The gimlet is a classic cocktail that deserves more attention! Made with gin, lime juice and sweetened with simple syrup, it comes from the sour family of cocktails (my specialty). Save the elaborate cocktails with unrecognizable ingredients for ordering at fancy bars—a simple, citrusy, not-too-sweet cocktail at home is one of life’s simple pleasures.

The gimlet is light and bright, like a more casual version of a martini that you can sip slowly on a porch. I love a gimlet in the spring or summer—they’re fresh and just right. If you enjoy ordering a good gin cocktail or a margarita made with real lime juice, you will love a homemade gimlet.

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This peanut dressing is like peanut sauce, but in salad dressing form. It’s creamy, bold and nutty. It makes a statement! This dressing is awesome with Thai flavors like bell pepper, carrots, cabbage, mango and much more—you’ll find a list of suggestions below.

This salad dressing is easy to whisk together with basic ingredients. I bet you have them in your pantry already. You’ll need creamy peanut butter (the creamier, the better), lime juice, tamari or soy sauce, maple syrup or honey, fresh garlic and red pepper flakes (if you like some spice). That’s it!

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Cranberry salsa? Why not! This surprising salsa is bold and tangy. The bitterness of the cranberries is tempered with sweetness from orange juice and a little bit of honey. Most cranberry salsa recipes are too sweet, calling for as much as one cup sugar. This one is well-balanced, and you can adjust it to suit your taste buds.

This cranberry salsa recipe was inspired by one my late grandmother brought to our family’s Christmas celebration years ago. It was festive and colorful, and I just loved it.

With my grandmother’s recipe in mind, I improvised this salsa last year when our friend Tessa and her husband came over. My grandmother served her salsa with cream cheese, but I noticed we all ignored the cream cheese and kept going back for more salsa. I don’t think it requires an accompaniment, but you’ll find serving suggestions below.

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Meet the best 7-layer dip I’ve ever had. I’ve sampled my fair share of them, and wow, this recipe is the winner! Every layer is delicious on its own and builds on the last. The end result is creamy and cheese, of course, but it’s also perfectly balanced. Fresh avocado, jalapeño, cilantro, green onion and salsa offer fresh and bright flavors that cut through the cheddar cheese, sour cream and refried beans.

Store-bought ingredients yield great results, so you don’t have to turn on the stove to make this one. Each layer contains a fun little surprise, like a splash of salsa in the refried beans to loosen the texture and a burst of freshness from jalapeño in the sour cream. All seven layers come together quickly, too, so you can enjoy your appetizer after about twenty minutes of assembly.

Bring this 7-layer dip to your next watch party. Football season is in full swing (go Chiefs!), and I’ll make this recipe again this weekend. I’ve enjoyed the leftovers for lunch, so you don’t need a big occasion to make this recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do.

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This homemade sesame dressing offers bold flavor for your homemade salads. It requires just four core ingredients: toasted sesame oil, tamari or soy sauce, lime juice, and a dab of Dijon mustard.

If you have the time and energy, add freshly toasted sesame seeds, fresh ginger, and garlic. They ramp up the flavor, but this dressing is already delicious in its simplest form.

Make this sesame dressing when you’re craving a green side salad. It’s easy to whisk together from basic pantry ingredients, and it tastes so much better than store-bought dressings.

I created this dressing recipe to serve over this seaweed salad, but it goes with so much more. Below is a full list of suggestions for making your own salad tonight!

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Make this cilantro lime dressing recipe the next time you prepare a Mexican meal. It’s bright, sunny and fresh! This dressing is boldly flavored with fresh lime, olive oil, cilantro, garlic, honey, cumin and Dijon mustard. You can make it creamy or spicy if you wish.

Drizzle this dressing over crisp greens with sliced avocado and toasted pepitas for a perfectly simple side salad. You’ll find a longer list of salad toppings to choose from below.

I improvised this dressing to make a green salad with leftovers from my Fajita Veggie & Halloumi Bowls, and I loved it so much that I wanted to share it with you. It’s almost as versatile as my favorite Lemon Vinaigrette and suits some flavors even better.

