the american table

New Burger on the Block  by Jean Kressy

Just when we thought we had seen all there was to hamburgers, the recipe for Thai Turkey Burgers landed on our desk.

Nice Rice  by Jean Kressy

We know that making a pot of risotto requires practically all of your attention. In addition to keeping the broth at a bare simmer, the rice needs almost nonstop stirring.

Spring Fruit Compote  by Jean Kressy

If presentation counts for anything, the fruit cup at one of New York’s fanciest restaurants was a stunner.

Chicken Salad in a Snap  by Jean Kressy

In 1907, an enterprising Philadelphia delicatessen owner named Edward Schlorer added preservatives to his wife’s mayonnaise and sold it as salad dressing.

Southern Comfort  by Damon Lee Fowler

There are few things in life that are perfect, but pimiento cheese may well be one of them.

Butter Baking  by Jean Kressy

As much as we respect the current thinking about the health benefits of soft spread, trans-free cooking fats, we know that for baking, nothing beats the taste of butter.

Dreamy, Creamy Dessert  by Jean Kressy

We are happy to report that Frozen Chocolate Cream is as creamy and chocolaty as the best chocolate ice cream or mousse.

Easter Brunch  by Jean Kressy

Shrimp salad and popovers are a terrific combination that would never have occurred to most people.

Bread Pudding  by Jeanette Hurt

there's only one dessert that matters in New Orleans: bread pudding.

Spanish Bites  by Jean Kressy

To say that empanadas, which means “covered with bread,” are turnovers with savory fillings does not do them justice.

A Dragon's Tale  by Candace Floyd

As soon as we heard her name-Crescent Dragonwagon- we knew: Here's a person who's a lot of fun.

Kids and Veggies  by Jean Kressy

Kids usually know when someone is trying to put something over on them, so our approach has always been to let them see what they're eating.

Great Grains  by Jean Kressy

What has always impressed us about grains is how easy it is to substitute them for one another.

The Look of Love  by Jean Kressy

The torte, which has Valentine’s Day practically written in every mouthful, is easy enough to make.

Nest Eggs  by Jean Kressy

Thirty years ago, a recipe for eggs in spinach nests might have had a hard time making it to print.

A Labor of Love  by Jean Kressy

With the sauces, the shredded cheese and the boiled noodles draped over every bowl in the kitchen, putting together a pan of lasagna was a labor of love.

Double Dips  by Jean Kressy

If turkeys are for Thanksgiving and chocolates are for Valentine’s day, dips are for Super Bowl Sunday.

Go Bananas  by Jean Kressy

It is no surprise that pastry chefs have dressed up their banana cream pies with everything from dark chocolate curlicues to butterscotch drizzles.

Mushrooms and Chicken: A Classic French Dish  by Jean Kressy

We can remember when making coq au vin might have meant taking time off from work to shop for mushrooms.

Indiana Icon  by Jean Kressy

Virginia has Chess Pie, and Pennsylvania has Shoofly Pie, but in Indiana, there’s Hoosier Pie.

Italian Bread  by Jean Kressy

Focaccia is a flat bread cooked on an open hearth or on a flat stone under a layer of ashes.

Holiday Beef  by Jean Kressy

It would be wrong to think the only thing that binds us together at Christmas is a standing rib roast.

Celebration Santa Lucia  by Jean Kressy

Saffron buns, or lussekatter as they are called in Sweden, are the lightly sweetened S-shape rolls that bakers make to celebrate the festival of Santa Lucia on December 13th.

Dinner in a Flash  by Jean Kressy

For some of the world’s best food, which is traditionally cooked in a matter of minutes, the place to look is in Italian cookbooks.

Slow-Cooker Soup  by Jean Kressy

About 35 years ago, Americans cleared off space on their kitchen counters to make room for Crock Pots.

Perfect Thanksgiving Starter  by Jean Kressy

Last Thanksgiving, instead of sitting down to a table crowded end-to-end with turkey and side dishes, we decided to start with a first course.

