Hope you’ve been well! Doug and I are back in LA for the next month after lots of travel, and it feels so good to be home and settling back into our routine. Tonight we’re seeing You Can See Everything, the new Elizabeth Holmes documentary, and I’m so excited. I’ve heard it’s really good, and I love a documentary. I’ll let you know what I think!

This week, I’m sharing five of my favorite Asian recipes that are better than takeout for the next time the craving hits.

First, here’s a recipe for crispy bean and cheese tostadas, which have been on rotation at my house. They’re so easy and satisfying, and I hope you give them a try!

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Order Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support 🤍

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

Crispy bean and cheese tostadas

A healthy, easy dinner I’ve been making on repeat! Crispy baked corn tortillas are topped with homemade refried beans, veggies, cheese, and salsa. So satisfying!

Bean And Cheese Tostadas

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5 Asian Recipes That Are Better Than Takeout 🥢

My mom is half Korean and half Chinese, so Asian cooking has always felt like home to me. These are some of my favorite flavors to cook with, and I love how easy so many of these dishes are to recreate at home.

This week, I rounded up five of my favorites, from noodles and stir-fries to a cozy Thai curry. They’re packed with flavor, surprisingly simple to make, and perfect for the next time a takeout craving hits. I hope you find a new favorite!

Thai Basil Chicken

This one explodes with sweet, savory, and spicy flavor. You sauté the chicken with shallots, garlic, and chilies, then finish it with lots of Thai basil and serve it over rice with a fried egg on top. So craveable and delicious!

You can find the recipe here.

Mom’s Shrimp Fried Rice

This dish is so comforting and delicious. The secret to really great fried rice, in our opinion, is to make a well in the middle of the rice and let it fry undisturbed in some melted butter. You’ll end up with crispy rice bits running through the whole dish.

You can find the recipe here.

Healthy Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry

This is one of my go-tos. To get the chicken super tender and juicy, we use a Chinese technique called velveting, where you marinate the chicken in a mixture of egg white, cornstarch, and a few other ingredients before cooking. Then you build your stir fry, and it all comes together with a super flavorful sauce and plenty of garlic, ginger, and scallions, which I call the holy trinity of Chinese cooking.

You can find the recipe here.

Beef Pad See Ew

This is such a satisfying dish, and it tastes just like something you’d order at a Thai restaurant. The wide rice noodles get slightly charred in the pan, then tossed with tender beef, veggies, egg, and a savory sauce that coats every bite. To make it really authentic, look for fresh, wide rice noodles at an Asian market.

You can find the recipe here.

Thai Red Curry Chicken

The secret to a really flavorful Thai curry is frying some of the curry paste in reduced coconut milk to bloom all the spices and aromatics. Then you build the broth with more coconut milk and chicken stock, and simmer the veggies and chicken right in it. It comes together so quickly and easily, and turns out fantastic every time. I recommend Mae Ploy brand curry paste.

You can find the recipe here.

I hope these become staples in your kitchen like they are in mine!

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Love,

Maxine

Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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Hope you had a great week! Doug and I just got back from Rome, where we spent the week with my whole family, and it was so much fun to all be together. Since everyone had been to Rome before, we didn’t over plan or schedule too much. Our meals, of course, were the exception. We made a lunch and dinner reservation every day and basically ate our way through the week. In between meals, we saw some of the sights, including the Pantheon, a few of us checked out some art museums, and we did a little shopping. It was such a fun and relaxing way to experience the city.

We had such a great lineup of meals, and today I’m sharing our absolute favorites so you have a list of spots to hit next time you’re in Rome.

First, here’s a recipe for a cheesy spinach dip that’s such a winner. It’s creamy and cheesy but perfectly balanced, with plenty of spinach and lots of flavor from onions and garlic. Doug and I could not stop eating it, and I can’t wait for you to try it!

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Get Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support 🤍

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

Cheesy Spinach Dip

This dip is so creamy and perfectly balanced, with spinach, onion, and garlic under a golden, cheesy topping. It’s perfect for game day or whenever you’re hosting a crowd!

Cheesy Spinach Dip

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Where We Ate in Rome 🇮🇹

One thing to know before you go: in Italy, everyone eats later than we do in the US. It’s funny, because my family has always eaten on the early side. When I was growing up, we ate dinner at 5 pm! But in Italy, everything skews later. We had breakfast at our hotel, lunch around 1 pm, and dinner around 8 pm. It was a great cadence, and that’s when the restaurants start to fill up and have a lively atmosphere anyway.

