Each November in Sardinia, purple crocus blossoms blanket the rolling fields. It’s a striking sight against a lush green backdrop. Those same flowers also provide what locals call “red gold,” or saffron. Saffron is one of the defining flavors of the Italian island. First cultivated by ...

For a sophisticated summertime dessert, it’s not always necessary to reinvent the wheel. A classic ice cream sundae will hit the spot with the right toppings. It’s partly what we had in mind when developing this recipe for a sesame oat crumble in our book “Milk Street Tuesday Nights,” ...

One of the best ways to build flavor is layering, or using one ingredient in two ways or at different stages of cooking. Using the zest of a lemon in cake batter, for instance, while using the juice in a citrusy glaze. It’s a technique we rely on often in our book “COOKish,” which ...

For this year’s summer cookouts, update long-held traditions with globally inspired flavors — starting with the burger. This recipe from our book “COOKish,” which limits recipes to just six ingredients without sacrificing flavor, is loosely based on a Filipino “chori” burger. ...

For a fast and easy warm-weather salad, it doesn’t get better than Watermelon Feta. According to Google Trends, searches for watermelon and feta cheese salads have spiked every July for more than a decade. To taste it is to know why. The distinct and refreshing combo is something I could ...

As summer sets in, warm bowls of chewy, satisfying ramen and soba can take a refreshing turn to become the center of chilled salads such as hiyashi chuka. The Japanese dish typically is served as a cone of chilled ramen noodles covered with julienned strips of several ingredients, including ...