Kendra Vaculin
Contributor
Originally from the San Francisco East Bay, Kendra has worked in food media (Epicurious, Eater, Food52) and test kitchens (Blue Apron) across New York City since 2014, as a writer, recipe developer, food stylist, and producer. She was Bon Appétit's Test Kitchen Editor until 2025, where she thought a lot about what you should make for dinner, developing recipes for her monthly column Speedy Does It and overseeing the Dinner Is Served section of the print magazine. Outside of weeknight cooking, she loves back-pocket desserts, produce-centric picnic food, and stuff to make for a party. She likes ice cream more than vegetables, but it's much closer than you'd think.
Recipes
Bloody Mary Salmorejo
A cousin to gazpacho, salmorejo gets its velvety texture from the inclusion of bread in the mix with summer’s best tomatoes.
Recipes
Apricot Tart With Whiskey-Pecan Frangipane
Celebrate the brief (but wondrous!) apricot season with this simple frangipane tart—both the crust and filling come together in a food processor.
Recipes
Grilled Italian Sausage With Fennel Salad
A few skewers and a hot grill turn this short list of ingredients (Italian sausage! fresh fennel! olives!) into a quick, punchy meal.
Recipes
Sizzling Pork and Eggplant Hiyayakko
By topping shingled silken tofu with a savory stir-fry of pork and eggplant, you get the perfect marriage of hot and cold.
Restaurants
One of New York’s Most Surprising Desserts Is a Baseball-Sized Cream Puff
Sorry to all other cream puffs.
Cooking
Make California Pizza Kitchen’s Famous BBQ Pizza—Any Time You Want
Turns out, barbecue chicken is completely fungi-ble
Recipes
BBQ Mushroom Pizza
Our (semi-homemade, vegetarian) homage to California Pizza Kitchen's best pie.
Best Of
The Best Pasta Bowls Work For More Than Just Pasta
Salads, brothy beans, and rice bowls—we’re looking at you.
Recipes
Sweet and Salty Rice Cake “Popcorn”
Whether you don't eat corn or just want a change from your usual popcorn routine, these toasty, seasoned rice cakes make for the ultimate snack.
Recipes
Spiced Creamy White Beans and Greens
Smashed white beans bring so much creaminess, you don’t even need dairy.
Recipes
Tempeh Crumbles With Coconut Rice
Crumbled tempeh is crispy. But crumbled tempeh with roasted peanuts and chili crisp is magnificently crispy.
Recipes
Sun-Dried-Tomato Romesco Pasta
When you’re short on time, skip the canned tomatoes and reach for ultra-concentrated sun-dried ones, which can be blitzed straight into sauce.
Recipes
Chickpea Pancake With Pea Salad
With a little help from a bag of chickpea flour, you can turn any vegetables in the fridge into an impressive meal.
Recipes
Chocolate-Filled Toasted Coconut Macaroons
Extra-toasty coconut and a chocolate surprise set these cookies apart from your average macaroon.
Editors' Picks
Acid League's Fancy Vinegars Break Me Out of Any Cooking Rut
Acid League vinegars bring big league flavor.
Restaurants
I Bought This Restaurant’s Bathroom Candle—While I Was in Their Bathroom
Sometimes you just know.
Cooking
When I Want Falafel But Don’t Want to Fry, I Bake a Falafel Cake
My lazy shortcut turned into a go-to weeknight meal.
Recipes
Big Baked Falafel Cake With Cucumber Salad
No need to fight over the last falafel—this sliceable one is big enough for everyone.
Cooking
How to Light Your Dessert On Fire Without Singeing Your Eyebrows
Booze + flames = a total spectacle.