Extra Helpings - A Blue Apron blog
Meet the new Blue Apron, now more convenient (and delicious) than ever. This is meal planning the way it should be: simple, inspiring, fun—and no subscription needed.
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Search for recipes, cooking tips, food trends, and all things delicious.
Strawberry Garnish Ideas: 9 Ways To Decorate
You don’t need to be an artist to make a beautiful dessert. Try fuss-free dessert-decorating with the classic strawberry. No time to aim for a perfectly frosted and smooth cake? Don’t even worry about it. Instead, beautify your treats with already-gorgeous berries that make the sweetest part of your meal look professional and pretty – with barely any effort.
Homemade Almond Butter and Jam with a Healthy Twist
Pick a team: jam and jelly, or nut butters. Don’t want to choose? I suppose you can make both. The Blue Apron test kitchen put a few healthful tweaks on each of these familiar ingredients. Enjoy them on their own, or make both to create a hearty twist on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
7 Fruit Centerpiece Ideas
So many fruits and vegetables are show-stoppingly attractive, even in the dead of winter. Take advantage of their natural beauty for your holiday centerpiece this year. It’s easy! Just take a trip to the grocery store or farmer’s market, but a few extra pomegranates, persimmons, or plain old tomatoes, and use them to decorate your holiday tables and entryways.
Make Chicken Noodle Soup with Whatever You Have
This, my friends, is where I am going to give you the trick for the most delightful chicken noodle soup. Place the cooked noodles in the bottom of your soup bowl.
Halloween Candy Cake (With Leftover Candy)
Sometimes you overestimate the number of trick-or-treaters that will pay you a visit, sometimes you underestimate the size of your own candy haul, and sometimes you just get a little carried away in the Halloween aisle. Whatever the reason, the holiday is over and you still have a big pile of leftover candy lying around.
How to Use Extra Garlic
When we make dinner, we put garlic in everything. That’s no accident! European, Mediterranean, and Asian cuisines all have used the alium bulb to season food for millennia. When a Blue Apron box arrives, it will almost always include a whole head of garlic, but most recipes only use a couple of cloves. If you’ve gotten a few boxes, you might have leftover garlic piling up. This isn’t a problem, it’s an opportunity. Here’s how to use extra garlic to create flavorful meals all week long.
Your New Favorite Cocktail Recipe Uses a Whole Pineapple
This cocktail is sort of the lovechild of my three favorite patio drinks: a mezcal negroni, a piña colada, and an Aperol spritz. It’s a little labor intensive, but I promise it’s worth it (and hey, we have the time). Can’t find fresh pineapple? I suppose canned will do
A Guide to Homemade Salad Dressing
There are two types of salads: sad salads and scene-stealing salads. A sad salad is one that was thrown together without a real plan. Its sole purpose is to deliver a few vegetables, but it lacks flavor and excitement.
A Guide to Cooking with Wine
Cooking with wine is a great way to add complexity to sauces, soups, and braises. This is a crash course in cooking with wine, designed to help you figure out how to choose a bottle and what to do with it.
How to Warm Your Plates for Dinner
Hot food has to be served hot, and cold food has to be served cold. Bring me a cold bowl of soup or a warm and wilted salad, and I will send it back every single time.
Baked Sweet Dumpling Squash Recipe
There are a number of varieties of squash, and if you’re a subscriber you’ll be trying many of them soon. But since Food Network’s Fall Fest is about pumpkins today, we wanted to share a recipe for stuffed dumpling squash that could just as easily be made with a tiny sugar pumpkin that looks more like a jack o’lantern than the one we have pictured.
Is a Rub or a Marinade Better for Flavorful Grilling?
Marinades and rubs go hand in hand with grilling. Both methods are used to add more flavor to your meal. But what, exactly, is the difference, and how do you know when to do what?
How To Make Onions Less Strong: Taming The Taste of Raw Onion
Today we’re talking raw onions, one of the most common, most flavorful ingredients in our pantry.
Salad Greens: Our Favorite Types & How To Use Them
We’re never far from a salad craving here at Blue Apron. Whether we’re aiming to highlight seasonal ingredients or balance out a rich meal, a bowl of crisp greens beckons us. If you’re a salad fiend (or you want to be one), this is your moment to discover new types of lettuce.
Pecorino Romano vs. Parmesan: Everything You’ll Want To Know
Pecorino and Parmesan can seem pretty similar. Both are hard salty cheeses from Italy, and they’re both frequently in the mix with pasta. However, they’re not the same cheese.
Types of Asian Noodles: Your Comprehensive Guide
Noodles are a pillar of many Asian cuisines, and the key to many beloved dishes across the continent. Attempting a full taxonomy would be nearly impossible:
Asian-Style Sautéed Aromatics Recipe
It might seem like this prepackaged blend is a magical substance that makes every meal delicious, but it’s actually just a mix of common ingredients found in many Asian-inspired meals
Spicy Seasonings & Ingredients: Your (Very) Hot Guide
If your goal is to have your meals taste delicious and be painless, bookmark this list and leave these spicy ingredients out of your recipes
What Are Capers? Cooking, Taste, & More Explained
If capers aren’t already your secret weapon in the kitchen, they should be. If you know how to cook with capers, these tiny green buds will add a bright pop of briny flavor to whatever you’re making. Think of them like a shortcut to flavor. These are some of the recipes that made us fall in love with capers.
Shishito Peppers Recipe: How To Cook Them & More
Tender, smoky shishito peppers are a restaurant staple—but they’re easy to use at home too. These vibrantly green and slightly smoky Japanese chiles—shaped a bit like wrinkled fingers— have become a late summer and early fall favorite on menus across the country.
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