Blog Posts by bon appétit magazine

Photo by Romulo YanesBy Nina Wolpow, Bon Appetit

Baking can get a bad rap. There's all that measuring, mixing, and molding, not to mention the mess--and mess-ups.

Enter this foolproof cobbler, which entreats you to tear up your dough and simply drop it over blueberries. 'Cause when the going gets tough, gravity helps.




Blueberry-Drop Biscuit Cobbler
Recipe by Soa Davies
6-8 servings
active: 15 minutes
total: 2 hours (includes baking and cooling time)

Read More: The Top 20 Best Tasting Burger Recipes

Ingredients 1 1/2 cups plus 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons plus 1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" pieces
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp. crème fraîche or sour cream
6 cups fresh blueberries (about 2 lb.)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°. Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, 3 Tbsp. sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add butter; using

Photo by Zach DeSartBy Mary-Frances Heck, Bon Appétit

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between all of summer's scoopable delights? It's time to get to know what's in your cone. Here's the scoop, from left to right.


Read More: The Best Store-Bought Ice Cream

Sorbet and Granita
These cool, dairy-free treats refresh the palate. They can be made from fruit and vegetable purées, juices, wine, or infusions like tea.

Sherbet and Ice Milk
Lighter than ice cream, these contain less dairy but still have a creamy texture. Lower fat content means brighter flavors.

Read More: The Top 20 Best Tasting Burger Recipes

Ice Cream
Often starts out as an egg-based custard. It's the creamiest of all frozen desserts, containing at least 10% milk fat by law in the U.S.

And now you know.

More from Bon Appétit:

10 Snacks You Thought Were Healthy But Really Aren't
10 Quick and Easy School-Night Dinners
25 One-Bite Appetizers
Junk Food Makeover: Healthier Chicken Nuggets

Photo by Romulo YanesRecipe by Soa Davies, Bon Appétit

For this pretty side or meatless main salad, use medium and small squash for the best flavor. Quinoa and walnuts (or a grain and nut of your choosing) add heft.

Summer Squash and Red Quinoa Salad with Walnuts
4-6 servings
active: 20 minutes total: 35 minutes



Read More: The Best Store-Bought Ice Cream

Ingredients
1/2 cup red or other quinoa, rinsed in a fine-mesh sieve, drained
2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more for seasoning
1 pound assorted summer squash
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan plus 1/4 cup shaved with a peeler
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon
Sherry vinegar
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn

Preparation
Bring quinoa and 4 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Season with salt, cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until quinoa is tender but not

Photo by CN Digital StudioBy Rachel Sanders, Bon Appétit

Coffee, like bourbon and Disney musicals, is different on ice: a little smoother, a bit more seductive, with a kick that sneaks up on you. And iced-coffee enthusiasts (i.e., everyone) have found even more to swoon over with cold brew now seemingly everywhere. Made by steeping ground beans in room-temperature water overnight, it produces bold, intense flavor with less acid and more velvety sweetness.

Read More: The Best Store-Bought Ice Cream


"Cold brewing is simpler and much more forgiving than just cooling down coffee," says Grady Laird, co-owner of Grady's Cold Brew. "Plus it tastes better: It's smoother, without the bite associated with hot coffee. In the end, it's more refreshing--and when it's 95 degrees outside, that's what matters." Word.

Listen: With monstrous caffeinated slushies and other dubious drink variants proliferating, you don't want to go sucking on just any straw. That's why we, along with every barista and bean geek in the country

Recipes by Damon Boelte, Bon Appétit

Our official cocktail for summer 2012, the Smash is super refreshing and a breeze to make. Just muddle seasonal fruit with simple syrup, add citrus and your booze of choice, top with ice (lots and lots of crushed ice!), sip, and repeat. Think of it as an adult sno-cone.

Read More: The Top 20 Best Tasting Burger Recipes

Photo by Zach DeSart














Strawberry-Balsamic Smash
Fresh, sweet, and tart, this one has it all.

Preparation
Using a muddler or the handle of a wooden spoon, mash two 1/2" lime wedges, two 1/2"
rounds of cucumber, 1 fresh hulled strawberry, 1 Tbsp. Simple Syrup (click for recipe), and 1/2 tsp. balsamic vinegar in a 16-oz. mixing glass or a cocktail shaker 4-5 times just to release juices and oils. Add 1/4 cup gin. Transfer to an Old Fashioned glass. Fill halfway with crushed ice, stir, then mound more crushed ice on top. Garnish with a cucumber round.


Photo by Zach DeSart














Classic Whiskey Smash
This drink is just as refreshing when made with gin, vodka, or rum.

By Bon Appétit

Skinless, boneless chicken breasts: everyone's favorite lean protein, right? Maybe, but while it's quick and healthy, it can also be a total snooze factory.

No more!

We've got weeknight recipes to get you out of your chicken breast rut.


Read More: The Top 20 Best Tasting Burger Recipes


Photo by Maria del Mar Sacasa / Ennis, Inc.














Grilled Citrus Chicken Breasts
The key to making moist and flavorful grilled chicken breasts is careful grilling-avoid cooking the chicken too quickly over too-high heat or it will end up scorched and dry. Oranges, lemons, and rosemary perfume this chicken while it grills.


Photo by Maria del Mar Sacasa / Ennis, Inc.














Salt-Cured Roast Chicken Breasts with Bread Salad
Salting the chicken a day or two before roasting it at high heat in the oven produces a moist and juicy breast. A rustic arugula and bread salad accompanies the chicken.

Read More: The Best Store-Bought Ice Cream


Photo by Maria del Mar Sacasa / Ennis, Inc.














Chicken Roulade
In this elegant Greek-inspired dish, boneless breasts are flattened and rolled with a flavorful feta-and-oregano filling.


Photo by Maria del Mar Sacasa / Ennis, Inc.














Chicken

Photo by Romulo YanesBy Meryl Rothstein, Bon Appétit

Consulting a nutrition label or weighing pasta portions doesn't bode well when you want a great meal. Which is why, if you talk to enough nutritionists--as I do for this job--you can start to think that eating healthfully ruins all the fun. But there's one piece of advice I swear by, something that makes me feel like I'm not giving up deliciousness in the name of wellness: Get a lot of color on your plate.

In fact, the very chemicals that give plants their hue also do things like fight cancer. "Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables gives you the best protection against disease," says Navindra Seeram, director of the Bioactive Botanical Research Laboratory at the University of Rhode Island. Every color does something different: The antho-cyanin in purple eggplants offers complementary benefits to the beta- carotene in orange carrots. Eat produce from around the color wheel, and you'll get nutrients that are thought to reduce the risk for type 2

Photo by Zach DeSartBy Andrew Knowlton, Bon Appétit

Dear Foodist: Farmers' markets in August can be as crazy as a mall before Christmas. What are your rules to shop by?

Now that just about every town boasts a market, it's a good time to clarify some guidelines:

1. Yes, eggs, milk, and produce are more expensive than at the supermarket. But where else can you get just-laid eggs with bright-orange yolks, milk capped with cream, and vegetables that go beyond garden variety? What's more, the taste is exponentially better. So don't hassle the farmer about price.

2. We all want beautiful corn, tomatoes, and peaches, but that doesn't give you the right to shuck, squeeze, and poke every single one in search of perfection.

3. When it comes to plastic, let me just say: Bring your own %*!)@ bags.

Read More: The Top 20 Best Tasting Burger Recipes

4. Leave the dog at home.

5. Unless it grows in your region, don't expect to find it at your local market. Of course, if you live in California, you can ask for