Jennifer Waldera

While there may be a variety of fillings used to make stuffed peppers, one of the most common is a combination of ground beef, rice, onions, and tomato sauce. However, Chef Jasper J. Mirabile Jr., owner of Kansas City's Jasper's Restaurant (and host of Live! From Jasper's Kitchen Radio ) has a slightly different recommendation: meatballs. When asked about unique ways to serve these meaty Italian bites, the chef told Food Republic, "Meatball stuffed peppers [are] so good just with the meatball filling inside of the pepper and then roasted and ladled with tomato sauce."

Canned tuna is the perfect canvas for creativity, offering numerous ways to upgrade a plain tuna salad. If you're looking to both elevate the flavor and boost the protein, cured eggs are an excellent choice. While just the egg yolks are popular for preserving, you can also cure the entire egg. All you need is salt and seasonings, but you can also swap out the salt for miso or use soy sauce to cure the eggs.

There are some pantry staples that you may only think to reach for when you're whipping up baked goods. Leavening agents like yeast or baking soda are one example — but if you've been using baking soda only in cakes and bread (or to naturally clean your kitchen ), you're missing out on the magic it can work on your marinara sauce.

When you think of popular foods from the South, biscuits and gravy, country-fried steak, and cornbread may spring to mind. But there's one Southern staple that is as simple as it is iconic: the tomato sandwich. With bright, juicy tomatoes, plenty of creamy mayonnaise, and a dash of salt and pepper, all flanked by soft white bread, it's a satisfying sandwich that's incredibly easy to make. But if you're looking for a way to jazz it up with almost no effort, pesto is the perfect go-to for an instant flavor upgrade.

Canned salmon is undoubtedly a convenient food to keep on hand. Since it's already cooked, it makes the perfect quick and easy meal at home or snack on the go. However, sometimes it could use a little jazzing up. If smokiness is what you're after, look no further than a handy bottle of liquid smoke.

Coconut water may be a hydration powerhouse worth keeping handy, but if you plan to pop the top off a bottle of it, don't expect it to last too terribly long. Like most food and drinks, it has a limited lifespan once it's opened, and the time it takes before it spoils may vary based on how it's packaged or if preservatives have been added. While some brands may last up to five days when properly stored in the refrigerator, others may go bad in as little as two days. And if the open bottle isn't placed in the fridge, time is ticking — you'll want to drink it within a couple of hours.

Meatloaf may have first debuted on tables many centuries ago in Europe, but it eventually made its way into cookbooks in the United States by the late 1800s. Throughout the many years of its existence, recipes for the hearty main have been switched up, including anything from fruits and nuts to various seasonings. But one traditional staple (besides the meat, of course) in many American meatloaves is a ketchup-based topping. However, Food Republic had the opportunity to catch up with celebrity chef Jeff Mauro at Food Network's New York City Wine & Food Festival to get his take on how he tops meatloaf to take it to the next level.

Whether you've whipped up your own easy no-churn ice cream or just picked up a store-bought pie, there's possibly no better topping than a big dollop of light and airy whipped cream. While you could simply pick up a container or spray can from the store, nothing can match the flavor and consistency of homemade whipped cream. And it's so easy to make, so there's nearly no reason not to.

Latkes have been a part of Hanukkah celebrations for centuries but they also make for a solid side all year long. Typically comprised of grated potatoes, eggs, onions, and all-purpose flour, the classic crispy fritters are a tasty dish all on their own. But with such a basic base, they are also easy to upgrade and one simple way to do just that is to add a touch of tanginess with dill pickles.

Whether you're shaking up a drink to sip solo or whipping up batch cocktails for the holidays, you may want to swap out your typical simple sugar for a more flavorful sweetener. Claire Marin, the owner and head distiller at Catskill Provisions Distillery, makers of Pollinator Spirits, suggests switching it up with honey. "Honey is a wonderful way of making drinks more flavorful and special year round," she says. "But for holiday time it serves as a rich sweetener which works perfectly with cinnamon, cloves, orange peel, or nutmeg."