Melissa d'Arabian's Top Recipes

We've gathered all of Melissa d'Arabian's best recipes together to make it easy for you to browse and pick your favorites.

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Photo By: Tara Donne ©Tara Donne

Photo By: Matt Armendariz

Photo By: Tara Donne ©FOOD NETWORK : 2012, Television Food Network, G.P.

Photo By: Tara Donne ©Tara Donne

Photo By: Tara Donne ©FOOD NETWORK : 2012, Television Food Network, G.P.

Photo By: Matt Armendariz

Photo By: Tara Donne ©FOOD NETWORK : 2012, Television Food Network, G.P.

Photo By: Renee Comet ©Renee Comet

Photo By: Tara Donne ©FOOD NETWORK : 2012, Television Food Network, G.P.

Simply Grilled Chicken Breasts

For perfect grilled chicken breasts, Melissa uses a meat mallet to even out the thickness of the breasts, so they cook more evenly. Then she lets the chicken come to room temperature and brushes it with garlic-infused oil before cooking it on a hot grill.

Get the Recipe: Simply Grilled Chicken Breasts

Lentil Quinoa Salad

For a simple, budget-friendly side dish, Melissa mixes quinoa and lentils with Dijon mustard vinaigrette.

Get the Recipe: Lentil Quinoa Salad

Magic Fruit-and-Veggie Cupcakes

These cupcakes are loaded with whole grains, vegetables and dried fruit — they're a creative way to get kids to eat their veggies.

Get the Recipe: Magic Fruit-and-Veggie Cupcakes

Kid-Friendly Salmon

A sweet, Asian-style glaze makes healthy salmon appeal to everyone, even kids.

Get the Recipe: Kid-Friendly Salmon

Foolproof Popovers

Once you put these popovers into the oven, don’t open it to peek inside to see how they're doing — you'll bring the oven temperature down and the popovers could collapse. When done, they'll be nice and crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.

Get the Recipe: Foolproof Popovers

Crunchy Bran French Toast

Melissa makes this kid-approved sweet breakfast treat with better-for-you ingredients, like whole grain bread, light cream cheese and low-sugar marmalade, plus she uses bran flakes to add a crunchy coating.

Get the Recipe: Crunchy Bran French Toast

Crispy Kale "Chips"

The secret to making crunchy, addictive kale chips is to start with completely dry kale, so the bite-size pieces will toast up in the oven instead of steaming.

Get the Recipe: Crispy Kale "Chips"

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Melissa simmers her corned beef in beef broth and beer for nearly 5 hours. Then she takes simple steamed cabbage to the next level, by sauteing it in butter with onions until it's browned and flavorful.

Get the Recipe: Corned Beef and Cabbage

Shepherd's Pie

This classic Irish comfort food is a great way to stretch a pound of ground beef for a family dinner. For an extra flavorful twist, Melissa tops this casserole with garlic mashed potatoes.

Get the Recipe: Shepherd's Pie

Pot Roast Carbonnade

For a twist on pot roast, Melissa makes Belgium carbonnade, a beef stew that begins with a flavorful base of caramelized onions, bacon and beer.

Get the Recipe: Pot Roast Carbonnade

Salmon Cakes

It's fine to use canned wild salmon instead of fresh salmon in a flavorful recipe like this — it's a fraction of the cost and you won't be able to tell the difference.

Get the Recipe: Salmon Cakes

Weekday Cassoulet

Melissa makes this comforting French bistro dish on a budget, using white beans, a little bacon and flavorful chicken thighs.

Get the Recipe: Weekday Cassoulet

Crispy-Skinned Chicken a l'Orange

For crispy skin, Melissa sears the chicken breast skin before brushing it with an orange glaze and letting it cook through in the oven. To make this dish budget-friendly, she cooks 3 chicken breasts to serve 4 people, cutting the meat off the bone and slicing it on the bias before serving on a platter.

Get the Recipe: Crispy-Skinned Chicken a l'Orange

French Onion Soup

Deeply caramelized onions are the base of this classic, budget-friendly French soup.

Get the Recipe: French Onion Soup

Perfect Crispy Potatoes

Melissa steams cubed potatoes in a saute pan until they're cooked and fluffy on the inside, and then she transfers them to a baking sheet and pops them into the oven until they're perfectly crispy.

