I'm a big fan of Julia Turshen's cookbook, Small Victories, and I've seen this recipe all over Instagram for months now, but I still had to try it for myself. I now have and I can confidently say that this is a winner.

First, let's talk about her now-famous trick to make the perfect fried egg: You crack your egg onto a hot pan with some olive oil, and you then add a couple drops of water onto the pan (not on the egg), cover, and cook for a couple of minutes. The steam from the water will ensure the egg white is completely set while the yolk is still perfectly runny by the time it's ready. It's seriously magical!

Then you place your egg on a mix of yogurt and lemon juice and top it with salt, pepper, and some fresh herbs (I used mint which was 👌). I served it with a slice of sourdough bread, and it was the best breakfast I'd had in months. — Marie Telling

Here's the recipe.

This creation is the result of me simply wanting to use up every last bit of food in my pantry. So, I whipped up a standard brownie recipe topped with ganache (sounds intimidating, but it's just cream and chocolate) and literally topped it with everything in my pantry: Peanuts, marshmallows, flaky salt, and pretzels. The results looked a bit like rocky road ice cream, and it tasted surprisingly delicious. It was sweet, salty, and had a ton of interesting textures.

Although I'm no baking expert, I made a little list of things I think would also make great brownie toppings:

• Dried fruit and nuts

• Crushed graham crackers or other cookies

• Fresh berries

• Bacon bits 👀

• Heck, even crushed potato chip if you're feeling wild ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So go forth and top your brownies with abandon! Even if the toppings don't taste all that great, they're still brownies — so how bad could it be? — Jesse Szewczyk

Here's the base recipe.

A couple of weeks ago, my vegan roommate was out of town and it felt like the perfect time to make a great roast chicken. I found this recipe in Downtime, a cookbook by Nadine Levy Redzepi.

Between letting the chicken rest at room temperature for a couple of hours and later actually cooking it, the recipe takes a while. But overall, it's not that labor-intensive. Prep-wise, you just halve your potatoes and cut a lemon in wedges. You then rub the chicken with olive oil, salt and pepper, stuff it with lemon wedges, crushed garlic cloves, and thyme. Put everything in a roasting pan and roast!

The chicken comes out super juicy and flavorful, with the lemon, garlic, and olive oil brightening up the whole dish. The potatoes are also perfect: crispy on the outside and super soft on the inside. I think I'm in love. — Marie Telling

Here's the recipe.

I've never cooked much with rhubarb but I was in a spring/summer mood, saw this recipe in Yotam Ottolenghi's Sweet cookbook, and I had to try it. I love a good crumble cake and this goes above and beyond in that category.

You can't see it in the picture, but there is about five times more crumb that goes on top of this and it is SO good. In the end, you get three wonderful layers: a perfect strawberry rhubarb layer sandwiched between a thick crumble topping and a fantastic cake base. 10/10 would make again! — Scott Loitsch

Here's the recipe.

I used to be afraid to cook seafood at home because it seems intimidating. But I've started cooking fish and shellfish more and more, especially in the spring and summer, and I've become obsessed with scallops.

First of all, they're SO easy to make — you literally just season them with salt and pepper, then sear them on a sizzling hot cast iron skillet until they're golden-brown and crispy on both sides. Secondly, it's easy to dress scallops up so that your home-cooked meal feels totally fancy.

I found this recipe on Food52 for scallops with sweet corn purée made with almond milk, chicken broth, shallots, butter, and cayenne. You make the purée in a food processor or blender, then serve the seared scallops on top. It's an easy and delicious way to take scallops to the next level. — Hannah Loewentheil

Here's the recipe.

American carrot cake is quite good, but all that cream cheese frosting really isn't my cup of tea. It makes the whole thing sickeningly sweet and kind of ruins it for me.

The other day, I was going through Japan: The Cookbook, a gorgeous new book about Japanese cooking, and noticed this recipe for carrot cake. It only had a handful of ingredients, not that much sugar (carrots are already pretty sweet after all), and zero frosting. It sounded amazing.

The cake batter comes together pretty quickly; the only slightly labor-intensive moments in the process were grating the carrots and beating the egg whites. The recipe calls for two small loaf pans but I didn't have them so I used one regular-sized one, which I think was a mistake. Because I used a larger pan, the cake didn't rise as much as it would have in two smaller ones. When it came out of the oven, I was a bit worried cause it looked paler than in the pictures in the book and flatter than I had expected.

But then, I cut myself a slice and OH MY GOD I swear it was one of the most delicious cakes I've ever had. It was just the perfect amount of sweet, the texture was both moist and light, and the carrot flavor just perfect. I ate it all by myself in one day and didn't even feel bad about it. I'm going to buy small loaf pans just so I can make this cake over and over again. — Marie Telling

Here's the recipe.

The other day, I was craving shrimp curry and found this recipe on New York Times Cooking. It involves a little bit of chopping and mincing (garlic, onions, ginger, and chilies) but other than that, it comes together in no time.

I served it on some coconut rice (recipe below) and it was delicious. I'll definitely make it again whenever I'm craving something tasty and satisfying but also low-effort. — Marie Telling

Here's the recipe.

I love cinnamon rolls. Growing up my mother would make them for special occasions, rolling them out the night before and letting them proof overnight. During a long weekend this past month I decided to do just the same (because what else would I do on a free Monday morning?).

While it's an easy recipe, it's certainly not quick: There's proofing time, shaping, and baking. But as the rolls baked, the scent filled my apartment and smelled heavenly. So if you're feeling up for a baking project and have a day off, this cinnamon roll recipe is just the thing. — Jesse Szewczyk

Here's the recipe.

I love coconut rice. I love it with savory dishes, and I love it as a dessert. So when I saw this recipe in Christopher Kimball's Milk Street, I knew I had to make it.

You just toast some shredded coconut in some coconut oil in a large saucepan, then you add the rice, toast it for a minute or two, then cover with coconut milk and water. Stir and bring to a simmer, then cook covered on low for 15 minutes. And voilà! You have a perfect rice.

It's super fluffy and flavorful — but not in an overwhelming way, which makes it a great complement to a curry recipe or some grilled meat. I also had it for dessert with a sliced mango and it was perfect. — Marie Telling

Here's the recipe.

Flourless chocolate cakes were never really my favorite. I've never cared for the texture and thought they kinda tasted like bad soufflés — sorry! But that was until I tried this recipe.

It's a bit like a cross between a chocolate cake, brownies, and pudding all wrapped up in one delicious package. The recipe itself is pretty easy to make, too — using only a few basic ingredients you might already have. The most difficult part is whipping the egg whites, but if you have an electric mixer this will be fairly easy.

The recipe also calls for a whipped mascarpone topping that I decided not to include — but I'm sure it's delicious. If you can't have gluten, I highly recommend this recipe. And even if you can have gluten, I still highly recommend it. — Jesse Szewczyk

Here's the recipe.