I enjoyed this over a scoop of really good vanilla ice cream with a tiny pinch of flaky sea salt on top. 

Everyone knows about salted caramel, but I'm going to let you in on a BrokeAss kitchen secret: to achieve an even more decadent flavor, use brown sugar. Brown sugar, with its rich, molasses-y flavor, has--at least in my book--much more depth and clout than regular sugar. It's tastier in nearly everything. Seriously, try putting it in your coffee.

The same goes for its sisters, palm and coconut sugars, and, while a bit more expensive, both work well here. When they melt down, their toasty flavors permeate your caramel. You need only to add butter, half-and-half (you could use cream, but I rarely have it on hand, whereas I always have half-and-half) for body and richness, and a little salt.

I enjoyed this over a scoop of really good vanilla ice cream with a tiny pinch of flaky sea salt on top, but it would also be incredible swirled into a bread pudding, over sauteed bananas or pears, or even over Greek yogurt

It's dessert simplicity at its best--and it only costs $2.50 to make. 

The world has gone crazy for Cronuts™.

If you happen to live under a rock, and don't know what a Cronut™ is, it's a hybrid croissant-doughnut, invented by the good people at the Dominique Ansel Bakery. It has led the people of New York (and every other city where other bakeries' takes on the cronut have begun popping up) going nuts with anticipation, waiting in line for hours (or paying this dude to wait for them), just to get that deep-fried, flaky, buttery, layered confection. Oh, and, they're being sold on the black market at a 700% mark-up.

Yes, these are pastries we're talking about.

I was inspired, when my friend Aimee told me last weekend that, in protest of the ridiculousness of the line-waiting and pastry-scalping, she tried to make Cronut™ herself at home. Sadly, her efforts to make croissant dough yielded something, in her words, "brick-like," not the light, flaky Cronuts™ of her dreams. 

As she told me of her trials, it occurred to me that pre-made crescent dough (the kind sold in the tubes, made famous by a certain giggling, tiny man made of dough) might be a viable hack. Sure enough, it worked out beautifully.  

I make these a little bit smaller than conventional Cronuts™ (slightly less guilt that way), and top them with a simple powdered sugar glaze, so you can really taste all the buttery goodness. Feel free to get creative with icings or other flavorings (melted dark chocolate Cronuts™, anyone?).

Skip the line, save money and impress your friends: make Kronuts (with a K!) at home! 

**Note: When I originally posted this, I called my creations Cronuts, however, the folks from Dominique Ansel have requested I call them something else, so as not to cause confusion. So, I'm going with Kronuts.** 

Bring this to the Halloween party instead, and let the scariest thing in the room be Mike from Accounting's ill-advised Miley-Cyrus-at-the-VMA's costume--not scary fake cheese dip.

Goblins, ghosts and witches are scary, sure. But you know what really freaks me out? Super-processed cheese.

WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT? I ask you. Why bother with what is, as far as I'm concerned, basically melted, reshaped plastic that is scientifically edible, but culinarily criminal? Why would you do that, when there are so many other delicious cheeses available? The argument that processed cheese is great because it's smooth and melty does nothing to convince me. Any cheese is smooth and melty if you treat it right.

Processed cheese is lower in fat, you say? Well, yeah. That's because it's not food. 

But this queso, my friends, is totally real food, that also happens super melty and gooey, the way queso ought to be. The help of a little canned pureed pumpkin (or fresh roasted and home-pureed, if you have that kind of time) makes it supple and creamy, while also adding to it a healthy dose of fiber and vitamins A and C--and zero fat. I add chopped onions and fresh jalapeño for extra flavor, but you could swap in canned green chiles for the jalapeño, if you prefer.

So please, I beg of you, just say no to the old Rotel-and-Velveeta combo. This is so much better. Bring this to the Halloween party instead, and let the scariest thing in the room be Mike from Accounting's ill-advised Miley-Cyrus-at-the-VMA's costume--not scary fake cheese dip. 

First of all, it's time to stop with the tomato soup from the can (or box). It's so absurdly easy to make it from scratch, you'll wonder why you haven't been doing it this way the whole time. It's always delicious with canned tomatoes, but why not take advantage of the end-of-summer tomato sales at your local farmers market? On Sunday, I scored 2 pounds of overripe Early Girl tomatoes for a mere $2. All they needed was a quick peel (just drop them into boiling water for a few seconds, then slip off the peel and use your fingers to scoop out as many seeds as you can), and they took my soup to an extra level of awesome.

Here, I borrow a soup-topping technique generally associated with French Onion soup, except I skip the classic crouton and opt to top my soup with straight cheese before hitting it with a quick broil. The top of the cheese gets brown and crusty while the bottom oozes into the soup, thickening it and melting all over your spoon in the best possible way. 

It's a filling, comforting soup that just happens to also be low-carb and gluten-free. 

This is a great dish to make when you're still kind of coming to terms with the fact that summer is over.

It has bold Fall flavors, sure. Melty, sweet onions melded with the classic autumn combination of white beans and kale, yeah. But it's delivered in a spicy, summery poblano pepper vehicle. It's like July in your mouth.

Another great thing about this dish is that, not only does it not require deep-frying, as with classic chiles rellenos recipes, but you also don't have to pre-roast the poblanos. By cooking them slow and low in the oven with their filling inside, the peppers naturally soften while the filling finishes cooking and the flavors become well-integrated.

Also, please note that, while this is super-delicious with cheese, if you are avoiding dairy, you could definitely stir in some canned, pureed pumpkin in place of the cheese for a tasty vegan version.

I like to serve this with a green salad and, a dollop of Greek yogurt or sour cream on top.