Fall/Winter meal sharing thread

[AmandaVT]

Maybe it's because the school year has been so busy or because it seems that we're still waiting for fall to actually start (65 in mid october??) - but I seem to have forgotten about 90% of the things I like to cook during the fall/winter. 

I wanted to start a meal sharing thread in case anyone wants to help me come up with new ideas or read for ideas! 

I'll start: 

Stuffed spaghetti squash (going to do italian sausage, spinach, marinara sauce and parmesan this week)

Ditalini and bean soup

Stir fry with lots of veggies and either tofu or chicken

Chili

Root vegetable soups - I want to try this one but will tread carefully w/ the Allspice because a teaspoon seems like a lot! 

On the heavier side, DH loves to make stuffed shells, lasagna, and eggplant parmesan

[WildflowerMom]

Well I made baked spaghetti today.    https://www.plainchicken.com/the-best-baked-spaghetti/
Chili is on the menu for Tuesday. 
Lasagna.  
Roast.  
grilled cheese sandwiches with soup.  
Sara Moulton's White Chicken chili.  https://saramoulton.com/2016/02/white-chicken-chili-2/

 

[73349]

We like this easy lemon & thyme white bean soup (add some potatoes if you want): https://app.plantoeat.com/recipes/25115793

As an alternative to lasagna, we sometimes have this pizza casserole (made with cauliflower): https://app.plantoeat.com/recipes/19852458/

This sheet pan dinner takes a while, but we really like it: https://app.plantoeat.com/recipes/28722518/44007017

Here's one with butternut squash and Brussels sprouts: https://app.plantoeat.com/recipes/25905799/

 

@YaelAldrich These are vegan (and gf) the way we make them. When cheese is called for, we use Miyoko's, which is the only vegan cheese I've found that I like.

Edited October 11, 2021 by Carolina Wren

[Carol in Cal.]

My absolute fall faves are:

—Minnesota style wild rice soup

—Wisconsin style beer cheese soup (sounds ugh, looks like Velveeta, but wow is it good.)

—Harvest salad, which is romaine lettuce, persimmon chunks, pomegranate seeds, and a lemony vinaigrette

—Apple crisp, which I make very spicy and complex

Baked onion meatballs in red wine sauce is also good.

[math teacher]

These all sound so good!! It's still been in the 90's here, but this week is supposed to be in the 80's and 70's for the following week. Some of my favorites:

Chili

Taco Soup-really any soup

I have several butternut squash that were given to me, so I will be watching this thread. Last year at Thanksgiving I made a salad that had brussels sprouts, cranberries, apricots, and I think, butternut squash. I'll look up the recipe and post it later.

[Eos]

I make food for two sets of people on Sundays, one of whom is both vegan and gluten-free.  Today I made two tarts with a crust made from shredded new potato, spaghetti squash, dill, and onion.  I filled one with sauteed mushrooms, onions, spinach and apples, then did that same filling for the other one but added bacon and blue cheese.  Served with maple balsamic-roasted carrots.  I love fall ingredients - thanks for the thread!

[WildflowerMom]

This soup is good for winter, too.   https://www.budgetbytes.com/smoky-black-bean-soup/    I've also added sliced sautéed smoked turkey sausage to this to make dh happy and it was really good. 
 

This herbed slow cooker chicken is good.   I've also added diced red potatoes to it and it was yummy and hearty.  https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/herbed-slow-cooker-chicken/

 

[YaelAldrich]

Please more vegetarian/vegan/low cholesterol recipes as most of the family has abandoned the omnivore path!!

[WildflowerMom]

11 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

Please more vegetarian/vegan/low cholesterol recipes as most of the family has abandoned the omnivore path!!

What about meatless enchiladas?   You could use zucchini, black beans, sweet potatoes, lentils, etc.  

This one looks good, Yael... https://www.readyseteat.com/recipes-Vegetarian-Enchiladas-7719

Edited October 11, 2021 by WildflowerMom

[YaelAldrich]

1 minute ago, WildflowerMom said:

What about meatless enchiladas?   You could use zucchini, black beans, sweet potatoes, lentils, etc.  

We do that. Just have to remember to put it in the mix

[mmasc]

This is one of my favorites. 
 

I also like to make a sweet potato hash-type thing. I add coconut oil to a skillet, then small-ish chunks of sweet potato and chopped onions and bell peppers. I add S&P, some cumin and chili powder. Put a lid on and let it cook and get soft. Then add a can of drained black beans and let them cook with it for a bit to get some seasoning and soften. That’s it! 
I eat it as is, or put a fried egg on top sometimes. (This is also pretty yummy as a quesadilla filling, if you eat cheese and tortillas)

I also make a big pan of roasted Brussels sprouts (halved), sweet potato (small chunks), and drained chick peas. I put evoo and S&P and roast until they’re getting caramelized and brown. I actually love this cold and will put a big spoonful or two on top of my salad greens. Add a few walnuts and dried cranberries to the salad—delicious!