This dressing comes together quickly in the food processor and keeps in the refrigerator for up to one week. Sometimes having a vibrant sauce on hand makes all the difference!

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Love a good paloma? Me, too. The paloma is a delightfully fizzy grapefruit, lime and tequila cocktail hailing from Mexico. If you enjoy a Greyhound, grapefruit margarita or ranch water, this cooling drink is right up your alley.

South of the border, palomas are typically made with grapefruit soda like Squirt or Jarritos, which taste similar to Sprite to me. Up here, bartenders often mix them with fresh grapefruit juice and sparkling water instead. I prefer mine to be less sweet and more citrusy, so I love the made-from-scratch option.

This paloma recipe is made from scratch with basic ingredients. You’ll need tequila, fresh grapefruit and lime, simple syrup (which is very easy to make), and Topo Chico or sparkling water. Make them at home with top-shelf tequila and you’ll enjoy a better paloma for less money than you’d pay a restaurant.

To make this paloma, we’ll shake everything but the Topo Chico in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shaking the ingredients together yields the kind of paloma you’d receive at a fancy cocktail bar. It’s a brief step that is worth the extra effort.

Finally, we’ll pour the mixture into a glass filled with ice and top it with Topo Chico to retain all those glorious bubbles. You can watch how it all comes together in the brief video below.

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This fresh pomegranate salsa recipe is bursting with sweet-and-spicy flavor. It’s a fun holiday appetizer or wintertime snack. You can serve it with tortilla chips like any other salsa. Of course, a side of guacamole is always a good idea.

For a special Christmas salsa presentation, try it as shown here, with whipped goat cheese as a creamy base and the salsa arranged in a wreath-like shape on top. This variation goes well with sturdy crostini or crisp toasted pita. The whipped goat cheese component is included in the recipe below, and it’s so easy to whip up.

This year, I’m bringing pomegranate salsa to my friends’ annual Christmas party! Lighter and brighter options are always welcome amongst heavy and sweet holiday fare. Let’s start the pomegranate salsa trend together.

Here in the U.S., pomegranates are typically available from the end of September through January. I hope you have the chance to make this recipe while we can.

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Have you tried a ranch water cocktail? If not, let me introduce you! Essentially a tall tequila soda with extra lime, the ranch water is more than the sum of its parts. If you use a great tequila and Topo Chico, it tastes quite special.

The ranch water is like a bubbly, light and totally unsweetened margarita. If even “skinny” margaritas are sometimes too sweet for you, try a ranch water instead. It’s super refreshing and perfect on a hot day. When I’m at a bar without an exciting wine list, the ranch water is my go-to drink order regardless of the season.

Ranch waters hail from Texas, with Ranch 616 in Austin claiming to be “home to the original ranch water.” I honestly can’t recall when I first tried a ranch water—maybe it was during my month in Austin in 2015, or sometime in between. My brother lives in West Texas and I was delighted to discover ranch waters at his wedding reception a few years ago.

Pre-made ranch water cocktails in cans are becoming more popular, but you can’t beat a homemade ranch water made with good tequila, bubbly Topo Chico and fresh lime. They’re so easy to make. Find my recipe below!

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Are you familiar with esquites? Also known as elote en vaso, esquites are an experience you’ll remember. Esquites are Mexican street corn (elote) cut off the cob, served in salad form.

Esquites are creamy, tangy, spicy, sweet and savory all at once. In other words, they’re completely irresistible. This elote recipe was the best recipe to come off our grill last summer, and I’m excited to share this stovetop variation with you.

Esquites share the same ingredients with elote: fresh corn, mayonnaise, cilantro, chili powder, lime and crumbled Cotija cheese. The combination is sublime, and this variation is much easier to eat. I’ve enjoyed both options in Mexico City and love making them at home. I’m going to cook this simple salad all summer and through the rest of the year.

Esquites have one strong cooking advantage over elote—you can start with frozen corn kernels, which really cuts down on preparation time! We’ll just cook the frozen corn in a hot skillet until it’s seared and delicious. If you’re using frozen corn, you can prepare this dish in about twenty minutes, from start to finish.

Watch How to Make Esquites

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