Simmer

A delicious soup from Tágide.

This warming and satisfying winter soup is a delicious starter, and the vegetables add color and sweetness.

Serve with rice or as a burrito filling.

Serve any leftover sauce with fresh berries.

Serve this side dish with any roasted meat, such as ham, turkey, or roast beef.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Editors' note: The original recipe calls for Chinese wheat noodles, but we also like this soup made with somen (Japanese thin wheat noodles) or soba (Japanese buckwheat noodles).

Fudgies, says my friend Cindy Kane, "are the most wonderful food in the world." She must really think so, since she's sent me the recipe three times. It is pretty great, though, and not only that — it's also easy enough for children aged eight and up to make for themselves. And, says Cindy, "It makes more than you'd think." The only change I've made from her recipe is that I've substituted unsweetened chocolate for cocoa.

This rich, slightly smoky sauce is cooked for only ten minutes.

This is equally good served warm or cold. If you prefer it cold, begin preparing the dessert well ahead so that it has time to chill.

(Purée de Pommes de Terre, de Topinambours, et de Céleri-rave) At the market in Le Neubourg, not far from where I live in Normandy, each Wednesday farmers bring out their produce in a panoply that directly mirrors the seasons. This dish, which I make with vegetables from that market, is a celebration of fall. Farmers in Le Neubourg are really mostly market gardeners or truck farmers, or maraîchers. They and others like them are the backbone of the French agricultural system, providing from their small plots the best and the freshest produce in the country. Because they are small and sell direct, they can grow a wide variety of vegetables, which is why I can find Jerusalem artichokes alongside potatoes and celery root, dandelion greens, and wild mushrooms gathered in the surrounding woods. Though the vegetables in this dish are unglamorous, the balance here is luscious, rich, and satisfying.

Serve the curry with steamed white rice and Indian beer, and make a stop at an Indian restaurant to get some samosas — savory filled pastries — to pass as appetizers, and the flatbread called naan to sop up the curry sauce. For dessert, how about assorted teas and a carrot cake?

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Jennifer Martin of Portland, Oregon, writes: "I am not formally trained in cooking but grew up working in food service, from chopping vegetables at food festivals to catering parties for a little extra income. Today I own Epicure Custom Cooking, a gourmet takeout shop and catering company with a few tables for dining. Our specials change weekly and are geared toward what I like to cook and eat. I simply love the business, even with my 12-hour days."