A plant-based steak that my meat-loving teen enjoyed
For a few years now, I have been trying to work more plant-based recipes into my weekly meal planning, for both the health benefits and sustainability aspects. And now I am choosing more and more plant-based recipes because the ingredients tend to cost less overall,...
7 essential tips to be sure your vacation home rental kitchen is stocked and ready for cooking! (Or at least drinking coffee, right?)
Summer has arrived and I'm ready for a week at the beach, or in the mountains, or anywhere but here! In an ideal world, every vacation home renter would stock the kitchen with everything you need, but many of us have arrived for a week of vacation to find dull knives,...
Surely: A non-alcoholic wine that everyone will enjoy. Even wine snobs.
This is a sponsored post on behalf of Surely Whether you've decided to drink a little less, or not at all (like Kristen), or you're just feeling a bit more health-conscious these days, you'll be so glad to know about Surely, great-tasting craft wines that don't...
Happy Summer! The perfect Memorial Day picnic menu
Memorial Day is right around the corner, and I'm looking forward to spending the unofficial first weekend of summer with my family. To celebrate, I'm thinking a picnic is in order! As a kid, my grandparents used to pack a picnic lunch and spend the day decorating the...
How to sign up for a CSA box this summer (and why you should)
With inflation and supply chain-related shortages upon us, I know a lot of us are considering CSAs for practical reasons as well as ethical ones. Plus, that fresh chard and those vine-ripened strawberries. Yum! When I first wrote about community supported agriculture...
Happy AAPI Month! 14 AAPI-owned food companies you need to know about
May might just be my favorite month of the year, because along with my birthday, and Mother's Day, it's AAPI Month, aka Asian American Pacific Islander month, which gives me, a biracial Chinese American a chance to talk a little more about my heritage. And with...
8 of the coolest small appliance kitchen gifts for grads
We love the idea of practical graduation gifts, especially for grads who might be headed off to college, and kitchen gifts, in particular, are a smart way to go, even if there will be a bounty of cafeteria food at their fingertips. Whether they're headed to a dorm,...
12 of the best Teacher Appreciation Day printables for tasty food gifts
With the end of another tough school year approaching, we're thinking about all the ways we can thank our favorite teachers for all their hard work. And we think food gifts are one of the very best ways to show thanks to our kids' teachers, so take a look at the 12+...
4 Mexican food influencers you should totally be following for Cinco de Mayo and beyond
We love the opportunity to celebrate other cultures through food, which is exactly what I'm planning for Cinco de Mayo (though truth be told, I'd make it every day if I could). Here, I'm sharing 4 of my favorite Mexican food bloggers that you should totally be...
15 of our favorite Mother’s Day food gifts, for every kind of mom
We love giving Mother's Day food gifts -- probably because we love receiving Mother's Day food gifts! (And yes, that's a massive hint. Just so we're clear, family members.) So we've put together this gift guide of wonderful gourmet food gifts for Mother's Day, many...
10 tips for a more sustainable kitchen in honor of Earth Day
With Earth Day's 52nd anniversary this week, it's a great time to reflect on ways we might do even more to lessen our negative impact on this place we call home. But where to start? If your family spends as much time as my family of five does thinking about,...
8 Mother’s Day kitchen gifts the mom in your life wouldn’t buy for herself, but really wants to
With Mother's Day around the corner, it's the perfect time to treat the mom in your life to that kitchen gadget she's been eying but probably won't buy for herself. It's a mantra in mom-life to say stuff like: "I really don't need that, because I can... <insert...
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New year, new kitchen: 7 steps to a clean, better organized one for the New Year
When January 2nd rolls around, my kitchen is a mess. The fridge is stuffed full of random leftovers, and the pantry is overflowing with half-full boxes of crackers, cereal and snacks left behind from having all of the kids home 24/7 for almost a month. As daunting...
Whether you DIY or buy, we have 10 easy ideas for a beautiful Thanksgiving table. . . no crafting skills required.
This Thanksgiving, I'm ditching the "aspirational" Instagram feeds with their super-creative (and mind-boggling) table decor ideas that require either a big investment of money or time to achieve. Instead, I've decided to simplify beautifully with these easy...
How to tell if food is fresh: Awesome kitchen tricks
Have you ever opened a jar of half-used tomato sauce only to find furry white spots of mold floating on top? While some spoiled food is quite obvious—all you need do is open the container and take a whiff—others are less so. Especially pantry staples that you tend...
5 easy ways to drink more water, because we all need it
I'm not sure why it's so hard to drink our daily recommended amount of water, but it just is. I'm trying to do better this year and know that others at Cool Mom HQ are too, so I've found a few ways to make it a little easier. Because even when it's freezing cold...
5 foods you should never wash, plus 3 you should. A few surprised us!
The past few years of pandemic life have made us all a bit insane when it comes to washing things (I still sing 'happy birthday' in my head every time I wash my hands). And because of that, I'm not about to wash anything that doesn't absolutely need it. So I was...
Recipes
Next week’s meal plan: 5 easy recipes for busy January nights
This week, we have another round of weekly meal plan recommendations, with easy, low-stress meals your whole family will enjoy. These five recipes will get you through this week ahead easily and deliciously. So grab a pen or open your AnyList app, make your...
Over 40 Valentine’s treats you can make with a heart-shaped cookie cutter.
If you're looking to put a little love into your Valentine's Day treats this year, there's no need to run out and buy a cartful of special ingredients or gadgets. Just grab a few heart-shaped cookie cutters with a bunch of different-size hearts, then you can...
Eat Cho Food + the Lunar New Year
As of today, millions of people around the world celebrate the Lunar New Year, which officially begins January 22 in 2023. Last week, my family was pretty impressed with my Chinese food menu sourced from The Woks of Life, so much so that I decided to dive in again...
Next week’s meal plan: 5 easy recipes for the week ahead, from a soul warming roast to pasta with “Awesome Sauce”
It’s time to start thinking about your meal plan for next week. From a soul warming pot roast to pasta with Awesome Sauce, we’ve got five weeknight meals that will get you through the week ahead. So grab a pen, make your shopping list, and stock up before the...
6 easy and delicious black-eyed pea recipes for extra good luck in the New Year. Because who couldn’t use extra good luck?
Most southerners know that eating a dish of black-eyed peas is said to bring you good luck and prosperity in the new year. I feel like no matter where you live, this is a superstition we can all get behind. Not only are black-eyed peas good for you, but they are...