Melissa Clark

To be quite honest, my dad's not much of a cook, but that which he does make he does with great enthusiasm (and to delectable effect). Trays of meaty lasagna are at the center of his annual Super Bowl party, and Summer hasn't officially started 'til his tangy marinated chicken hits the grill, but it's his french toast, waffles, and pancakes that he is best known for in our family. Now, this recipe isn't his go-to — his is a classic stove-top affair — but I choose to take the lazy lady's route and pop mine in the oven to avoid flipping slice after slice.

Now I'm loathe to knock my dad's breakfast routine — I'll happily devour anything he cooks up given the opportunity — but this recipe is not only less labor-intensive and thus perfect for bleary-eyed mornings and group entertaining, but something truly magical happens as the sugar and butter bubble up in the oven. Tender like bread pudding in the center but with a crisp caramel-topped lid, this is, and will continue to be, my go-to recipe for the classic brunch and breakfast staple. I encourage you to follow suit.

When it comes to baked goods, looks can occasionally be deceiving. Take this cranberry-swirled gingerbread cake: slightly unassuming in appearance, it's an unlikely contender for crowd favorite when placed side by side with luscious pies, or an elegantly frosted chocolate cake.

That is, until the first bite is consumed. The batter, deeply spiced and spiked with bittersweet molasses, is a strong contender for my favorite gingerbread tasted to date. A hefty swirl of sweet-tart cranberry sauce simply gilds the lily, firmly placing this cranberry-swirled gingerbread in my cake hall of fame.

Despite its unconventional nature, chances are, this year it'll have a place at my Thanksgiving table, and many more times throughout the season to come. I urge you to look beyond aesthetics and do the same.

Keep reading for the must-make recipe.

Traditionally, squash blossoms are stuffed with creamy cheese, battered, and deep fried; lovely and enticing in their own right, to be sure, but a girl can only eat so many deep-fried snacks without palate fatigue. So when my best friend brought a basket of these Summer beauties to dinner, alongside a rustic baguette, a tub of creamy burrata, and a jar of pungent olive tapenade, I knew I was in for a real treat.

I watched in rapt attention as she deftly prepared this quick appetizer, barely able to restrain myself from sneaking a taste of the burrata as it oozed with cream. Mere minutes later, we bit in, and at that moment, I was sold. Not only are squash blossoms extraordinarily beautiful in their raw state, but when shed of their battered exterior, their nuanced delicate flavors truly shine. I imagine I'll be experimenting with raw preparations, until, like tomatoes (another Summer favorite), they're sadly whisked away until next season's flush.

Keep reading for the novel recipe.

Chances are, if you grace my dinner table anytime between June and October, you'll be digging into a heaping bowl of tomato salad. My weekly farmers market trip practically revolves around their acquisition, and I can predict with startling accuracy my mood for the week based on whether I got my fill or not.

More often than not, the tomatoes are destined for the simplest of salads: sliced (or halved, in the case of cherry tomatoes) and dressed with a hefty sprinkle of sea salt, a drizzle of olive oil, and balsamic vinegar, if that, because the best Summer tomatoes don't really need to be gussied up.

This, however, is a game changer. It's likely that I might have simply skipped over this recipe and kept with tradition, greedily gobbling bowl after bowl of the simply dressed fruit, but something about this salad drew me in. Perhaps it was its provenance (I'll almost always blindly follow recipe advice from Melissa Clark) or maybe it was the addition of fish sauce (I'm a sucker for the briny liquid). Either way, I'd suggest that you too break out of your comfort zone and give this variation on the classic Summer salad a try.

Keep reading for the innovative (but simple) recipe.