Squash

Who needs beef? When you combine chicken with shredded veggies and a tangy Greek yogurt sauce, you get a burger as thick and juicy as any other.

What would happen if you gave winter squash the coq au vin treatment? Layers of flavor from browned mushrooms, wine, and miso that give the classic a run for its money.

The magic of steam cooks the squash both quickly and evenly, and steaming the dressing with the squash opens up the flavor of the ginger, garlic, and scallions.

This stick-to-your-ribs stew gets heft from creamy white beans and winter squash; we opted for acorn, but kabocha or delicata squash would work great too.

One bowl and one baking sheet is all you need to achieve sweet, creamy squash, crispy pita chips, and chewy, charred cheese. Fresh mint and a splash of vinegar perk up the final dish.

This dumpling combines lamb with delicate green summer squash, which brings a surprising freshness to the filling.

I try to make a big batch of steel-cut oats early in the week, ready to reheat for breakfast in the days that follow. This is a favorite autumnal way of topping it, which helps to keep an old standby interesting through all the weeks of the year. Rather than stirring the squash into the full pot of oatmeal, you can add it to individual bowls, treating it as a topping.

By coarsely mashing, seasoning, and storing the squash to use later in the week, you've got an ingredient that'll yield more types of dishes than would be easily available to you if you were to have cubed and roasted leftover squash. It's a spread, a sandwich filling, sweet component of a frittata, the starting point of an easy appetizer. 

Miso and a paprika-packed squash purée makes this dairy-free risotto hearty and satisfying. Double or triple the squash purée, and use it in other meals throughout the week.

Imagine a pumpkin pie with pecan pie’s best feature: the candied nut topping. Now spike the custard with rye whiskey, up the flavor of the crust with rye flour, and voilà.

This holiday-buffet-ready salad has bright Asian pear, salty aged cheese, a dynamic pecan dressing, and hardy radicchio that refuses to wilt.

Persillade is an herby sauce, a little like a French pesto, made with ingredients we have an abundance of in the US.

Butternut squash melts into the polenta as this creamy, make-ahead dish cooks, while chunks of Fontina create gooey pockets of cheese throughout.

Some of the easiest meals to prepare are those made from simple roast vegetables. They're no fuss and require minimal cleanup—exactly what you need after a long day.

When it comes to vibrant whole food meals, dressings are the key to success. This is just one version of Amy Chaplin's raw zucchini dressings from her book Whole Food Cooking Every Day. The multi-flavored sauces are rich and creamy, and offer a fresh new take on standard dressings and vinaigrettes.

When you have more eggplant and squash than you know what to do with, turn to this quick curry.