Ancho Chile

Aromatic spice and herb blends can quickly turn an ordinary soup recipe into something extraordinary. Here they transform a basic carrot soup into a special concoction you'll crave again and again. So start utilizing the "cook once, eat twice" theory; just freeze half of the recipe or make a double batch whenever possible.

The recado is a dry rub that gives a burst of flavor to almost any meat or vegetable but is particularly wonderful on beef and corn.

Serve this flavorful chili with chopped green onion, cilantro and red bell pepper.

Steaks at Tequila restaurant are offered with sautéed chard and roasted red potatoes.

"About a year ago, I discovered a new restaurant in town called Babalu's," writes Richard Shipman of St. Louis, Missouri. "It serves terrific Caribbean food, including a flavorful chili-coated salmon."

Accompany the shrimp with grilled zucchini and yellow squash.

This recipe is an accompaniment for <epi:recipelink id="108054">Chicken, Potato, and Carrot Enchiladas</epi:recipelink>.

Set out black beans, rice, lettuce, salsa and hot flour tortillas to go with the chicken.

Cemitas de Carne Enchilada A cemita is an oversize, slightly sweet, sesame seed bun that gives this Pueblan sandwich its name. Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 3 hr

It takes one to two days to marinate the meat for this recipe, but it's worth it. These will be some of the best ribs you'll ever eat.

This modification of a classic soup uses less cream than traditional versions.

Top these tostadas with guacamole.

A nice side would be polenta or mashed potatoes.

Chef Robert Del Grande of Cafe Annie, in Houston, serves a fillet of beef with a coffee chile sauce — we think the flavor combination also works well with the succulence of short ribs. We recommend serving these ribs over soft polenta. Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 4 1/2 hr