Favorite winter recipes

[Soror]

I'm in a rut and looking for inspirations. Meal planning has been lacking with fall being so busy and now it is turning cold the same things just don't sound good. 

 

So, I'm looking for good hearty meals, soup and one-pot meals are great. My kid's appetites have been through the roof and it seems I can't make enough lately so I need things that are cheap to stretch.

 

Basic meals on my list---

 

White bean chicken chili

Chili 

Stew

Tuscan White Bean Soup

Tomato Soup w/ Grilled Cheese

 

 

??? My brain is not working. Legumes are great. I'd like some more veg. options and more options with veggies.

[magnificent_baby]

Uncle Ben's chicken wild rice soup. Sorry, on my way to work so can't look up the recipe, but it's online. So good and very filling!! 

[Bambam]

Tortilla soup - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/89539/slow-cooker-chicken-tortilla-soup/ (easy - great for days when you can't stay at home, I've even used frozen chicken breasts!)

 

Chicken Pot Pie 

 

 

[skimomma]

Stuffed squash is on our menu once a week.  There are endless stuffing options.

 

Another weekly staple is roasting up a huge pan of winter veggies, whatever is cheapest or most available.  Beets, celeriac, winter radish, potato, brussel sprouts, rutabaga, kohlrabi, parsnips, etc....  Pair that with brown rice/millet/barley/whatever and top with blue cheese or walnuts or sour cream or whatever I have.  This also makes great leftovers.

 

I make brothy soups stretch and increase the protein by poaching eggs right in the soup during the last five minutes of cooking.  Each person gets at least one egg.  If you do this, remove from the pot any soup you think will be leftover before adding the eggs.

 

Baked potato bar is my go to emergency dinner.

Edited November 20, 2017 by skimomma

[Peaceseeker]

Corn chowder or vegetable beef soup. Adding a side salad or dinner bread, rolls, biscuits, or cornbread with soup can help stretch things further.

[Jenn in FL]

Stuffed squash is on our menu once a week.  There are endless stuffing options.

 

Another weekly staple is roasting up a huge pan of winter veggies, whatever is cheapest or most available.  Beets, celeriac, winter radish, potato, brussel sprouts, rutabaga, kohlrabi, parsnips, etc....  Pair that with brown rice/millet/barley/whatever and top with blue cheese or walnuts or sour cream or whatever I have.  This also makes great leftovers.

 

I make brothy soups stretch and increase the protein by poaching eggs right in the soup during the last five minutes of cooking.  Each person gets at least one egg.  If you do this, remove from the pot any soup you think will be leftover before adding the eggs.

 

Baked potato bar is my go to emergency dinner.

 

Are you stuffing acorn squash or another variety?  Will you please share some of your stuffed squash options?

 

This sounds utterly delicious!

 

Great suggestions!   :hurray:

[ScoutTN]

Right there with ya on the kids with big appetites and need to stretch the grocery dollars!

 

Lots of soup here. I make stock almost every week in the winter. I get a large bag of beef bones from a local farmer (at Farmers' market, so not a big effort or out of the way) for $5. Makes 2-3 crockpots of stock, so 12-18 qts. I use mostly ends and pieces of veggies that I have already cut up or peeled for the veggies in the stock. 

 

I get whole chx wherever they are on sale, roast them, use the meat for soup or casseroles, then make stock from the bones. One chx = 6 qts. 

 

Favorites:

Beef and barley

French onion

Chx with orzo and lemon

Chx tortilla - I add some chipotle chiles on adobo or chipotle chile powder for that smoky taste, but not too hot.

Cream of tomato. I use tomato cocktail from my CSA, to add more flavor, but V8 will work too. I add cream at the end for richness. 

Lentil soup with bacon and cream. Very filling and yummy!

 

Lots of times I just make random soup with whatever protein and veg I have. Sometimes it is great and sometimes just average, but I can never reproduce the recipes because I just improvised.

 

Chx pot pie is yummy. I use potatoes and only one crust most of the time. 

Shepherd's pie with lamb is a nice change of pace/taste and is very filling. Or Cottage pie with just beef. Potatoes are cheap!