Get the Recipe: Perfect Crispy Potatoes

Chicken Pot Pie Turnovers

Creamy chicken stew is baked inside puff pastry to make this simple, tasty twist on pot pie.

Get the Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie Turnovers

Fish Piccata

Inexpensive white fish fillets, like tilapia or sole, get dressed up with layers of flavor. First, they're dredged in flour and sauteed until cooked and golden brown, and then they're served with a lemon-caper piccata sauce.

Get the Recipe: Fish Piccata

Sausage and Roasted Vegetable Penne

Melissa roasts vegetables until they're caramelized and flavorful before tossing them with whole grain penne pasta for a good-for-you, budget-friendly meal.

Get the Recipe: Sausage and Roasted Vegetable Penne

Petite Orange and Raspberry Pochettes

Melissa folds fruit preserves inside circles of cream cheese and butter pastry dough to make sweet little fruit pocket cookies.

Get the Recipe: Petite Orange and Raspberry Pochettes

Black Bean Hummus

For a simple, budget-friendly snack, Melissa purees black beans with garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar and cumin. Serve with wedges of iceberg lettuce.

Get the Recipe: Black Bean Hummus

Delicate Mint Sandwich Holiday Cookies

A few drops of mint extract add cool, festive flavor to the filling of these sandwich cookies.

Get the Recipe: Delicate Mint Sandwich Holiday Cookies

Roasted Broccoli With Parmesan

To get more out of your broccoli, peel the outer layer off the stalks and then cook the stalks along with the florets – the inside is nice and tender, so there's no need to waste it.

Get the Recipe: Roasted Broccoli with Parmesan

Black Bean Brownies

Pureed black beans add extra protein and fiber to these fudgy brownies.

Get the Recipe: Black Bean Brownies

Fish en Papillote

This light, budget-friendly dish has a beautiful presentation, making it perfect for entertaining or date night. Fillets of sole are packaged in parchment, along with julienned veggies, lemon slices, thyme sprigs and a little white wine, so they all steam together in the oven.

Get the Recipe: Fish en Papillote

Petite Nutella Pochettes

Melissa makes flaky little pastry pockets filled with Nutella for a sweet dessert fit for company.

Get the Recipe: Petite Nutella Pochettes

Weeknight Buttermilk Fried Chicken

For all the flavor of fried chicken without all the hassle, Melissa panfries the chicken pieces until they're golden and crunchy on the outside, and then finishes cooking them in the oven.

Get the Recipe: Weeknight Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Roasted Asparagus With Lemon Vinaigrette

If you buy asparagus in season it's often an inexpensive side dish. Melissa roasts it in the oven to bring out the sweet flavor.

Get the Recipe: Roasted Asparagus with Lemon Vinaigrette

Caprese Tartlets

White bread slices are used to make creative, crisp tartlet shells for this fresh, Italian-style appetizer.

Get the Recipe: Caprese Tartlets

Crispy Open-Faced Quesadillas

Melissa uses lime juice to thin out a sour cream mixture, making it easy to drizzle over these crispy quesadillas.

Get the Recipe: Crispy Open-Faced Quesadillas

Huevos Rancheros

For a cute twist on huevos rancheros, Melissa makes tortilla cups using a muffin pan and then fills them with black beans, salsa and an egg before baking to perfection.

Get the Recipe: Huevos Rancheros

Burrito Bowl

Melissa's take on Tex Mex stars pork carnitas, a pork shoulder flavored with herbs, spices and jalapeno cooked in a slow cooker at a low temperature until it's pull-apart tender.

Get the Recipe: Burrito Bowl

Rich Roasted Tomato Soup

Roasting tomatoes concentrates their flavors, making an extra rich, comforting soup.

Get the Recipe: Rich Roasted Tomato Soup

Roasted Garlic Clove Chicken

Melissa cooks flavorful, budget-friendly chicken thighs with about 20 cloves of garlic, which become sweet and tender in the oven. Serve this dish with bread to soak up the sauce and spread with the roasted garlic.

Get the Recipe: Roasted Garlic Clove Chicken