[ScoutTN]

Lots of soups!

Chx pot pie is my kids’ favorite.

Beef stew and pot roast

Cassoulet

[rutheart]

In my bullet journal, I have a page dedicated to foods I crave during the wrong season. All summer long, I write down oven dishes so when it finally gets cold, I remember what I wanted. It has been a looooong summer (almost 8 straight months of summer temperatures here), so I am really looking forward to making some of these dishes:

enchiladas

brunch with biscuits from scratch

breaded chicken with french fries or tater tots, spinach and fruit smoothies

chimichangas, rice, beans, salad

chicken and eggplant parm, garlic bread, and a big salad

baked chili and cornbread

pizza bombs, salad

shepherd's pie (or sometimes I make hand pies with shepherd's pie filling)

[popmom]

Loving this thread, but we’re in the mid to upper 80’s this week. I can’t quite get in the mood for chili or stew yet. 65 degrees???? Definitely chili weather here. 😉 

Edited October 11, 2021 by popmom

[popmom]

7 hours ago, Carol in Cal. said:

My absolute fall faves are:

—Minnesota style wild rice soup

—Wisconsin style beer cheese soup (sounds ugh, looks like Velveeta, but wow is it good.)

—Harvest salad, which is romaine lettuce, persimmon chunks, pomegranate seeds, and a lemony vinaigrette

—Apple crisp, which I make very spicy and complex

Baked onion meatballs in red wine sauce is also good.

Baked onion meatballs in red wine sauce sounds amazing. Is there a recipe you can link?

[Carol in Cal.]

53 minutes ago, popmom said:

Baked onion meatballs in red wine sauce sounds amazing. Is there a recipe you can link?

It's from the Sunset cookbook for chafing dishes and fondues.  Very 70s.  Maybe your library has it?  I don't know that it's online.

[Eos]

7 hours ago, rutheart said:

n my bullet journal, I have a page dedicated to foods I crave during the wrong season.

I love this.

[Laura Corin]

10 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

Please more vegetarian/vegan/low cholesterol recipes as most of the family has abandoned the omnivore path!!

This worked well recently.  I used fresh squash and roasted it in chunks in advance. I used low fat coconut milk and mashed some of the squash into the sauce to thicken it.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020463-coconut-curry-chickpeas-with-pumpkin-and-lime

[HomeAgain]

This week's menu:

M-Leftovers from last week (pulled pork, apple-cabbage slaw, rice, black beans)

T-Tacos

W-Packed meal to eat between/after training: Pan seared chicken, mashed potatoes, spinach salad with cranberries, walnuts, blue cheese; pumpkin pie

Th- Loaded potato soup & sourdough bread

Fri- leftovers

Sat- Pasta carbonara, salad, bread

Sun- Chickpea curry

 

[mmasc]

15 minutes ago, HomeAgain said:

This week's menu:

M-Leftovers from last week (pulled pork, apple-cabbage slaw, rice, black beans)

T-Tacos

W-Packed meal to eat between/after training: Pan seared chicken, mashed potatoes, spinach salad with cranberries, walnuts, blue cheese; pumpkin pie

Th- Loaded potato soup & sourdough bread

Fri- leftovers

Sat- Pasta carbonara, salad, bread

Sun- Chickpea curry

 

I’ve never had chickpea curry, but would love to try it! Can you share your recipe or link?

[marbel]

We make variations on tortilla/taco soup, using chicken, ground, beef, or no meat, depending. I'm trying this new to me recipe today, but it's pretty similar to others:

https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/pressure_cooker_taco_soup/

 

We love this beef curry/stew:

https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/beef-curry-with-toasted-spices

 

I adore Madhur Jaffrey; we eat a lot of her recipes in the cooler weather though we don't shun them in summer either. 

https://thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/my-everyday-moong-dal/

 

Years ago at a homeschool group meeting I was given a recipe for potato soup:  

Peel and cut up potatoes (russet or other starchy ones, not waxy ones)

Put into a pan with just enough water to cover, and salt.

Cook till very soft, do not drain, add cream cheese (proportions given were 8 oz cream cheese to 5 pounds potatoes), puree.

We have started adding cauliflower to the  potatoes to make this a bit lighter and healthier, maybe about a third of it is cauliflower. I also generally reduce the cream cheese. Then we add toppings like chopped scallions/chives, cheese, bacon, etc. 

Great thread!  Thanks for starting it!

[Faith-manor]

18 hours ago, Carol in Cal. said:

My absolute fall faves are:

—Minnesota style wild rice soup

—Wisconsin style beer cheese soup (sounds ugh, looks like Velveeta, but wow is it good.)

