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I once took a work trip to do nothing but learn about Irish milk, cheese, and butter. Lucky for me, the first thing I ate when I arrived, jet-lagged and haggard, was a scone. I still remember this particular scone because it was fluffier and richer than any scone I’d ever had. After spending a few minutes under the spell of this little morsel, I pulled myself together and asked the chef if it wasn’t in fact a biscuit. He insisted, these were his Irish scones, made with Irish butter and milk, and served with a soft pat of butter on the side.

If it really was a scone, it was the best scone I’d ever had, so I asked the chef for his recipe and spent the rest of the trip trying to figure out what, in fact, is a real Irish scone.

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Seriously, is there anything Nutella can’t do? It’s already basically the most amazing substance known to humankind, and now you tell me I can mix Nutella with just one ingredient to make a batch of fudgy, chewy brownies?

I know — if I hadn’t tried it myself, I wouldn’t believe me either. But here’s exactly how you, too, can make these magical two-ingredient brownies for yourself.

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So you took a gamble on a spaghetti squash — it does have a pretty clever sales hook, after all. But now you’re staring at this canary-yellow gourd wondering how on earth it could ever be transformed into anything resembling pasta. You’re full of doubts and hopes and perhaps a dash of healthy skepticism. I get that.

Well, buckle up, because today we’re pulling some culinary alchemy and transforming squash into tender tangles of spaghetti. No spiralizers or any special gadgets required. Just an oven and a half hour of your time.

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I rarely complain about a glut of any one summery ingredient — except maybe zucchini. That is, until recently. My husband and I work farmers markets in the summer months and have occasion to trade with other vendors, and lately we’ve been coming home with a lot of peaches.

I usually slice one with my morning yogurt and occasionally we’ll have one for dessert, but there are only so many peaches a household of two can eat. So this week I started experimenting with them in the kitchen and developed this simple and delicious spiced morning turnover.

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The Easiest Way to Preserve Parsley

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Sure, you can buy fresh herbs year-round, but right now is when they’re at their freshest. Whether you’re growing them in your garden or buying them by the bundle at the farmers market, fresh herbs flourish in the summer months. But that doesn’t mean you can’t extend their life all year along! Here are five tips for preserving your herb bounty.

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Where I grew up, you could always count on a neighbor or relative to share their zucchini or tomato crop. That goes double for rhubarb. In truth, it was less about sharing and more about off-loading, but this is all to your advantage if you play it right.

This group of recipes from my book Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day takes full advantage of ubiquitous summer vegetables, like zucchini, summer squash, tomatoes, eggplant, corn, and cucumbers. You know, the good ones.

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There are a few delicious ways to let summer fruit live on year-round, but my favorite is homemade jam and jelly. What’s not to love about this thick, sweet spread, layered over toast or swirled through your yogurt and oats? I’ll tell you: nothing.

Leave the store-bought stuff for another time. Now is the season to load up on ripe summer fruit, and use these 10 recipes to stock your kitchen with homemade preserves.

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