Cabbage Cousins  by Jean Kressy

Brussels sprouts, named after the Belgium capital, originated in northern Europe and were probably first cultivated in this country in the early 19th century.

Perfect Pie  by Jean Kressy

To make a flaky crust, it helps to understand what happens when a pie bakes.

Ballot Box Boon  by Jean Kressy

The first mention of Election Cake, which turns out to be more of a yeast bread than a cake, was in the spring of 1771 in Hartford, Conn.

Cupcake Comeback  by Jean Kressy

After years of languishing in the shadow of multi-layered, multi-tiered and densely frosted cakes, cupcakes are making a comeback.

French Tart, American Make-Over  by Crescent Dragonwagon

One busy day in 1889, a little French apple tart made culinary history.

Pie Crust 101  by Jean Kressy

The directions for making a pie crust sound ridiculously simple: “Combine flour and salt, cut in shortening, add water, and shape into a ball.”

Sauce It Up  by Jean Kressy

Recently, we decided our all-purpose tomato sauce, the one we depend for pizzas and spaghetti with meatballs, and anything else that needs a blanket of sauce, needed sprucing up.

Old-Fashioned Dessert  by Jean Kressy

We have always had a weakness for old-fashioned desserts, which explains why our recipe box is filled with recipes for crisps and cobblers.

The Real Ratatouille  by Jean Kressy

With all the buzz about Ratatouille, the summer 2007 animated movie, we decided to revisit Ratatouille, the recipe.

Beyond Convenience  by Jean Kressy

Braising, one of the oldest ways of cooking, originated as a method of preparing food on an open hearth.

Farmhouse Chowder  by Jean Kressy

Before deciding that summer is not the right time for a pot of hot soup, read what Jasper White has to say about corn chowder.

Cake as Big as Texas  by Jean Kressy

It's a big old-fashioned cake, easy to transport and a real crowd pleaser.

Cake for Breakfast...or Anytime at All  by Jean Kressy

There is a limit to the number of fried green tomatoes we can eat, so we decided to do a little culinary improvisation.

Comfort Food  by Jean Kressy

It's hard to imagine any connection between a falling Dow Jones and food habits, but in the early 1990s, people headed for comfort food.

Supper Hit  by Jean Kressy

We are great fans of the dinner hour and have always thought "come for supper" had a friendlier and more appealing ring than "join us for dinner."

Hawaiian Nut  by Jean Kressy

We have always thought one way to meet people at a party would be to stand in a corner holding a bowl of macadamia nuts.

A Cookie Cake  by Jean Kressy

Coconut Crumb Cake is one of those recipes you never quite believe. To begin with, it has only seven ingredients.

Banana Pudding with a Twist  by Jean Kressy

When faced with a couple of ripe bananas and leftover cornbread, we decided to turn them into one of New Orleans' most delectable desserts, Bananas Foster.

Rising to the Chicken Challenge  by Jean Kressy

Without lifting the lid of every pot, we know that most cooks choose boneless, skinless chicken breasts for their recipes.

Jubliee Celebration  by Charyn Pfeuffer

Food historians generally credit French chef Auguste Escoffier for creating Cherries Jubilee to mark Queen Victoria's Jubilee celebration.

Queen of Desserts  by Jean Kressy

It's the combination of juicy fruit, whipped cream, and something to soak up the juices and provide a texture contrast that makes shortcake the queen of desserts.

A Culinary Roman Candle  by Jean Kressy

It may make absolutely no sense to some people, but whenever we plan a meal, we start with dessert.

Upgrade Your Meal  by Jean Kressy

Roasted red peppers, especially the kind you make yourself, are so astonishingly good they should be the first recipe that anyone who wants to learn to cook is taught.

A Lovely Legume  by Jean Kressy

Barbecued lentils is the kind of dish that promises a delicious compromise for vegetarians and meat eaters.

An Island Dream  by Jean Kressy

The recipe for key lime pie could be right out of a cookbook for dummies. It’s ridiculously easy.

