it in Egypt. Intense with flavor, extra frothy, and extremely refreshing! There is a tiny trick involved that makes all the difference… There is an ahwa on every street corner in Egypt. If you’re not familiar, ahwas are small coffeehouses. We’re talking hole-in-the-wall type establishments, open to the streets and filled with tiny round tables and chairs. The air is usually filled with smoke from the hookas (water pipes)....

This Mediterranean Spinach Stew turns frozen spinach into a meal with simple but powerful flavors and ingredients. With chickpeas, spinach, tomatoes, and vermicelli this vegan spinach chickpea stew is delicious and satisfying, you won’t miss the meat! An easy spinach recipe! Spinach is often seen as an ingredient of many in something like a salad , a small side , or maybe thrown in a pot of soup . But in this spinach recipe, it is the star ingredient....

Moroccan meatballs, traditionally called kefta , are made with lean ground beef and boldly seasoned with Ras el Hanout, then pan-seared until juicy. I like to serve this meatball recipe with a zesty fresh carrot salad. I include that recipe as well, along with more ways to enjoy these bite-sized wonders. These Moroccan meatballs showcase everything I love about the humble meatball—inexpensive, easy, juicy, and so flavorful. For this meatball recipe, I flavor ground beef or lamb with a classic Moroccan spice blend known as Ras el Hanout....

This baked spinach artichoke pasta takes inspiration from everyone’s favorite party dip and reinvents it into a cozy pasta dinner. This genius baked pasta is from my friend Dan Pelosi’s new cookbook: Let’s Party (with some small modifications), and it’s the perfect comfort food for a little crowd. Photo Credits: Johnny Miller I’m so excited to share my version of my friend Dan Pelosi’s Spinach & Artichoke Dip Pasta Bake from his new cookbook Let’s Party!...

Turkish red lentil soup (kırmızı mercimek çorbası) is velvety, comforting, and nutritious! So easy to make with lentils, veggies, and spices — and it’s ready in about 30 minutes! Turkish red lentil soup, or mercimek çorbası, is a new favorite of mine — it’s velvety and creamy, despite containing absolutely no cream! Red lentils breakdown and soften easily during the the cooking process, which is how you get the creamy texture in this Turkish soup without the added fat....

These colorful sweet potato bowls burst with Mediterranean flavors—tender shawarma-spiced chicken, caramelized sweet potatoes, crispy chickpeas, and a bright, herby tahini dressing all piled over hearty whole grains. Photo Credits: Ali Redmond Sweet Potato Bowls are My Reset Meal Eat a rainbow! Big flavor, balanced nutrition, and lots of color in every bite. Meal prep-friendly! Make-ahead components mix and match easily. Totally customizable! Easy to make it vegetarian or gluten-free, and each person can customize their bowl with the toppings they prefer....