• Video: Five things you didn't know about Kate Middleton
• A super simple way to make French onion soup
• How adorable is Keri Russell's baby girl Willa Lou?
• Three things to avoid when having your picture taken
• Useful lessons we can learn from real and fictional princesses
• Like Jay-Z, musical and famous fathers who've written songs for their babies
• 10 pretty Winter dresses perfect to wear now
• Cute gooseneck lamps to dress up your desk!
• New Girl cutie Jake Johnson on getting nude for the small screen
• How to rebound from your holiday spending spree
• Five secrets to flat abs
• Test your knowledge of animal mascots for big universities
• Monster unveils seven new celebrity headphone lines
• How to make your mantel look perfect for Winter

With all of the excitement surrounding the Duchess of Cambridge's big 30th birthday, it seems only fitting to celebrate it with one of her favorite desserts. It has been reported that Kate is crazy for sticky toffee pudding. Perhaps that's the secret to her stunning physique and silky locks. If so, we'll be whipping up a batch tonight. Want more of Kate's culinary picks? Find out what her favorite drink is!

Turkey pot pie is a necessary indulgence in the world of dieting and salads we all seem to be living in. Yoo Eatz gives us a straightforward, weeknight-friendly recipe for a comforting pot pie.

This holiday season came and went like the whirlwind it always is, and I sit here in the aftermath realizing that I have plenty of recipes to catch up on. So let's take a mini jaunt down memory lane to Thanksgiving, shall we?

Being the lucky recipient of my family's turkey carcass, I ended up with about 6 quarts of homemade stock, most of which sits in the freezer waiting for a chilly night when turkey noodle soup is a quick solution to the question "What's for dinner?" Unfortunately for the stock but quite happily for the rest of us San Franciscans, warm weather has taken up temporary residence in these parts, so soup has been on the back burner, so to speak. But back in late November when temps were still brisk in the low 50s (here, my East Coast friends may shout whatever expletives come to mind), comfort foods were definitely on the brain.

Purists will say that a pot pie must be just that: a pie complete with buttery, flaky crust on the top and the bottom. I get it (admission: I love Marie Calendar's frozen chicken pot pies dumped on a pile of hot white rice), but (1) who has time to whip up pie dough on a weeknight?, and (2) it's hardly a light meal. So I substituted store-bought puff pastry for the crust and focused on a rich, hearty filling for my turkey pot pie. For the recipe, read on.

If one of your culinary resolutions this year has been to get more acquainted with basic skills in the kitchen, we've got the lowdown on a number of essential cooking techniques that are important to know. One of our favorite cooking methods is roasting. When done correctly, the technique truly coaxes more flavor out of foods — and employing the help of the oven is a surefire way to keep your hearth warm during the colder months as well.

Oven-roasting involves little more than dry heat, and is ideal for just about any type of whole food, from large cuts of meat and whole fish to fruits, vegetables, and seeds. Find out more — including how to roast any fruit or vegetable — when you keep reading.

Ranch dressing happens to be the number one selling salad dressing in the United States since 1992. But what exactly is this creamy concoction that we seem to love to pour all over salads, pizzas, and wings?

The dressing, which started out as a simple buttermilk-based dressing enjoyed by cowboys, was made popular when Hidden Valley Ranch began serving and selling the dressing in 1952. Ranch is essentially a combination of sour cream, mayonnaise, yogurt, and/or buttermilk (which accounts for its high fat content) mixed with various seasonings, like fresh herbs and garlic powder. With ingredients this simple and straight-forward, ranch dressing can be made at home with the seasonings adjusted to your own taste buds!

How do you feel about ranch dressing? Do you pour it all over everything you eat or shy away from its creamy consistency?

Source: Flickr User whitneyinchicago

• The best (and worst) hot chocolate to buy — The Daily Meal
• Inside the dark and deceptive world of truffles — HuffPost Food
• Make light coconut milk your new best friend — Vegetarian Times
• 3 easy ways to cook with soy protein — Yahoo! Shine
• Creative ideas for serving smoked salmon — Food Republic
• Papa John's PR nightmare: a cashier calls one woman "lady chinky eyes" — Eatocracy
• Donut Taco Palace I: Where New Year's resolutions go to die — BuzzFeed

My new favorite weeknight meal is a soup recipe that comes together in minutes. It's a very abbreviated version of French onion soup, which traditionally begins with yellow onions, cooked down and reduced for hours until dark and sweet. This quick and dirty version begins with our butter-braised onions, which I always keep on hand, and calls for little more than broth, bread, and cheese. It may not be an exact replica, but this fast soup hits the spot on a cold Winter day, and it's an easily transportable work lunch, too. Read on for the recipe.

Life is like a box of macaroons; you never know what color you're gonna get. Just ask Angelica.

From Bottega Louie in Los Angeles, Ca.

Have you savored artisan macaroons lately? Share your favorite version of the French pastry by uploading pics in our Savory Sights community group.