Breakfast sandwiches on coco bread 

Nothing fancy, but there’s a Caribbean place near me (Taste of the Caribbean in Los Angeles) and my new thing is ordering some coco bread to-go and make breakfast sandwiches with it at home. And here’s what they won’t tell ya on TV, but the key to a breakfast sandwich (or a hot dog for that matter) is wrapping it in foil so it steams itself, it perfectly softens the bread and melts the cheese. -Joe McAdam

Creamy miso mushroom pasta 

I made Rie McClenny’s creamy miso mushroom pasta last month, and it was a big hit. -Tony Beasley

Dumplings from Moh Moh Licious 

I do not make dumplings at home. I do not make Nepalese or Tibetan food at home. It’s not for a lack of trying, it’s because I’ve never even considered making Nepalese or Tibetan dumplings at home. This tiny gem in Shepherd Park celebrates 10 years as a brick-and-mortor restaurant this year and will hopefully survive whatever the hell the Walter Reed campus becomes. -Brandon Wetherbee

Fruit Stand Sour Blue Razz THC Gummies

It’s been said that the U.S. government never rolls back anything it does except the stuff people like, and sure enough, the current detente in the War on Some Drugs may well be coming to an end, plunging us back into the tragic and stupid days of shamelessly racist hardcore prohibition. Whatever you think about “drugs” and those who use them, this is a bad thing. In particular, cannabis—which I previously associated mostly with my summer job delivering pizzas while blasting Superunknown—opens expansive, quasi-psychedelic healing possibilities we haven’t begun to explore and perhaps never will. None of the dozens of anti-depressants I’ve sampled have been half as effective in chilling me out as these relaxing, fast-acting, heart- and mind-opening little bites of presence. Now that the Trump regime has made clear it plans to force cannabis products off the open market and back underground, this may be my last chance to celebrate these tasty, very sticky, calming, and bracing little delivery systems for uncontrollable giggling, much-appreciated equanimity, and the social and psychological buffers of sweet, sweet indica.. I would never push you or anyone else to use “drugs.” I want them all for myself. But if cannabis is one of your things (cannabis consumption should be one of your things, not your only thing), I suggest trying these before weed makes you a pariah yet again, part of the willfully ignorant destruction of the last few things I love about America. -Emerson Dameron

Levain Bakery Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookie

I entered grad school this year. I also went back to needing to share a kitchen with three other people. All this to say, I don’t have much time or space to cook meals for myself, so I do a lot of assembling (i.e., salads, toasts, protein pastas). But my sweet tooth gets in the way of healthy-ish meals. In these moments, I fast-walk to Levain Bakery and buy their dark chocolate peanut butter chip cookie. I live in New York, so there are many Levain Bakery locations here, and there’s now a Levain Bakery in almost every major US city. The cookies are expensive ($6.33), but they are massive and are more like two to three servings of cookie (or so I am told). Do not judge me for my life indulgences. The next step is very important: I do not eat it right away. I walk home with the cookie and place it in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute. Heating is crucial. The cookie goes from a large chocolate puck dotted with peanut butter chips, to a slightly molten lava cookie-cake hybrid with pools of peanut butter. It is delightful. Bonus tip: Buy two and leave one in the freezer. -Nicole Schaller 

Ramen with cheddar cheese, egg, fried onions and as much frozen broccoli and peas that’ll fit in the pot

A mash-up of the New York Times Perfect Instant Ramen and a Matty Matheson ramen recipe with my habit of cramming as much green vegetables as I can in a pot. Sometimes I go with the Matheson recommended peanut butter addition but usually not. This thing already has enough fat and flavor for multiple meals. The fried onions came later in the year, around Thanksgiving, when I got a giant bag for a green bean casserole. Before that I used scallions whenever possible, but when they’re not available, the fried onions break up the sameness of the textures. My go-to lunch and the reason I have high cholesterol. -Brandon Wetherbee

Shrimp Noodle Rolls from Trader Joe’s

A limited time product that should not be for a limited time only. Cook them exactly how the package recommends. -Brandon Wetherbee

Tibs Awaze and Vegetarian Combo from Woder Ethiopia Restaurant

The food is fantastic and the cuisine is one of the best to order delivered or to-go. At the start of 2026 in Washington, DC, it’s even more important to shine a light on local businesses that don’t have the best social media or SEO. Woder is NOT Wonder. I want to order from a mom-and-pop restaurant that has survived through a pandemic, not a food hall concept valued at $7 billion. But if you search Woder + DC, make sure you’re not autocorrected multiple times. I have been served the incorrect results most every time. Woder may be doomed for no fault of their own. -Brandon Wetherbee

Bonus Worst Thing I Ate at Home

SHAQ-A-LICIOUS XL Original Gummy Candy

I love my family very much for embracing my love of gummies. I also love novelty. I also like Shaq very much. So I was very happy to receive this very large Shaq related bag of gummies on Christmas morning. But that joy quickly faded. These are the worst gummies I’ve ever eaten. You can feel the cavities forming with each head (the gummies are Shaq heads) consumed. -Brandon Wetherbee

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