—Harvest salad, which is romaine lettuce, persimmon chunks, pomegranate seeds, and a lemony vinaigrette

—Apple crisp, which I make very spicy and complex

Baked onion meatballs in red wine sauce is also good.

Carol is absolutely right about that cheese soup! Yummy, yum!

We actually like baked potato bars when the weather gets chilli. I will make steamed broccoli with cheese sauce as one topper item, by also sauteed mushrooms, bacon, shredded barbecue chicken, and then roast some Brussels sprouts as a side. Sour cream or a good plain Greek yogurt, and voila, protein, veggies, healthy carb, and not a lot of work. I usually do a couple of chicken breasts in the instapot, drain off the juice, add barbecue sauce, and keep on warm until the potatoes and broccoli are done. Easy peasy.

[HomeAgain]

4 hours ago, mmasc said:

I’ve never had chickpea curry, but would love to try it! Can you share your recipe or link?

TBH, we have a couple of different recipes.  It's mostly the same as a chicken curry, but with a can of chickpeas replacing the chicken. 😄 During the fall I also make sure there are enough hearty diced veggies in there (zucchini, squash, sweet potato..) to create a meal that a high energy kid can eat and not complain about.

[Tina]

A list I made up years back.  

hamburger/rice hot dish 

round steak rollups, mashed potatoes
pot roast
beef/pork ribs with BBQ sauce
meatloaf, baked potatoes, scalloped corn
cabbage rolls 
Beef stew
Hamburger gravy over mashed potatoes
Hamburgers, beans, coleslaw, fried potatoes
Pizza hotdish 
Shepherd’s pie

Porcupine meatballs 
Beef Stroganoff

Swedish meatballs

meatloaf, baked potatoes

chicken and dumplings 
honey curry chicken 
turkey dinner
turkey tetrazzini
smothered chicken
Chicken enchiladas
Teriyaki chicken

Baked breaded chicken
Chicken and barley bake 
Garlic lime chicken 

Ginger chicken delight 
Sweet and sour chicken
beef/pork chow mein, eggrolls, fried rice
tacos, spanish rice 
spaghetti/lasagna 
pepper steak
Wet burritos
Japanese curry
pork ribs with BBQ sauce
ham, scalloped potatoes
ham/French fry hotdish
baked pork chops 
Chalupa (pork cooked with pinto beans)
Stuffed pork chops
Fried rice
Rice, corn, and cheese casserole 
Ratatouille 
salmon patties
tuna noodle casserole                                                
Colcannon                 

black beans and rice            

Bean with ham soup
split pea with ham soup
chicken noodle soup
hamburger vegetable soup
chili
Wild rice soup

Beef barley soup
Cream of cauliflower soup 
Pb vegetable chicken soup 
Lentil and brown rice soup

butternut squash bacon soup

black bean and rice soup

zuppa toscana soup

Asian soup w/bok choy and pork
cheesy potato soup

 

 

 

 

Edited October 11, 2021 by Tina

[BlsdMama]

Our family loves soup making -

Zuppa Toscana

Chili -various/experiment

Chicken Tortilla

15Bean with Ham or Beef, diced tomatoes, and cabbage

Minestrone

 Today we are making soup ! It’s raining and great and truly feels like fall has moved in overnight. 
Roasted chickens with root vegetables

 Anything with winter squash or sweet potatoes

 

[mmasc]

54 minutes ago, HomeAgain said:

TBH, we have a couple of different recipes.  It's mostly the same as a chicken curry, but with a can of chickpeas replacing the chicken. 😄 During the fall I also make sure there are enough hearty diced veggies in there (zucchini, squash, sweet potato..) to create a meal that a high energy kid can eat and not complain about.

Confession—I’ve never made curry of any kind. 😬

[Tina]

21 minutes ago, mmasc said:

Confession—I’ve never made curry of any kind. 😬

And I've only made Japanese curry with a boxed product.  You have to add the potatoes and carrots and meat, if you want.

[WildflowerMom]

28 minutes ago, mmasc said:

Confession—I’ve never made curry of any kind. 😬

Me neither.  Another confession-- I don't think I've ever even eaten it.  🤦🏻‍♀️   I'd love to try it, but I'm scared no one else will like it and then I've cooked a meal for just one person, and I really hate to cook.   Maybe I'll try a frozen kind this week.  
 

