Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

These roasted fingerling potatoes are an easy, delicious side dish! Lightly crisp and seasoned with garlic and herbs, they're perfect for the holidays.

Have you ever cooked fingerling potatoes? These oblong, finger-shaped potatoes are small and waxy. They have thin skins and firm, buttery flesh that almost reminds me of chestnuts. I love to make roasted fingerling potatoes for special occasions. With their unique shape and earthy, nutty taste, they feel a touch fancier than humble Yukon Golds or russets. With the holidays coming up, I thought it would be the perfect time to share my roasted fingerling potatoes recipe. It’s easy to make with 8 ingredients, but it’s still elegant and flavorful enough for a celebration. I hope you love it as much…

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35 Best Friendsgiving Food Ideas

Our best Friendsgiving food ideas! Find easy recipes for a festive fall gathering—crowd-pleasing appetizers, fun drinks, desserts, and more.

If you’re celebrating Friendsgiving this year, you’re in the right place! Below, I’ve rounded up my best Friendsgiving food ideas—bite-size appetizers, batch cocktails, classic side dishes, and easy desserts. Whether you’re hosting or just bringing a dish to pass, you’ll find Friendsgiving recipes to try. Back in the day, Jack and I celebrated Friendsgiving on Thanksgiving, because we lived far from our families and didn’t always travel for the holiday. Now, it’s more common to do both—a Friendsgiving earlier in November and a traditional Thanksgiving feast with family later on. I’m all for this, because it turns Friendsgiving into an opportunity to…

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Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes

These cauliflower mashed potatoes are just as smooth and creamy as classic ones! Ready in 20 minutes, they're a delicious, easy low carb side dish.

Don’t tell Jack, but we probably won’t have classic mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving this year. I’m planning to make these cauliflower mashed potatoes instead! That’s because we’re celebrating with his parents, who eat a low carb diet. I wanted to create a rich, creamy alternative to mashed potatoes that everyone at the table would enjoy, and after testing and tweaking this recipe, I think it’s going to be perfect. These cauliflower mashed potatoes are smooth, creamy, and flavorful, made with Parmesan cheese, butter, garlic, and sour cream. I won’t tell you that they taste exactly like potatoes (they do have a…

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Cranberry Sauce

This easy cranberry sauce recipe is tart, lightly sweet, and scented with orange. Ready in 15 minutes, it's a classic, delicious holiday side dish!

Meet my best cranberry sauce recipe! Easy to make with 5 ingredients in under 15 minutes, it’s delectably tart, not too sweet, and studded with whole cranberries. I’m not a turkey eater, and I still spoon this sauce all over my Thanksgiving plate—it’s just that good. This homemade cranberry sauce is an updated version of a recipe I shared a few years ago. I’ve added more orange juice and zest for bright, fruity depth of flavor and shortened the cook time, which is 1) convenient and 2) means that more cranberries stay intact. If you ask me, their bursty texture…

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Stuffed Acorn Squash

I love making stuffed acorn squash in the fall. With a hearty wild rice filling, it's cozy, fresh, and festive. Perfect for Thanksgiving or any fall dinner!

Stuffed acorn squash is one of my favorite fall dinners. I often make it after trips to the farmers market, when I come home with more squash than I know what to do with. It’s also my go-to vegetarian main course for Thanksgiving. Loaded with a fresh fall filling, the tender, golden squash halves look so pretty at the center of a holiday table. I’ve made countless stuffed acorn squash recipes over the years, but when I tried this version, I knew it would be one that I’d make on repeat. The hearty filling consists of nutty wild rice, crisp…

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Easy Sugar Cookies

Craving something sweet? Make these sugar cookies! Easy to make with 8 ingredients, they have lightly crisp edges and perfect chewy middles.

