Mississippi Chicken – Budget Bytes

This Mississippi Chicken is tender, juicy, and coated in a savory, buttery sauce with plenty of tangy pepperoncini flavor. This five-ingredient crockpot Mississippi chicken recipe takes about 10 minutes to prep, has no chopping, and costs only $1.74 per serving! Add everything to your slow cooker with no extra liquid, then cook on LOW for … Read more

Paneer Tikka Recipe: Overnight Marinated, Grilled Char

Grilled paneer tikka marinated overnight in yogurt, ginger, garlic, mint, cilantro, and Kitchen King Masala. Charred on skewers and served with chutney. Most paneer tikka recipes tell you to marinate for thirty minutes. That is not enough. This one calls for at least four hours, preferably overnight, and you can taste the difference. Paneer … Read more

Eggplant Parmesan Recipe – Love and Lemons

This baked eggplant Parmesan recipe will become one of your family favorites! Crispy eggplant is layered with herbs, tomato sauce, and cheese. Growing up, my mom’s eggplant Parmesan recipe was one of my favorite things to eat. My family ate dinner together every night, and my mom always cooked it from scratch. Tomato sauce never … Read more

Blue Cheese, Honey, Indirect Heat

Grilled pie with fresh figs, blue cheese, honey, and olive oil on a standard crust. Baked on indirect heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Savory, sweet, smoky. What happens when you grill a pie? The crust gets smoky and the bottom stays crisp from the indirect heat. This one uses a standard pie crust … Read more

Balsamic Glazed Carrots with Whipped Feta

These balsamic glazed carrots are easy to make, and the whipped feta takes them over the top! It’s a simple recipe that feels fancy, but is easy enough to make for a weeknight side dish. There’s a local restaurant here, Helen’s, that has a roasted carrot dish served with whipped feta. It’s so good and … Read more

Bean and Lentil Soup with Kale

For the many of you in the midst of a summer heat wave, I realize posting a big, wintry soup right now might seem a little unhinged. I cooked it this week out of necessity. I tend to keep our freezer full of frozen homemade soups, sauces, dumplings, and anything else that can come together … Read more

The Omega-3 Index in Cardiovascular Health: Beyond Standardized Recommendations

Omega-3 fatty acids have had a prominent place in the conversation around health promotion and disease prevention—especially CVD prevention—for decades. While alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is found in plant sources like flaxseeds and walnuts, the most clinically significant omega-3s are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which are primarily sourced from marine life. Initially popularized … Read more

23 Favorite Summer Salads – Mel’s Kitchen Cafe

Author: Mel   Published: July 21, 2026 Summer is the perfect time for fresh, flavorful salads to show up on the table more often! They’re easy to prep ahead and they go well with just about anything coming off the grill. Plus they often travel well if you’re taking them to family reunions or summer … Read more

10 best multi-cookers 2026, tested and reviewed

Multi-cookers are hardly a new concept but over the last few years, we’ve seen more innovative ways in which they’ve become multi-functional; this has driven the calibre of new products up and their prices down. Some multi-cookers offer up to 15 functions and this versatility not only saves on workspace by reducing the need for … Read more

Best Advent calendars 2026: chocolate, cheese, coffee and more

The countdown to Christmas wouldn’t be complete without an Advent calendar, and this year’s offerings are more exciting than ever. There are plenty of options available to suit any taste, whether it’s a classic chocolate indulgence or something a little more unexpected. While traditional chocolate calendars never go out of style, Advent calendars have evolved … Read more