Make Ahead

Imagine this: a stack of packets in your freezer that you can take straight to the oven for a full dinner in 30 minutes.

Whatever fruit you have on hand—pears, berries, figs, grapefruit—will fare beautifully in this sheet cake, which is as good for breakfast as it is dessert.

If you love hummus or baba ghanoush, this dairy-free dip will become a new favorite. Just make sure you have plenty of warm flatbread to scoop it all up.

If eggy flan-like desserts are your thing, you are going to love this crustless vanilla-infused tart.

Cold noodles tossed in a bright citrus and chile sauce are the ideal canvas for jammy roasted tomatoes in this light summer dish.

When all the flavors meld, the dried mint blooms and transforms this dish into a refreshing slaw that pairs well with fatty cuts of meat.

Nduja, a spicy salami now produced domestically, blends cured pork fat and chiles in a spreadable, meltable consistency. Combining it with lobster is transformative, taking this basic pasta Pomodoro to the next level.

Chef Sirichai Sreparplarn of Brooklyn's Ugly Baby doesn’t believe in using food processors for making curry paste, but we won’t stop you from using one. He also prefers a blend of two parts shorter dried chiles (prik haeng) and one part longer chiles (prik chee fah), but any Thai chile will work.

Toss roasted squash and charred Brussels sprouts through a salad of chickpeas, salami, olives, and cheese; add a lemony oregano vinaigrette and enjoy.

Sear squeaky, salty Halloumi cheese in a pan—it won’t melt, but will get a crisp golden crust—then douse in honey and a spicy nut and seed sprinkle and serve as an appetizer or with a simple green salad.

To make this silky pudding, whip up a custard of yolks, sugar, milk, and cream, then pour it over dark chocolate. Chill, and top with candied walnuts when serving.

This mousse-like dessert has the tartness of passionfruit and the creamy richness of sherbet without any of the hard work.

This is the simplest way to make a large batch of meatballs that you can turn into a variety of dinners, from pasta to soup to sandwiches.

You can store this all-purpose sweet-and-spicy vinegar in clean mason jars, but it is easier to keep it in repurposed glass bottles. Note that this recipe can be adjusted as you like—try using different chiles or other spices like bay leaf.

A ubiquitous staple on Filipino tables, this rice dish is heavily perfumed with garlic oil and tossed with crispy sautéed garlic chips.

My older daughter can put away some of these oatmeal cookie bites like it’s her job. Gymnastics helps her keep active, which means she’s often super hungry, and I love to have these on hand for when she needs a snack.

Chia seeds thicken this dairy-free pudding as it sits: it's the perfect healthy, make-ahead dessert!

It’s pie without baking and an ice cream sundae without the fuss (not to mention the salted coconut crust). We call that a win-win-win.

Beef tenderloin is precious enough to baby on a two-zone grill: Sear it over high heat, then transfer it to the cooler side and turn it often to hit a perfect medium-rare.

Topped off with a simple raw corn salsa, these patties are a crowd-pleasing and low-maintenance summer dinner.