Skip to content

Top Navigation

Martha Stewart Martha Stewart
  • FOOD
  • HOLIDAYS
  • ENTERTAINING
  • HOME
  • GARDENING
  • CLEANING & ORGANIZING
  • WEDDINGS
  • SHOP
  • DIY
  • BEAUTY & WELLNESS
  • LIFE
  • NEWS
  • MARTHA'S BLOG
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Martha's Blog
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletter
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact Us
  • Your Content
  • Logout

More

  • Enter to Win $10,000 to Makeover Your Home!
  • Martha's Blog
  • Weddings
Login
Pin FB

Explore Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart Martha Stewart
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Tips on Organizing Your Home

      Tips on Organizing Your Home

      From the kitchen and bathroom to the bedroom and laundry room, here are 40 ways to simplify, streamline, and banish clutter throughout the house. Read More
    • These Are the Paint Colors You'll See Everywhere in 2022

      These Are the Paint Colors You'll See Everywhere in 2022

      Upgrade your spaces with new—and old—classics. Read More
    • 39 Make-Ahead Holiday Dishes That Are Perfect for Festive Family Gatherings

      39 Make-Ahead Holiday Dishes That Are Perfect for Festive Family Gatherings

      These classic recipes will help you get a head start on the festivities. Read More
  • FOOD

    FOOD

    See All FOOD
    • Breakfast & Brunch Recipes
    • Lunch Recipes
    • Dinner Recipes
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Dessert Recipes
    • Drink Recipes
    • Salad Recipes
    • Side Dishes
    • Soup Recipes
    • Healthy Recipes
    • Quick & Easy Recipes
    • Vegetarian Recipes
    • Cooking How-Tos
    • Baking
    • Menu Planning
    • Food News & Trends
    • Wine
    • Mastering the Holiday Meal
    • What's for Dinner
    • All Recipes
  • HOLIDAYS

    HOLIDAYS

    See All HOLIDAYS
    All of Our Best Valentine's Day Crafts to Make from the Heart

    All of Our Best Valentine's Day Crafts to Make from the Heart

    Express your love with handmade Valentine's crafts like paper cards, gift ideas, and decorations.
    • Valentine's Day
    • St. Patricks Day
    • Passover
    • Easter
    • Mother's Day
    • Father's Day
    • Fourth of July
    • Halloween
    • Thanksgiving
    • Hanukkah
    • Christmas
    • New Year's Eve
  • ENTERTAINING

    ENTERTAINING

    See All ENTERTAINING
    Will We Entertain Differently in 2022? These Are the New Trends Hostesses Should Bookmark

    Will We Entertain Differently in 2022? These Are the New Trends Hostesses Should Bookmark

    Secure your role as the host with the absolute most.
    • Seasonal Entertaining & Decorating
    • Baby Shower Ideas
    • Dinner Party Ideas
    • You're Invited
  • HOME

    HOME

    See All HOME
    How to Hang and Arrange Pictures

    How to Hang and Arrange Pictures

    Amp up your home décor with perfectly placed frames.
    • Home Design & Decor
    • Paint Colors & Palettes
    • DIY Home Projects
    • The Well-Kept Home
  • GARDENING

    GARDENING

    See All GARDENING
    Six Houseplant Mistakes to Avoid This Winter

    Six Houseplant Mistakes to Avoid This Winter

    Don't let your varieties fall victim to the perils of poor cold-weather maintenance.
    • Container Gardening
    • Flower Gardens
    • Houseplants
    • Landscaping
    • Vegetable Gardens
  • CLEANING & ORGANIZING

    CLEANING & ORGANIZING

    How to Deep Clean Your Oven with Baking Soda

    How to Deep Clean Your Oven with Baking Soda

    Our easy tips will make this cleaning task a lot less daunting.
    • Cleaning
    • Storage & Organization
    • Laundry & Linens
  • WEDDINGS