 

 

[umsami]

We make beef stew.  I use a dutch oven, but you can also use a crockpot or Instant Pot (stew setting works perfectly)

 

Mix in the pot:

2 pounds stew meat dredged in flour and sprinkled with kosher salt and pepper

1 small bag baby carrots (no need to chop in half)

1-2 onions rough chop (depends on size)

1 bag of small potatoes or 3-4 large potatoes cut into cubes

sprinkle some kosher salt and pepper over the veggies

about 1 tsp Italian seasoning or Oregano

2 bay leaves

1 can Campbell's Tomato soup

1/2 can or so of water

 

Put in an oven at 275-300 for about 2-1/2 to 3 hours.  When done, stir in a bag of frozen baby peas

Taste, add salt/pepper as needed

 

 

Edited November 20, 2017 by umsami

[Debbi in Texas]

The one soup I make every winter is taco soup.

[Annie G]

Chicken pot pie and chicken and dumplings are hits here. I can make both from one chicken.   

[skimomma]

Are you stuffing acorn squash or another variety?  Will you please share some of your stuffed squash options?

 

This sounds utterly delicious!

 

Great suggestions!   :hurray:

 

There are several squash types that work well.  Acorn is the traditional stuffing squash.  The related carnival squash works as well as any acorn-shaped squash.  Delicata is our favorite in taste and its boat shape allows for easier stuffing.  Spaghetti is also great for stuffing.  I am sure there are many others that will work well as long as they have a shell that hardens with cooking rather than wilts.  The wilters are my soup squashes.

 

I am terrible at using actual recipes.  I will put just about anything in a squash at least once.  Prep is the same for all.  Cut the squash in half, remove the seeds (I put these in the freezer for soup stock), and place face down on a cookie sheet in a 375 oven for 30-40 minutes.  Once a fork goes easily into the thickest part, it is ready.  I am often working with several different sizes at once so I might have to take the smallest out earlier.  Once all done, flip them all bowl side up and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Then stuff and put back in oven for another 20-30 minutes.  You can also stuff and put in fridge until you are ready to do the final cooking.

 

There are a few stuffing favorites that I come back to.

 

My family's favorite is a ricotta based stuffing.  I sauté up an onion and a few cloves of garlic then add 3 chopped apples or pears for the last 3 minutes.  Toss in a bowl with a pint of ricotta, a cup or so of finely shredded cheese (cheddar, parmesan, or jack all work well),  the grated zest of one lemon, a half cup of chopped nuts (any will do), salt, pepper, a dash of nutmeg, and a handful of dried fruit (I usually substitute in fresh or frozen cranberries if I have them).  Mix and stuff into 6-8 squash halves, mounding as necessary to use it all up.

 

Another favorite is a stuffed pepper knock off.  Fry up some onions, peppers, jalapeño or chipotle (if you like spice), and some garlic.  Add salt, pepper, and chili powder to taste.   Add a can of tomatoes, a can of whatever beans (meat would probably also work), and 2-3 cups of rice or quinoa until hot.  Take off heat and add whatever combo of chopped avocado, cream cheese, or shredded cheese you have on hand and stuff into squashes.  A little cheese on top is usually appreciated.  Extra bonus points if I flip the squashes bowl side up for the last 10 minutes of pre-cooking, poke with a fork, and pour a little adobo sauce from canned chipotle into the bowls to caramelize before stuffing.  Serve with salsa, sour cream, and corn chips.

 

My garden produces huge spaghetti squash so they are usually too big for stuffing.  But when I get a few smaller ones, I pre-cook as usual but when I flip them up, I add salt and pepper then bring up all of the strings with a fork and dump into a bowl, preserving the shells for stuffing.  I then make an almost baked ziti type filling by adding tomato sauce, parmesean/mozz/ricotta cheese, Italian herbs, finely chopped greens, and a cup or two of leftover cooked pasta elbows.  Mix, restuff shells, and heat in oven.

 

Aside form my standards, I have no problem putting just about any leftover in a squash and calling it dinner.  I grow enough squash for us to have it at least twice a week in the winter and I have always been a "one pot" cook so if I can make a side dish into dinner, I am all about it.  I will even take the smallest ones, cook face down, flip, and crack a single egg into each.  Bake until egg is set.  

Edited November 21, 2017 by skimomma

[Tina]

Cheeseburger soup and lots of the above soups

Smothered chicken with mashed potatoes

Spaghetti or some other pasta is on my weekly list in the winter

Salmon patties

Chicken enchiladas

Spanish rice

Meatloaf and baked potatoes

Pizza hotdish

Turkey tetrazzini

Pork roasts

Chinese: fried rice and Hawaiian chicken or eggrolls with chow mein

Swedish meatballs

[Rosika]

One of my favorite winter recipes is cabbage rolls. Ingredients are not expensive or exotic (sauerkraut, cabbage, rice, onion, ground meat, typical spices) and is very hearty. It can be time consuming to make, but is a great bonding time in the kitchen. Or you can do like me and prepare them in front of a movie :) These freeze very well so making a double batch is a great idea. Look up recipes for sarma or sarmale.