Hands up if you love soft and chewy sugar cookies! If you have your hand raised, this sugar cookie recipe is for you. Adapted from my snickerdoodle recipe, it yields sugar cookies with perfect chewy middles, lightly crisp edges, and a warm, buttery flavor. Best of all, it’s super easy to make. You just need 8 basic ingredients…and you don’t even have to chill the dough. You could totally make these cookies for a holiday—roll them in red and green sugar for Christmas, or top them off with pink frosting for Valentine’s Day. But honestly, we just love them as an…

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Apple Cider Cocktail

This apple cider cocktail is my idea of the perfect fall drink. Easy to make with 5 ingredients, it's bright, boozy, and packed with warming fall flavors.

Jack and I love making this apple cider cocktail recipe for cozy fall nights in. It combines some of his favorite cocktail ingredients (bourbon and Angostura bitters—this man loves an old fashioned!) with some of mine (ginger beer and a squeeze of lemon). Then, we throw apple cider into the mix for a sweet, seasonal finishing touch. As much as we enjoy making this apple cider cocktail for ourselves at home, I really wanted to share it with you because it’s perfect for fall entertaining. This fruity, fizzy, and warming drink fits right in at a holiday party or gathering…

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Creamed Corn

Learn how to make creamed corn! This easy recipe combines fresh or frozen corn kernels with a cheesy, creamy sauce. It's such a comforting side dish!

Don’t buy creamed corn in a can—this recipe is easy to make from scratch! It calls for 8 basic ingredients, comes together in a single skillet, and tastes SO much better than any canned cream corn I’ve tried. Creamy, cheesy, and packed with crisp, juicy sweet corn, it’s a delicious, comforting side dish. You can make this recipe with fresh or frozen corn, but through September, while corn is still in season, I’ll be making it on repeat with fresh. I love the intense sweetness and satisfying crunch of the peak-season kernels in this dish. That said, if you want…

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How to Make Hard Boiled Eggs

Learn how to make hard boiled eggs perfectly every time! With this easy method, they'll be easy to peel and have vibrant yellow yolks.

Here’s the good news: perfect hard boiled eggs are easy to make. …And the bad news: so are less-than-perfect ones. I don’t know about you, but I’ve certainly cooked my fair share of the latter. When you try to peel away the shell, half the whites come along with it, or when you cut it open, the yolk is slightly green instead of brilliant yellow. Pretty disappointing, if you ask me. See, cooking perfect hard boiled eggs is easy, but that doesn’t mean that the process you use doesn’t matter. After years of trial and error, I’m happy to say…

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25 Best Easter Brunch Ideas

I've rounded up my best Easter brunch ideas to help you plan the perfect menu! They include hearty egg dishes, spring salads, muffins, and more.

If you’re looking for Easter brunch ideas for your menu this weekend, you’re in the right place! Below, I’ve rounded up my best Easter brunch recipes, including crowd-pleasing favorites like breakfast casserole, cinnamon rolls, and the perfect spring salad. You’ll find savory brunch ideas like quiche and breakfast potatoes as well as sweet ones like coffee cake (and carrot cake, which I think we can go ahead and call dessert). At the bottom of this post, I’ve also shared a sample Easter brunch menu. Try the whole thing (it won’t disappoint!) or use it as a starting point for your…

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Creamed Spinach

This creamed spinach recipe features tender spinach in a rich, creamy sauce. It's one of my family's favorite side dishes for holiday meals!

This creamed spinach recipe is the most luxurious way to eat your greens. Inspired by Jack’s mom’s famous creamed spinach (a staple at Thanksgiving, Easter, and other family gatherings), it’s ultra-creamy, rich, and cheesy. If you ask me, it’s just as good as any steakhouse creamed spinach…if not better. While many creamed spinach recipes call for frozen spinach, this one uses fresh. I love the silky texture of the whole, just-wilted leaves in the cream sauce. I think it makes this classic side dish feel a bit brighter and fresher. Make it for a holiday or a simple weeknight dinner.…

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A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Welcome to Love & Lemons!

I'm Jeanine Donofrio, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author and recipe developer. I share fresh, delicious vegetarian recipes that celebrate seasonal ingredients and flavors.

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