    WEDDINGS

    See All WEDDINGS
    Your Ultimate Wedding-Planning Timeline

    Your Ultimate Wedding-Planning Timeline

    Ready, set, go! Our no-nonsense guide will help you learn how to plan your wedding like a pro.
    • Real Weddings
    • Wedding Party
    • Wedding Planning & Advice
    • Wedding Ceremony & Reception
    • Wedding Jewelry
    • Dresses & Style
    • Wedding Beauty & Wellness
    • Wedding Registry
    • Wedding Showers & Parties
    • Love & Marriage
    • Wedding Travel
  • SHOP
  • DIY

    DIY

    See All DIY
    How to Knit: A Beginner's Step-by-Step Guide

    How to Knit: A Beginner's Step-by-Step Guide

    Learn how to knit your own mittens, hats, scarves, and more. We'll take you through the step-by-step instructions and teach you how to cast on, knit, purl, and cast off.
    • Dyeing
    • Holiday Crafts
    • Kids' Crafts
    • Knitting
    • Paper Crafts
    • Sewing
    • Rescue & Revamp
  • BEAUTY & WELLNESS

    BEAUTY & WELLNESS

    Your Complete Guide to Restoring Moisture Back Into Your Skin

    Your Complete Guide to Restoring Moisture Back Into Your Skin

    Take a multi-pronged approach if you're experiencing excess dryness.
    • Beauty
    • Health & Wellness
    • Live Well
  • LIFE

    LIFE

    See All LIFE
    • Family
    • Pets
    • Travel
    • Net Worth
  • NEWS
  • MARTHA'S BLOG
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Martha's Blog
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletter
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact Us
  • Your Content
  • Logout

More

  • Enter to Win $10,000 to Makeover Your Home!
  • Martha's Blog
  • Weddings
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. marthastewart.com
  2. Food & Cooking
  3. Recipes
  4. Better Basic Recipes: New Takes on 10 Family Favorites

Better Basic Recipes: New Takes on 10 Family Favorites

May 02, 2014
Skip gallery slides
Pin

1 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Easy on Effort

giant-pancake-dps-0138-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Pancakes for breakfast. Macaroni and cheese for lunch. Steak for dinner. Brownies for dessert. These are the foods your family hankers for day in and day out, all year long. Lucky for you, they’re also the recipes you have committed to memory. The 10 dishes here promise to become just such regulars: They’re the everyday options you love to cook and eat, each with an update or twist that makes it easier, speedier, more of-the-moment. Consider them our best go-tos yet.

Everyone loves pancakes. Which is why you can run into supply-and-demand woes, standing over the griddle, flipping one after the other. Let this baked pancake take the pressure off, since you just mix and pour the batter, then pop it in the oven. It has all the tender texture of old-fashioned flapjacks, but it slices into wedges so everyone can eat together (and you don’t end up feeling like a short-order cook).

1 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Speedy and Silky Mac and Cheese

carbonara-cheesy-mac-0023-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Homemade macaroni and cheese requires many more steps than store-bought mixes, including making a béchamel sauce from scratch. This stove-top version, which matches the boxed kind in ease, approaches the sublime flavor of more-involved baked varieties. Whisking a mixture of eggs and grated cheddar and Parmesan into steaming-hot noodles on the stove top creates a luscious sauce -- in mere minutes.

2 of 10

3 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Chicken Dinner in a Flash

roast-chicken-0235-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

It’s not only a mainstay for Sunday supper: A quartered chicken roasts in just half an hour on any old weeknight. Since the bird is cut up, it has more exposed skin than a whole chicken, leading to more irresistible crispiness all over. When the bird is hot out of the oven, its toasty skin melds with the savory herb sauce for the most intense flavor.

3 of 10

Advertisement

4 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Better Than French Fries

ld111000-potatoes-v2-0204-0414.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

These potatoes taste just like french fries -- but they're not deep-fried. Parboiling before roasting creates a light and fluffy inside, all the while promoting a perfectly golden exterior.