Perfect Sundae  by Jean Kressy

The long spoon that comes with a parfait is a dead giveaway that the delectable treat about to be set in front of you is no ordinary ice cream dessert.

The Misunderstood Pod  by Jean Kressy

Okra is not the kind of vegetable you love at first bite. It’s not the taste that makes you think twice before taking another forkful, it’s how it feels when it’s in your mouth.

Crazy for Cobbler  by Jean Kressy

Not a day goes by that we don't think about a new way to transform a box of berries or a bag of apples into something delectable.

Souped-Up Sauce  by Jean Kressy

Thirty-five years ago, before the fastest way to a meal was a cup of Ramen noodles, college students made Bolognese sauce.

Mother’s Day Dream  by Jean Kressy

In 1914, when President Woodrow Wilson signed the order making Mother’s Day an official holiday, the celebrations could not have been more low key.

Creamsicle Dream  by Jean Kressy

In 1926, a Los Angeles man names Julius Freed put some orange juice into a blender, added a few other ingredients, and flipped on the switch.

Herbal Magic  by Jean Kressy

Somehow an assortment of fresh herbs ready and waiting in the refrigerator makes us more creative cooks.

Show-Stopping Beef

All cooks need at least one recipe they can rely on for entertaining. They don’t have to be expensive or complicated.. .

Brandy Alexander Pie  by Jean Kressy

The pie is named for Brandy Alexander, a cocktail with a fuzzy history, which was created almost a hundred years ago.

Super Zuppa  by Jean Kressy

Although there is no authentic list of ingredients, Italian cooks say it’s possible to tell where a minestrone was made by what it contains.

Delmonico’s Dish  by Jean Kressy

The story behind Lobster Newburg, a dish of lobster meat in a sherry cream sauce, is so closely linked to Delmonico’s restaurant that they should be told together.

A Heavenly Dressing  by Jean Kressy

We get so used to store-bought salad dressings, it’s easy to forget how simple they are to make.

Ranch Eggs  by Jean Kressy

When the name of a recipe refers to a style of cooking, you have a good idea of what’s in a dish.

Grilled Cheese, Please  by Jean Kressy

About 75 years ago, someone got the bright idea of serving soup and a sandwich together and calling it a meal.

California Salad  by Jean Kressy

If raiding the refrigerator were an Olympic sport, Bob Cobb would have won a gold medal.

Posole  by Jeanette Hurt

Anytime there’s a special celebration in New Mexico, posole is on the table.

Coffee Break  by Martin Booe

What is so great about Kona Coffee? Sure, it’s the only coffee grown in the United State, but I never thought it was very great. Then I met John Langenstein.

Saimin  by Greg and Dorothy Patent

A favorite hodgepodge Hawaiian specialty is saimin, a delicious noodle soup.

Bourbon Pie  by Jeanette Hurt

Home cooks have always used indigenous ingredients, and in Kentucky, bourbon has always been on hand.

Big Easy Sandwich  by Brooks Hamaker

While most people are familiar with the po-boy sandwich, not everyone is as familiar with another of the New Orleans' iconic sandwiches—the muffaletta.

Monkey Bread  by Jean Kressy

When the Reagans were in the White House, The New York Times ran a small story with the family’s Christmas menu. One of the dishes served was Monkey Bread.

Cake ... for a Price  by Jean Kressy

If you have never made Red Velvet Cake, you are in for some surprises. First, you will use more red food coloring for a single recipe that most cooks use in a lifetime.

Comfort Classic  by Jean Kressy

American chop suey, a charter member of the comfort food crowd, was the dish that used to fill us up at potluck suppers and cafeteria lunches.

Kentucky’s Pride  by Martin Booe

My one meager claim to fame is the fact that in 1936, my grandmother, Ruth Hanly Booe, invented the Bourbon Ball.

Soup Supreme  by Damon Lee Fowler

It is tempting to call vegetable beef soup

Company Corn  by Jeanette Hurt

For an everyday meal in Kentucky, grits are fine. But for special occasions, it has to be corn pudding.

