Pumpkin soup. Such a wonderful comforting winter treat. Smooth and slightly sweet, with its warming sunny colour it's one of those soups that can't help but lift your spirits as the days draw short and dark. The only problem is
Friends rave every time I make this dish. It's a comfort food recipe, and I especially enjoy making it on cold or rainy days. I often use a whole chicken cut into pieces and skinned. You can make the store-bought chicken stock taste more like homemade by adding some fresh herbs and parsley and simmering until it's reduced by half.
The slightly sweet, soy-based hoisin sauce is to Chinese food what ketchup is to American food. Look for hoisin and rice noodles with other Asian foods in most supermarkets.
We cut out a little of the meat, upped the veggies and used better-for-you ingredients to trim calories and fat from this enchilada dish. What we didn't trim was flavor.
Here's a low-fat dinner suggestion that combines turkey and artichokes into one delicious casserole. Use the make-ahead directions when you need a warm meal on a busy night.
A generous portion of this hearty beef-barley soup is satisfying as a one-dish meal. If chuck roast is on sale, purchase a large one and freeze the rest for later. If not, ask your butcher to cut off only the amount you need.
Casseroles just never seem to get old to me. There are so many different things you can turn into a casserole. This Mexican casserole combines your favorite
Serve a zesty chicken taco salad drizzled with a chipotle chile, cumin, and cilantro dressing. The smokiness of the chipotle brings out the rich flavors of the roasted chicken breasts.
Remember the BBQ Chicken Braid? The possibilities of filling bread with magical ingredients has been on my mind ever since. The next step beyond the braid was inevitable since homemade pizza is such a staple around here: a changed-up calzone.