[Alessandra]

Pot roast

Boeuf Bourguignon

Meat loaf

Meatballs

Corned beef

 

Lamb of any kind

Irish stew

Shepherd's pie

 

Anything that requires slow cooking -- I want to warm up the kitchen in winter, but not in summer

Red cabbage takes an hour or so in the oven

Any braised veggie -- braised celery, for example

 

Fall and Winter vegetables -- root veggies, fennel, Belgian endive, celeriac, cabbagey things. We try to eat with the season.

[Jenn in FL]

:party:

There are several squash types that work well.  Acorn is the traditional stuffing squash.  The related carnival squash works as well as any acorn-shaped squash.  Delicata is our favorite in taste and its boat shape allows for easier stuffing.  Spaghetti is also great for stuffing.  I am sure there are many others that will work well as long as they have a shell that hardens with cooking rather than wilts.  The wilters are my soup squashes.

 

I am terrible at using actual recipes.  I will put just about anything in a squash at least once.  Prep is the same for all.  Cut the squash in half, remove the seeds (I put these in the freezer for soup stock), and place face down on a cookie sheet in a 375 oven for 30-40 minutes.  Once a fork goes easily into the thickest part, it is ready.  I am often working with several different sizes at once so I might have to take the smallest out earlier.  Once all done, flip them all bowl side up and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Then stuff and put back in oven for another 20-30 minutes.  You can also stuff and put in fridge until you are ready to do the final cooking.

 

There are a few stuffing favorites that I come back to.

 

My family's favorite is a ricotta based stuffing.  I sauté up an onion and a few cloves of garlic then add 3 chopped apples or pears for the last 3 minutes.  Toss in a bowl with a pint of ricotta, a cup or so of finely shredded cheese (cheddar, parmesan, or jack all work well),  the grated zest of one lemon, a half cup of chopped nuts (any will do), salt, pepper, a dash of nutmeg, and a handful of dried fruit (I usually substitute in fresh or frozen cranberries if I have them).  Mix and stuff into 6-8 squash halves, mounding as necessary to use it all up.

 

Another favorite is a stuffed pepper knock off.  Fry up some onions, peppers, jalapeño or chipotle (if you like spice), and some garlic.  Add salt, pepper, and chili powder to taste.   Add a can of tomatoes, a can of whatever beans (meat would probably also work), and 2-3 cups of rice or quinoa until hot.  Take off heat and add whatever combo of chopped avocado, cream cheese, or shredded cheese you have on hand and stuff into squashes.  A little cheese on top is usually appreciated.  Extra bonus points if I flip the squashes bowl side up for the last 10 minutes of pre-cooking, poke with a fork, and pour a little adobo sauce from canned chipotle into the bowls to caramelize before stuffing.  Serve with salsa, sour cream, and corn chips.

 

My garden produces huge spaghetti squash so they are usually too big for stuffing.  But when I get a few smaller ones, I pre-cook as usual but when I flip them up, I add salt and pepper then bring up all of the strings with a fork and dump into a bowl, preserving the shells for stuffing.  I then make an almost baked ziti type filling by adding tomato sauce, parmesean/mozz/ricotta cheese, Italian herbs, finely chopped greens, and a cup or two of leftover cooked pasta elbows.  Mix, restuff shells, and heat in oven.

 

Aside form my standards, I have no problem putting just about any leftover in a squash and calling it dinner.  I grow enough squash for us to have it at least twice a week in the winter and I have always been a "one pot" cook so if I can make a side dish into dinner, I am all about it.  I will even take the smallest ones, cook face down, flip, and crack a single egg into each.  Bake until egg is set.  

 

Oh. My. Gosh. How very kind!   :party:

 

I lost/forgot to come back and check this thread amidst all of the holiday prep.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to post this. I have copied and pasted every word.

 

It sounds delicious!

 

 

 

[unsinkable]

Pot roast

Meatloaf

Pasta with sausage and broccoli

Chili

Stuffed shells

 

Lots of great meals already listed!