Cornmeal Classic  by Crescent Dragonwagon

The old-fashioned dessert, Indian Pudding, which young and old, especially in New England, have enjoyed since Colonial times, is based on cornmeal.

Hudson Valley Duck  by Marge Perry

Of all the products raised and grown in this bucolic region, one of the best known is duck, thanks in large part to the Hudson Valley Foie Gras and Duck Company.

Berries of the Season  by Marge Perry

What’s bright red, named after a bird, tart and tangy, and bounces? Yes, bounces. The answer is . . .

Company Corn  by Jeanette Hurt

For an everyday meal in Kentucky, grits is just fine. But for special occasions, it has to be corn pudding.

Baja’s Best  by Charyn Pfeuffer

Surfers and food-savvy travelers to Mexico have long considered fish tacos an essential part of the Baja experience.

Make the World Your Oyster  by Scott Rose

Despite its name, an oyster pan roast isn’t a roast at all but rather a seafood stew.

Brennan’s Big Easy  by Charyn Pfeuffer

Bananas Foster, a simple, elegant and oh-so sinful concoction, originated in New Orleans in the 1950s at the legendary Brennan's Restaurant.

Island Dream  by Jeanette Hurt

The most important ingredient for a proper Hawaiian feast a succulent, falling-apart tender, smoked dish called Kalua Pig.

Dutch Treat  by Charyn Pfeuffer

Perhaps no other dessert is so identified with Pennsylvania Dutch country as Shoo-Fly Pie.

A Supper Classic  by Damon Lee Fowler

Like so many supper table classics of its day, however, Chicken Spaghetti was more an idea than actual recipe.

Senatorial Soup  by Jean Kressy

Senate bean soup is as bare bones as you can get navy beans, ham hocks, a little onion and a lot of water.

Made for Each Other—Apples and Cheese  by Marge Perry

An apple pie without cheese is like a kiss without the squeeze

Perfect Pilau  by Damon Lee Fowler

You may know this simple dish as chicken and rice, but in the Carolina and Georgia Lowcountry, it is a defining element of the region’s cuisine.

Low Country Pudding  by Damon Lee Fowler

One of the oldest and best of the truly American dishes enjoyed all across our country is corn pudding.

Cold Soup for a Hot Day  by Jean Kressy

At the top of our list of recipes we like to make when the weather gets really hot is gazpacho.

True Grit  by Crescent Dragonwagon

To American Southerners, cornbread is made of all or mostly stone-ground cornmeal, more often white than yellow, with buttermilk as the liquid.

Cioppino  by Charyn Pfeuffer

Native San Franciscans will tell you that cioppino (pronounced cha-pee-no) hails from the North Beach section of town.

The Maine Lobster Roll Quest  by Marge Perry

No summer trip to Maine is complete without a lobster roll. It is Maine's version of fast food.

Found a Peanut  by William I. Lengeman, III

Sarah Tyson Rorer published a recipe for peanut soup in her influential 1902 volume, Mrs. Rorer's New Cook Book.

Huckleberry Pie  by Greg Patent

Found only in the western Rocky Mountain areas of Montana and Idaho, it takes up to 15 years for a wild huckleberry bush to mature.

Quintessential Crab Cakes  by Joan Nathan

Crab cakes are a Maryland institution, and the best are Maryland bred. The high priestess of crab cookery is Mrs. Devine, who rules the Lexington Market in Baltimore.

Cake as Big as Texas  by Jean Kressy

The first time you eat a piece of Texas sheet cake, chances are you'll say to yourself, "This cake tastes familiar. Where have I run into it before?"

Have a Pierogi Party  by Cindy Kerschner

An Irish proverb states, "It's no use boiling your cabbage twice." Obviously the author never heard of pierogies.

Southern Comfort  by Damon Lee Fowler

For soul-satisfying comfort, nothing equals a fragrant bowl of old-fashioned chicken and dumplings.

