Slow Cooker Carrot Soup with Warm Spices and Blood Orange

In wintertime especially, there’s nothing more comforting than coming home to a pot of simmering soup. This carrot version has a secret ingredient–a cup of diced, kabocha squash–which plays beautifully with the spices and citrus drizzle.

Simple Udon Soup

udon-soup
This udon soup is simple, satisfying and comes together in about 20 minutes from broth to bowl, using any kind of greens, meat, poultry or fish you have.

Asian Turkey Salad

asian-turkey-salad
This fresh, bright, light turkey salad with Asian flair is quite a departure from the usual all-American Thanksgiving leftovers.

Lentil Soup with Roasted Pumpkin

Lentils are a staple food in Eritrea, and every time I prepare them I recall my years there. Adding cubed roasted pumpkin lends this soup vibrant color and transforms it into an ideal Thanksgiving starter.

Guatemalan Avocado Salad with Arugula and Chile-Lime Dressing

This is the salad I’ve settled on serving with the Pollo en Jocon we’ll be having for Thanksgiving—a mixture of creamy and rich and light and crisp (it’s a variation on a traditional Guatemalan recipe from the excellent book, False Tongues and Sunday Bread). I could tell you about how healthy the monounsaturated fats from the avocados are, but you already know that. Instead, just enjoy the dish.

Mushroom, White Bean and Sage Soup

mushroom-white-bean-sage-soup
If you have mushroom stems stashed away, make this with homemade Mushroom Stock. This vegan, gluten-free soup is hearty enough to make a meal with nothing more than a hunk of good bread.