Our favorite dinner: Hostaria Romana ✨

Our favorite dinner of the whole trip was at Hostaria Romana. It’s not a fancy place at all, and it was filled with locals. My mom has actually been there multiple times. She first got the recommendation from a shoe store owner while she was trying on shoes and asked where they liked to eat nearby. I loved that it was full of Italians. When I’m traveling, I don’t love ending up at a restaurant full of Americans, so this felt like the real deal.

I think the pasta here was the best we had on the trip. They have all the classic Roman pastas, so we ordered the carbonara, cacio e pepe, and the amatriciana. We also got the crispy fried Roman artichokes and prosciutto and melon, and the melon was so fresh. The staff was so sweet to us and even brought over a few extras, like fresh ricotta and a delicious marinated grilled eggplant.

For the secondi, we shared a bistecca alla fiorentina, a huge bone-in cut of steak that they slice for the table. One tip: Italians tend to cook their meat more rare. We ordered it medium rare and it came out quite rare. We still enjoyed it, but next time I’d probably order it medium, since their scale skews a little rarer than ours.

Everyone there was so kind to us, it felt like a true local spot, and the food was fantastic. I can’t recommend it enough!

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Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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Hope you had a great week! Doug and I are in Rome this week on a family trip with my whole family, and this past weekend we decided to tack on an extra day and a half in Milan, just the two of us. We love to travel so much, but for some reason we’d never made it to Milan. Since it was a completely new city for us, we didn’t know what to expect.

Below, I’m sharing all our thoughts on the city, plus our favorite places to shop, drink, and eat.

First, here’s a recipe for shrimp and chive wontons. They’re made with Chinese chives, which give them an amazing depth of flavor. I hope you give them a try!

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Order Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support 🤍

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

Shrimp and Chive Wontons

Wontons always feel like home, and this shrimp and chive version is my new favorite. These have Chinese chives for an amazing depth of flavor.

Shrimp And Chive Wontons

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You can download the PDF recipe above and watch the video here :)

36 Hours in Milan 🇮🇹

Doug and I loved Milan! It actually felt a lot like Paris, which is one of our favorite cities. Milan is a fashion capital, so there were lots of cool, well-dressed people everywhere, and crowds spilling out of bars onto the streets. It had such a great, lively energy. Some parts of the city even reminded us of Amsterdam, especially along the canals, while others had that big-city Parisian vibe. It’s definitely a city we want to come back to and spend more time in.

Shopping 🛍️

We landed on Saturday afternoon, so we spent the rest of the day walking around and doing a little shopping. Italy has so much great leather, and Doug immediately found a pair of loafers and some leather boots at Mauro Leone Uomo. The prices were amazing, too. We figured his shoes would have cost about three times as much in the US.

Down the street, I found a women’s boutique called Gala on Mars that also had great prices. I got two pairs of pants, a jacket, and a couple of tops. Everything was really affordable and good quality, and the pieces were so unique. I’m pretty sure nobody back home will have them!

Doug and I always love shopping together. He has a really good sense of style, and he also has a great eye for what will look good on me. I always ask him to help pick things out, and sometimes he’ll choose something I don’t think will be cute on the hanger, but then I put it on and it almost always looks great. We actually buy most of our clothes on trips. It’s such a fun way to remember a place, and we love finding boutiques that carry pieces you can’t get in the US.

Drinks before a late dinner 🥂

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Hope all is well! Doug and I are heading to Milan this weekend, and then we’re meeting my family in Rome next week. I’ll definitely share more about our trip and all of our recommendations when I’m back.

Today, I thought it would be fun to change things up a little and tell you about the hair care routine that has completely changed my hair. About two years ago, my hair had become the thinnest it had ever been, and I realized I wasn’t being very proactive about taking care of it. So I did a bunch of research, talked to friends, and started a routine that I’ve stuck with ever since. Now my hair feels so healthy and looks so much thicker. Below, I’m sharing my full routine and everything I’ve done to rehab my hair over the past couple of years.

First, here’s a recipe for pumpkin spice pancakes. They’re a spin on my mom’s famous fluffy pancakes, and they turned out so delicious. They melt in your mouth with all the flavors of pumpkin and warm fall spices, and they’re such a fun way to get into the fall spirit. I hope you give them a try!

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Order Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support 🤍

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes 🥞

A spin on my mom’s famous fluffy pancakes! They melt in your mouth and are such a fun way to get into the fall spirit with the flavors of pumpkin and spice.

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

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My Hair Care Journey

When I noticed how thin and unhealthy my hair had gotten a couple of years ago, I went into crisis mode. I started doing a ton of research, and a few of my friends sent me videos they’d found about keeping your hair healthy. That’s where it all started, and I’ve been doing the same routine ever since.