Chicago Pizza  by Jeanette Hurt

An American G.I., just back from World War II, and his buddy changed the course of pizza - and Chicago - history

Tea Time  by Marge Perry

These dainty little bites travel in noble circles - with the likes of devilled eggs and petit fours.

Chocolate and Vanilla-A Dream Team  by Jean Kressy

Chocolate and vanilla is a terrific combination, and cooks use it whenever they can.

Chicken Fit for a Diva  by Jean Kressy

There is something about opera singers that sends chefs scurrying to their stoves.

Hamburger with a History  by Jean Kressy

It's hard to imagine that a hamburger without cheese, bacon, ketchup or a bun would stand a chance.

A Regal Cake, Indeed  by Jean Kressy

Lady Baltimore, the 1906 novel by Owen Wister, might not ring a bell, but you may have heard of the cake that's described in the story

Hot Brown  by Jean Kressy

When a sandwich is served with a knife and fork, you know you're in forsomething special.

Hail, Caesar  by Greg Patent

The only way to have a true Caesar salad is to make one yourself.

When Pie is a Piece of Cake  by Jean Kressy

In cooking, as in fashion, where one knockoff leads to another, the road to Boston Cream Pie seems fairly straightforward

Easter Buns  by Greg Patent

The season for hot cross buns, those big mildly spiced yeast rolls packed with currants or raisins and decorated with a cross of white icing, begins the first day of Lent and lasts until Easter

Kugel for All Seasons  by Marge Perry

Passover is a holiday that revolves around food. That may help explain why it is celebrated by more Jews than any other holiday.

Upside-Down Cakes: Perfection Past Pineapple  by Crescent Dragonwagon

To dessert-lovers, a good cake has no down side. Unless, of course, it happens to be an upside-down cake.

Pasta Primo  by Joan Nathan

As I tasted the pasta primavera at New York City's Le Cirque 2000, restaurateur Sirio Maccioni told me the story of pasta primavera.

Thinking Outside the Green Bottle  by Crescent Dragonwagon

How, in the name of all things authentic and Irish, did the green in St. Patrick's Day celebrations become green food coloring?

Best Biscuits By Hand  by Joan Nathan

I remember the first time I ate really great biscuits. Mattie Ball Fletcher, who was almost 100 years old at the time, made them for me.

Return of a Native Bread  by Crescent Dragonwagon

The addition of cornmeal to a yeast bread dough adds a characteristic toothsome, pleasing, irresistible crunch, a grit.

Cincinnati Chili  by Jean Kressy

Who would have thought that chili without green pepper, tomato chunks or a blast of hot chile pepper stood a chance on the American menu?

Boston Baked Beans  by Jean Kressy

A couple of times a year, I take my bean pot from the top of the cabinet,give it a good scrub and make baked beans.

Hot Chocolate  by Crescent Dragonwagon

Chocolate and the kind of novel with Fabio on the cover share a vocabulary: bittersweet, hot, dark, melting, surrender, lust, passion, yearning, hunger.

A Chicken in Every Pot Pie  by Jean Kressy

We've been so distracted by itsy-bitsy portions of nouvelle cuisine, low-carb spaghetti and convenience food, we've almost forgotten what good food is all about.

Recipes

Search for recipes. Enter an ingredient or keyword.

 

Recipes by Category

breakfast, lunch, dinner
dessert, snack, healthy

Recipes by Ingredient

beef, chicken, pork, poultry, turkey

newsletter & message boards

Fresh Recipes in your Inbox
Enjoy new meal ideas by signing up for our newsletter and see other recipe ideas in our past newsletters.


Swap Food Ideas
Share your favorite recipe or comment on our latest issue in our food & recipe message boards.

our new cookbook

relish cookbook
FROM OUR SISTER SITE
American Profile

Celebrate the people, places and things that make America great at AmericanProfile.com.

where to find relish

Relish magazine is distributed monthly through newspapers across the country. To find a partner paper near you, take a look at our list of newspapers by state. If you local paper does not carry Relish, ask them why not?