There’s just something about shrimp scampi that causes oohs and aahs to break out around the table. Perhaps it’s the combination of tender shrimp bathed in a buttery white wine sauce, or maybe it’s the way everything gets swirled together with a hearty dash of pepper and fresh torn parsley.

For the knowing cook, this is one of the fastest dishes you can make on a weeknight — especially when everything (from the protein to the pasta) comes together in one pot. So invite your friends over tonight and tell them you’re cooking up something fancy.

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In terms of sheer comfort, casseroles are high on the list of our favorite autumn dishes. Double points if they have a good amount of cheese, and triple points if they also contain pasta. I am so happy that the chilly evenings of fall have brought casseroles back into my weekly meal rotation. They make the kitchen feel cozy on Sunday and then become easy lunches and dinners all week long. And if company stops by, no problem — there’s plenty to share.

Here are 10 of our favorite hearty casseroles — filling, nourishing, and all homemade — not a can of cream of chicken soup in sight.

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A Halloween party without candy is not a party at all. And while homemade candy might be a little too much work at this busy time of year, it is easy to serve your candy loot in style. From a simple plastic glove to goofy bags with big monster eyes, here are five small DIY Halloween projects that don’t require much work but have a big payoff.

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Attention, scary movie fans: If you’re in the market for a horror flick this Halloween, you can skip your go-to spooky classics and blood-curdling modern favorites. If you want to be truly terrified, it’s time to watch a Canadian children’s film about the dangers of peanut butter.

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Cheesecloth annoys me. I never seem to have quite enough of it for whatever I’m doing. It always comes apart, and doubling or tripling it feels fussy. Plus, it irks me that you can’t easily wash and reuse it.

I recently decided to get rid of cheesecloth in my kitchen for good and have found these three substitutes to take its place.

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“Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.” It’s hard to imagine the prevailing ideas of what healthy eating means without this famous pronouncement from Michael Pollan, which in its reductive simplicity carries a kind of relief from the fluctuations of modern nutritional science. So simple, so memorable — nothing to avoid, but everything to gain from a renewed focus on plants. It could even be seen as the unspoken mantra of plant-based eating.

What is plant-based eating? Just vegetarianism, no? Veganism? No. While many practitioners do avoid meat, plant-based eating is a diverse and fascinating approach to food, nutrition, and feeding oneself well that comes in many inspiring different forms.

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There are few things more satisfying than an absolutely jaw-dropping kitchen makeover. While you may think that you need a big, beefy budget to elicit those “OMG” gasps, you’d actually be wrong. Sometimes, amazing makeovers are much more about what you do and how you do it than how much money you spend on making over your space.

Case in point? This incredibly fun, playful kitchen makeover from Heather Douglas of Mysa Home Styling.

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You know the old saying: the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Especially not if you name your kid after an apple. With over 2,500 varieties of apples grown in the United States annually and 7,000 worldwide, we’ll be darned if there aren’t some choice baby names among them. Aside from conjuring happy memories of orchard hopping, an apple-inspired baby name is sure to be a hit with teachers and pediatricians alike. What’s not to love?

Here are 15 baby names inspired by your favorite fall fruit.

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When one has fresh tomato sauce, homemade ricotta, and a huge haul of vegetables in one’s fridge, a hearty lasagna is really the only possible course of action. If it doesn’t yet feel quite autumnal enough to justify a plate of cheesy lasagna, that’s fine — sneak a slice now and freeze the rest for meals to come.

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