4 of 10

5 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Seal In the Flavor

salmon-pouch-0445-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Cooking fresh salmon en papillote (that is, in parchment) is a messproof way to coax the most flavor from the fish without adding a lot of oil or butter: The salmon, asparagus, and leek steam in their own juices, and the entire meal -- main course and vegetables -- goes from oven to dinner plate with very little fuss (and even less house-permeating fishy odor). And unlike with other cooking methods, it’s pretty much impossible to dry out the salmon.

5 of 10

6 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

The New Tomato Sauce

new-tomato-sauce-0151-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This is the slow-roasted version of the stove-top tomato sauce, and it’s jam-packed with flavor. Drizzled with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and a tiny bit of brown sugar to mellow the flavor, the tomatoes shrivel a bit as they roast and turn meltingly tender inside. You’ll want to have it with everything -- not just over pasta but on crusty bread and scrambled eggs, and paired with soft cheeses. And this fresh, chunky sauce is seasonless, since you can find good cherry or grape tomatoes year-round.

6 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Elevate an Affordable Cut

steak-0481-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This inexpensive cut of meat makes excellent use of one mighty marinade: The combination of olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, and brown sugar assures a nice caramelized crust and deepens the flank’s flavor -- so it tastes like a much more expensive cut. The marinade sees the dish all the way through, too, since it gets boiled and poured over the thinly sliced meat, which is then finished with peppery arugula and more zesty lemon juice.

7 of 10

8 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Dress-Ahead Salad

marinated-greens-salad-0468-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This whole-grain and hearty-green salad is such a welcome update on the tossed garden salad. It’s a satisfying mix of chewy farro, crunchy kale, and smooth, creamy feta. Unlike a lot of more tender salad greens and pastas, the kale and the grain stand up to dressing and can be tossed a few days ahead without going limp and soggy. In fact, the whole thing tastes even better as leftovers, so make a big batch.

Prepare this salad at the start of the week, then enjoy it for lunch and dinner over several days.

8 of 10

9 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Brownie With a Cookie Twist

walnut-cookies-0386-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Imagine the happy marriage of a brownie and a cookie: From the cookie, this petite, two-bite treat is blessed with appealing crispiness around the edges. From the brownie, it gets a rich, fudgy chewiness and full-on chocolate deliciousness. The best of both worlds, indeed.

Made with both cocoa powder and dark chocolate, the cookies have a bold flavor that goes well with espresso.

9 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Crunchy, Creamy, Dreamy

inverted-lemon-meringue-0368-mld111000.jpg
Credit: Ryan Liebe
View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A meringue crust tastes heavenly, so it makes sense that this vintage lemon-curd-and-cream dessert is known as “angel pie.” Our puckery-sweet update of this all-American classic is basically an upside-down lemon meringue pie -- but you get to skip the task of rolling out pâte brisée and can simply spoon fluffy meringue to form the ethereal crust. Don’t let the fissures in the baked and filled shell fool you: This pie is a dream to slice.

10 of 10

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 10 Easy on Effort
    2 of 10 Speedy and Silky Mac and Cheese
    3 of 10 Chicken Dinner in a Flash
    4 of 10 Better Than French Fries
    5 of 10 Seal In the Flavor
    6 of 10 The New Tomato Sauce
    7 of 10 Elevate an Affordable Cut
    8 of 10 Dress-Ahead Salad
    9 of 10 Brownie With a Cookie Twist
    10 of 10 Crunchy, Creamy, Dreamy

    Share & More

    Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message
    Martha Stewart

    Learn More

    • Contact Us
    • Customer Service
    • Media Kit
    • Martha's Blog
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing
    • FAQ
    • Corporate
    • International
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Follow Us
    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Sign Up
    MeredithMartha Stewart is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Martha Stewart. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.marthastewart.com

    Sign in

    View image

    Better Basic Recipes: New Takes on 10 Family Favorites
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.