Step one: Keeping my hair moisturized every day ✨

My friend Emily recommended this video by the Blow Dry Professor, and it completely changed the way I think about hair care. He explains that the key to keeping your hair healthy and helping it grow long is keeping it moisturized. Most of us use conditioner in the shower, but as soon as your hair dries, it starts losing that moisture.

His solution is simple. Every time you shower, apply a leave-in conditioner to wet hair to seal in the moisture. Then, every day, put a little hair oil on your ends to keep them from drying out.

He recommends two specific products, and I’ve used both ever since I watched the video:

• Pureology Color Fanatic leave-in conditioner: I don’t color my hair, but I use this one because he swears by it. I spray it on after every shower while my hair is still wet.

• Olaplex No. 7 Bonding Oil: I put a little on my ends every single day.

This was the first step in my hair care journey, the daily maintenance side of things. It only takes a minute, and it makes such a difference.

Step two: Hair oiling 💆‍♀️

Then my friend Nadine told me about hair oiling, and I went down a total rabbit hole online. I saw so many incredible transformations from people who had started oiling their hair, and I knew I had to try it.

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Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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Doug and I are finally fully recovered from the flu. That was a rough one! Now we’re starting to get excited for our next adventure because a week from today, we’re heading to Rome with my family.

Last year, after my cousin’s wedding, my parents took our whole family to Paris. It had been years since we’d all spent that much uninterrupted time together, and it ended up being such a special trip. We loved it so much that my parents decided to make it an annual tradition, and this year, we’re going to Rome!

As you all know, I love pasta, and this trip has me dreaming about my favorite Roman dishes. Carbonara is at the top of that list, so today I’m sharing the method I learned from two wonderful Italian home cooks. Roman pastas are incredibly simple, and the secret is really in getting the technique and ratios just right.

First, here’s a recipe for 5-minute single-serve mac and cheese that my mom recently fell in love with. The whole thing comes together in the microwave, and I was shocked that the noodles stay perfectly al dente and the sauce tastes just like stovetop mac. It’s the easiest way to satisfy a craving with nothing but pantry staples, and I hope you give it a try!

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Get Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support 🤍

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

5-minute single-serve mac and cheese

My mom recently fell in love with this microwave method. The noodles stay al dente, and the sauce tastes just like stovetop mac!

5 Minute Single Serve Mac & Cheese

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The Classic Roman Pastas 🍝

Rome is famous for its four classic pastas: cacio e pepe, gricia, carbonara, and amatriciana. One of the things I love about them is how such a small handful of ingredients like Pecorino Romano, black pepper, guanciale, eggs, and tomatoes can come together in completely different ways.

These dishes grew out of the cooking traditions of Rome and the surrounding Lazio region, where simple, hearty ingredients were used incredibly resourcefully. Aged sheep’s milk cheese and cured pork were staples of the region and had the added benefit of keeping well, so they became the foundation for many of the dishes we now associate with Roman cooking. Over time, those same few ingredients evolved into different pastas, from the simplicity of cacio e pepe to gricia and amatriciana, and eventually carbonara, the youngest of the four.

Carbonara is one of my favorites, and if you ask Doug, there’s no pasta better.

How I Learned to Make Carbonara

A few years ago, while we were in Italy with my mom and my aunt, two amazing Italian home cooks came to the house we rented to teach us how to make pasta the authentic way. One of the dishes they showed us was carbonara, and it was fantastic. Here’s the method they taught us.

A note on guanciale: Carbonara is traditionally made with guanciale, or cured pork cheek. You can find it at Italian butchers and specialty meat shops, but since it’s hard to find at most American grocery stores, I usually use pancetta instead (bacon works too). If you do use guanciale, trim off the tough outer skin and any yellowed fat before dicing the rest.

Start by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil. While it heats, beat together 6 egg yolks, 1 large egg, 1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated pecorino Romano, and a few grinds of black pepper in a bowl.

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Hope you’re having a great week! Doug and I were in New York last weekend for one of my best friends’ weddings, and somehow came down with the flu almost the minute we landed back in LA. Usually one of us gets sick and passes it to the other a few days later, but this time we went down together. Kimchi has been very confused about why both of her parents have been in bed all day, but she seems pretty happy to have some daytime napping buddies.

Being sick reminded me of a three-ingredient immunity potion that our friends Cody and Jake swear by for getting through cold and flu season. Below I’m sharing how to make it, along with the soothing, high-protein breakfast that’s been one of the easiest things for me to eat all week.

