Our 12 Best Simple Winter Recipes For An Easy Meal This Season
Don’t let the cold stop your cooking
Sometimes, when it's cold outside, the last thing we want to do is cook a meal. But the warmth of the stove and the joy once a meal is completed can't be beaten. From creamy soups to some of our best pasta recipes, you won't have to look any further for an easy weeknight meal this season. Although these recipes are certainly effortless, they're not lacking in flavor, packing in winter vegetables and meats for main courses. With our best simple winter recipes, you won't have to order take-out every night this season.
In Spain's Basque Country, marmitako means roughly "from the pot." This rustic, filling soup, now common in Basque homes and sociedades, began as a meal local tuna fishermen would make during long fishing routes on their boats, and still do. Traditionally, locals crack the potatoes with a partial cut, then break off ragged chunks to toss into and add starchiness to the soup. Adding the tuna right at the end, just as the soup is removed from the heat, keeps the fish moist and tender. Get the recipe for Marmitako (Basque Tuna and Potato Soup) »
The author's creamed spinach is an ultra-fine, silky version of this traditional staple, puréed with parsley leaves for a vivid green color and vermouth for a pop of acidity. For the brightest green color, cool the spinach mixture down fully before puréeing, then reheat. You can eat this dish by the spoonful or use it as a sort of sauce through which to drag meat and vegetables on the plate. Get the recipe for Finnish Creamed Spinach With Crumbled Egg Yolks »
Breaking the bird down into its primal cuts allows the meat to cook more evenly, and in half the time. It also frees up more space in the oven—enough to cook as many as three turkeys at once—while you simultaneously simmer the carcass into a quick stock for gravy. Get the recipe for Fast and Juicy Roast Turkey in Parts »
Rumor has it that pasta puttanesca–literally "whore's pasta"–was a quick and easy dinner of choice among Napolitan working ladies, but the dish's salatious history is unlikely. Get the recipe for Classic Spaghetti Puttanesca »
The key to getting a good char on Brussels sprouts is roasting them in a single flat layer, making sure they don't overlap. Don't worry about serving them right out of the oven, as they are just as tasty at room temperature. Get the recipe for Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts »
Pongala means "to boil over," referring to the moment the starchy water from this sweet rice dish bubbles above the lip of its clay pot. At the Attukal Pongala festival, pongala, the offering made to a Hindu deity, is cooked over fire and seasoned with jaggery (unrefined palm sugar) and coconut. Recipes can vary to include cardamom, cinnamon, banana, and raisins. Get the recipe for Pongala (Sweet Sacred Coconut Porridge) »
This classic French meal of baked, cream-soaked toast and eggs is deceptively simple (and scalable) but lavish. Named for the Alpine region of Bresse, which is best known to the culinary world for its exceptional chickens, the dish is practical country cooking at its finest. As it bakes, the cream soaks into the bread and thickens to a rich sauce right on the platter, resulting in a savory French toast. Get the recipe for French Baked Toast with Cream and Eggs »
A night market specialty of Tainan and Taipei since the 1940s, coffin bread consists of a thick slab of white bread that's hollowed out and toasted or fried to make a crunchy little box. Inside the "coffin" goes a creamy stew of chicken, seafood, tripe, or mushroom, which is then topped with a lid of more toasty bread. To the Western palate, it recalls both pot pie and the chowder-filled bread bowls of Fisherman's Wharf and (gasp) Panera Bread. And it happens to beat them all, especially when made with homemade white bread. Get the recipe for Chicken Blanquette Coffin Bread »
Give this comfort food staple the best of both worlds by topping a rich chicken stew with mashed potatoes and puff pastry. Get the recipe for Chicken Pot Shepherd's Pie »
Known as chupe de centolla, this Chilean crab gratin borders on a cheesy crab dip. While similar South American chupe are always prepared with milk-soaked bread and any combination of shrimp, scallops, shellfish, meats, and cheeses, Patagonia's version relies solely on the massive local king crabs, the hallmark of fishermen's kitchens along Chile's southernmost coast. Get the recipe for The Ultimate Crab Dip »
These holiday favorites benefit from a spicy, sage-heavy bulk pork sausage. Get the recipe for Cheddar and Sausage Balls »
In a classic Danish treatment, sweet red apples are roasted with onions, caramelized in bacon fat, and served under thick steaks of smoked belly bacon. Get the recipe for Roasted Apples and Bacon with Onions and Thyme (Æbleflæsk) »
Keep Reading
Continue to Next Story
