Around the World in 30 Soups: This month we’re collaborating with chefs, cookbook authors, and our own Kitchn crew to share a globetrotting adventure in soups from countries and cuisines around the world. Today’s stop: Russia.

First, borsch does not have a “t” at the end — somehow the “t” got added on in German (as did a few other unnecessary consonants — borschtsch), so if you want to pass with the Brighton Beach babushkas, lose the “t.”

If you open a Russian restaurant, be prepared to have borsch on the menu — people assume it’s part of the contract. And if you (like us) don’t want to have it on your menu year-round, be prepared for a lot of furrowed brows (by the way, “There’s more to Russia than borsch” is not always deemed an acceptable explanation). Also, be prepared for a lot of opinions about what makes for a good borsch. Then, be ready for those (hint: Americans) who are shocked that borsch has meat in it.

A lot of folks come into my restaurant, Kachka, thinking that borsch is like the stuff in the jars at the supermarket, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Borsch is actually a whole category of soups and they are pretty seasonal. Some are cold and refreshing, while other versions are more like a hearty stew. There are even derivatives that don’t contain any beets at all and are still called “borsch.”

This version is inspired by what my mom would make all winter long when I was growing up. Like every good Russian, I learned to make borsch from my mom — and, with just a few tweaks, this recipe is pretty much hers. So, of course in my opinion, it’s the best version out there.

—Bonnie Frumkin Morales, chef, owner, and author of Kachka: A Return to Russian Cooking

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One of my personal parenting goals is to have as much fun as possible with my kids before they grow up, so when my daughter bemoaned a dinner of grilled cheese and tomato soup as “so boring, Mom!” it got me thinking about how dinner can be fun.

As the primary cook, any recipe that is fast and low on dish-dirtying is fun, because it makes my life easier. But this week I did set out to meal plan dinners that seemed fun, with my 7-year-old’s input. Here are the five fun, easy, and cozy dinners we are eating this week.

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I love brunch, you love brunch — I think we’re all on board for a good weekend brunch, yes? The one problem with brunch, however, is figuring out how to make it without having to get up at the crack of dawn to start cooking. This is why we’re bringing you a roundup of all our favorite make-ahead brunch recipes, both sweet and savory, for whatever plans you may have come the weekend.

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Target — the store that you can walk into only for a bottle of Febreeze and a curtain, and walk out with $200 worth of bric-a-brac — has added a new line to its repertoire. They now carry a beautiful-looking set of affordable wines that will definitely end up in carts that really were just there for back-to-school clothes, but what the heck.

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Whether it comes frozen or on the rocks, or if you’re on the beach or celebrating Cinco de Mayo, the margarita has long been America’s go-to warm weather drink (or what you drink when you’re missing the warm weather). Tangy, sweet, a little salty — the margarita hits all the right notes. A new study confirms that Americans still call the margarita their favorite cocktail. Well almost all Americans. In Chicago, drinkers buck the trend.

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Around the World in 30 Soups: This month we’re collaborating with chefs, cookbook authors, and our own Kitchn crew to share a globetrotting adventure in soups from countries and cuisines around the world. Today’s stop: United States.

Chicken soup — an undisputed classic — can’t solve all of our problems, but it can come pretty close. You know the feeling that hits when the craving strikes: You want nothing more than to wrap yourself in a big ol’ blanket and settle down with a mug of chicken noodle soup. Am I right? Then this is the recipe for you. It’s miles better than anything from a box or a can, but isn’t quite so laborious as starting with a whole chicken and making stock from scratch. It’s the Goldilocks of chicken soups, and it’s just right.

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If you watch Antiques Roadshow, you know the most unassuming things can be worth tons of money. Recently, the highest valuation ever for an antique brought in was a set of teacups from China, carried unceremoniously in Tupperware containers. While the man who owns them was in line, he said that the person who took his ticket looked at the containers and said, “Don’t think Tupperware is bringing much these days.”

Welp, that ticket-taker should probably watch Antiques Roadshow a little more closely — there’s new evidence that vintage Tupperware is actually going for quite a bit more money than you or the relative you inherited it from bought it for.

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We are in the midst of a chickpea revolution. These days, you’ll find the legumes snuck into rigatoni, linguini, and elbow macaroni; transformed into dessert hummus; cooked into Cheese Doodle-like puffs; crisped and dusted with ranch powder; and enrobed in Thin Mint chocolate (yes, from the Girl Scouts). No food group is safe.

And the masterminds at Banza are leading this charge; they’ve unequivocally had dibs on the chickpea pasta market since 2014. With twice the protein and four times the fiber as wheat pasta, Banza boasts a significantly higher nutritional profile, earning a coveted spot in pantries across the country— specifically millennial pantries. The latest chickpea breakthrough from Banza, announced this week, seems like a no-brainer: rice.

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If you like coffee and you drink it regularly, or do any reading about coffee, you have probably heard mention of grinders — specifically burr versus blade grinders.

Well today we’re here to talk about grinders, so if you’ve been wondering what a burr grinder is, or if you should get one, you’ve come to the right place.

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If you believe hard enough, you can turn anything you consume on St. Patrick’s Day into an electric green color. All you need is some green food coloring and your imagination. Some of the most popular things to turn green on the rowdy holiday include beer, more beer, and bagels (this one never made sense to me). But I bet you’ve never seen this green food before.

German grocery giant, ALDI, is upping its game for St. Patricks Day this year by debuting a line of cheeses. Some of them are green, some of them are boozy (!!!), and all are worthy of your affection and dollar bills. And here’s the kicker: none of the green ones are actually dyed green — they’re au natural, baby.

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