First, here’s a recipe for Beef Yaki Udon. Chewy udon noodles get tossed with quick-marinated beef, sweet onions, and a glossy, umami-rich sauce that coats every strand. The whole thing comes together in 20 minutes, which makes it one of my favorite weeknight dinners.

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Get Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support 🤍

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

Beef Yaki Udon

A 20-minute noodle dinner with chewy udon, quick-marinated beef, and a glossy, umami-rich sauce. It moves fast, so have everything prepped before you start.

Beef Yaki Udon

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The Immunity Potion My Friends Swear By 🍋

I first heard about this from our friends Cody and Jake, who make a big batch every year and credit it with getting them through cold and flu season. It takes about ten minutes, and the best part is that you freeze it in an ice cube tray so you have individual immunity shots ready whenever you need one. The little shots at juice shops are always so expensive, and this is a much more cost-effective way to keep them on hand.

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Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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Hope you’re having a wonderful week! Even though it’s still been 90 degrees here in LA, I’m starting to feel the fall vibes (mostly from seeing all the Halloween candy on the shelves at the store lol).

Something shifts for me after Labor Day. It finally starts to feel like a new season, and I get excited to revisit recipes I haven’t made in a while. I also start craving soup, which is one of my favorite things to eat this time of year.

So today I’m sharing my three all-time favorite soups. If I had to pick just three from every soup recipe I’ve ever made, these are the ones I’d choose. They’re the recipes I come back to again and again, and I’m so excited to share them with you!

But first, here’s a recipe for my grandpa’s Korean pickled radishes. They explode with flavor and are the kind of thing I can never stop eating. I love having a jar in my fridge, and I hope you give them a try!

As always, my cookbook Maxi’s Kitchen is now available for purchase at your local bookstore or online:

Order Your Copy

Thank you so much for your support!

What I Cooked Last Week! ↓

Grandpa’s Korean pickled radishes

A simple and healthy snack we’ve been making in my family for years and years. The radishes explode with flavor from the inside out.

Korean Marinated Pickled Radishes

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My Starting Soup Lineup 🍲

I’ve made a lot of soups over the years, but these are the three I keep coming back to. Which one I make really just depends on the mood I’m in…

When I’m feeling like something hearty and comforting:

This is my mom’s pastina soup with basil chicken meatballs, and it’s pure comfort. You start with basil chicken meatballs, which you just bake on a sheet tray and then add straight to the soup, so there’s no standing over a pan browning them. The broth is a simple chicken base built on onion and garlic, and then in goes the pastina, those tiny star-shaped pasta. If you can’t find it, feel free to sub any other little pasta or orzo. At the very end you stir in escarole, which is a slightly bitter green, and you want to cook it just until it wilts so it keeps a little crunch. It adds such a fresh finish to a soup that’s otherwise so cozy. Plenty of Parmesan on top, always.

You can find the recipe here.

When I’m feeling like something healthy and nourishing:

My favorite healthy lentil soup has been on repeat in my house for over ten years now. I always come back to it because it’s so easy to make and it just feels good to eat. You build it with onion, carrots, celery, and garlic, then add a bunch of warm, flavorful spices (cumin, turmeric, and thyme) before the lentils go in. At the end you mix in baby spinach, which turns bright green, and finish with lemon so it has a fresh, tangy pop. It also reheats beautifully, so I usually make it knowing I’ll be happy about leftovers all week.

You can find the recipe here.

When I’m feeling like something spicy and nostalgic:

My grandpa’s Korean soup is one of the dishes he always made when he came to visit. My grandparents lived in San Diego when I was growing up and we were up in Orinda, in the East Bay near San Francisco. Whenever they made the drive up, they would cook something incredible, and this soup was always in the rotation.

Last year my mom and I finally perfected the recipe. The version we had written down never felt quite right, so we worked on it together until it tasted the way I remembered it.

It’s packed with vegetables: a ton of daikon radish, a whole bunch of scallions, and lots of bean sprouts, plus beef and garlic. The heat comes from gochujang, a Korean red pepper paste, and gochugaru, a Korean chili pepper powder. Then there are eight eggs beaten into the soup at the end, which adds even more protein. If this one is in my fridge, I’m genuinely excited to keep eating the leftovers. It’s spicy and nourishing and tastes like my childhood.

You can find the recipe here.

One honorary mention that’s just as nostalgic for me: my grandpa’s jjigae, a hearty Korean stew, which is in my cookbook on page 68.

So there you have it, my top three soups for fall and the ones I come back to year after year. I hope you try them out!

I’m also starting to think about new soup recipes to create this fall, so if there’s a favorite you think I should make, please let me know. I’m always looking for inspiration!

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Love,

Maxine

Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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Full recipe + printable recipe card below. Enjoy!

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