 

also adding, olive garden's chicken and gnocchi soup.   It's great for cold weather and is easily adaptable.   Add whatever veggies, leave out the chicken, whatever you want, really.   I try to find the smallest gnocchi I can.   I'm not crazy about the bigger ones.   I do not make my own gnocchi.  🙅🏻‍♀️

[marbel]

About chickpea curry - I made this last night and it was very good, though one of my people objected that the tomato bits were too big. (I used diced tomatoes but cut them up even smaller; next time I guess I will just puree them.)

https://www.seriouseats.com/dinner-tonight-madhur-jaffrey-chana-masala-vegetarian-curry-recipe

[alisoncooks]

We eat the same things year round. I eat chili in humid NC summertime and zucchini in the winter.  I have 10 weeks of recipes planned out, and I just cycle through them again and again…

This week:  balsamic chicken and mushrooms (budget bytes) with roasted asparagus and mashed potatoes; giant meatballs with spaghetti (also Budget Bytes); Buffalo chicken chili and cornbread; tacos. 

[Kassia]

39 minutes ago, alisoncooks said:

 

This week:  balsamic chicken and mushrooms (budget bytes) with roasted asparagus and mashed potatoes; giant meatballs with spaghetti (also Budget Bytes); 

I looked these up and they look great!  I am definitely making both when my kids come home!  Thanks! 

[HomeAgain]

2 hours ago, WildflowerMom said:

Me neither.  Another confession-- I don't think I've ever even eaten it.  🤦🏻‍♀️   I'd love to try it, but I'm scared no one else will like it and then I've cooked a meal for just one person, and I really hate to cook.   Maybe I'll try a frozen kind this week.  
 

 

Oh, my.  Well, I'd suggest easing in the way my husband did.  When we married, he was a meat and potatoes kind of person.  Even tacos were straight ground beef, cheese, and sour cream inside a premade shell.

Blue Apron sent us the ingredients for a Vadouvan curry, which is a non...curryish curry?  😄 Does that make sense?  It's the spices and aromas on a smaller scale, so it's a good one for knowing if you like it or not.  This page has it better.  https://www.myspicesage.com/products/vadouvan-curry-spice Our recipe is very simple: coat the chicken chunks and strips of poblano pepper in the vadouvan powder, salt, and pepper.  Chop 2 figs (or dates, or dried apricots).  Cover the fruit with boiling water in a bowl and let stand. Toss the chicken and peppers in a hot frying pan that has a drizzle of olive oil.  I use a wok because I'm usually cooking a lot at once. Sear the chicken for 3-4 minutes before turning to brown on all sides.  When mostly cooked, add the fruit and water, stirring to combine.  If necessary, add another 1/4 cup of water to make it saucy.  Turn off the heat.  At this point you can add a spoon of marscapone cheese or leave it plain.

I serve over rice that has been cooked with mustard seeds so my kid can spend the next half hour picking just the seeds out claiming they taste funny. (They taste like the rice at that point, and no one is supposed to eat a tiny seed by itself so I have no idea what he's talking about).  Serve with yogurt if you find it a bit spicy, but likely you won't.

 

[alisoncooks]

2 hours ago, Kassia said:

I looked these up and they look great!  I am definitely making both when my kids come home!  Thanks! 

They’re on regular rotation here! I modify the balsamic chicken (double the sauce and mushrooms, cut the chicken into bite sized pieces before cooking).  
Also, the meatball recipe doesn’t make much extra sauce (I’ve found it helps to put a bit of water in the jar and swirl to get it all out and add that to the crockpot). 

[Starr]

In the fun and not so healthy vein we made Newfoundland poutine for Canadian Thanksgiving in honor of ds who is in NL for grad school. It's fries with turkey dressing and gravy. We put the cheese curd in as well for the whole poutine experience. We didn't need pie. 🙂

[Bootsie]

It has still been in the 90s here--so no fall or winter weather and recipes yet, but I am waiting for that first day of "gumbo weather"

[TexasProud]

On 10/11/2021 at 12:57 PM, WildflowerMom said:

Me neither.  Another confession-- I don't think I've ever even eaten it.  🤦🏻‍♀️   I'd love to try it, but I'm scared no one else will like it and then I've cooked a meal for just one person, and I really hate to cook.   Maybe I'll try a frozen kind this week.  
 

 

also adding, olive garden's chicken and gnocchi soup.   It's great for cold weather and is easily adaptable.   Add whatever veggies, leave out the chicken, whatever you want, really.   I try to find the smallest gnocchi I can.   I'm not crazy about the bigger ones.   I do not make my own gnocchi.  🙅🏻‍♀️

Yeah, I cannot stand the taste of curry.  We make a version of the Olive Garden's veggie soup that is good.

We like Jalapeno Sweet Potato Soup. We got the recipe from a place near Waco, but here is a very similar recipe for it. We use turkey bacon as that is what the original recipe called for, but use milk like this recipe rather than the half and half the original one calls for.

https://www.food.com/recipe/jalapeno-sweet-potato-soup-41934