32 heel recipes

Flaky cod fillets nestle in a bright tomato-wine sauce spiked with garlic and thyme, then finish in the oven with tender wilted spinach for a light, protein-packed dinner ready in under 30 minutes.

Fisherman's catch chowder: a slow cooker fish chowder with mixed white-fish fillets, tomatoes, white wine, clam juice, rosemary, and a cream-and-butter finish stirred in at the end.

Easy Mexican chicken casserole with cubed chicken breast, mild green chiles, tomatoes, and cream of chicken soup baked under melty cheddar. A 7-ingredient dump-and-bake weeknight dinner.

Italian baked eel (anguilla) marinated in olive oil and white wine vinegar, skewered with bay leaves, and roasted until golden. A traditional Mediterranean seafood dish with bold, simple flavors.

Chicken cubes marinated with ginger and scallion get deep-fried until golden, then tossed with dried chilies and crumpled tangerine peel for this Sichuan-style dish.

Turkey pasta salad with corn, zucchini, and picante-creamy garlic dressing. A Tex-Mex spin on leftover turkey, ready in 20 minutes and better after a chill in the fridge.

Salt-smothered chicken buried in a bed of red-hot rock salt with ginger, tangerine peel, and Szechuan peppercorn marinade sealed in the cavity. An ancient Cantonese technique that steams the bird to silken tenderness.

Cherry and almond Christmas cake: maraschino cherries, apricots, ginger, and almonds macerated in amaretto and brandy, baked into a lighter apple-puree batter, then soaked in more amaretto. A boozy, fruit-packed festive cake that keeps for a month.

Cold gazpacho pasta salad with rotelle, cucumber, bell pepper, jalapeño, tomato juice and fresh lime. Spanish-inspired summer pasta salad with a spicy kick.

Fat-free fiesta pasta salad tosses rotelle with red onion, corn, green chiles, jalapeño, and cilantro in a chili-cumin Italian dressing. A potluck-ready Tex-Mex side that gets better as it sits.

Get another taste of the turkey with this hearty soup made with leftovers from that amazing Thanksgiving dinner.

Stir-fried beef with orange peel, Sichuan peppercorns, and dried chiles. The classic Szechuan restaurant dish with tender velveted beef, citrus perfume, and a numbing tingle on the finish.

Crawfish Kowalski tosses wagon wheel pasta with crawfish tails, kielbasa, and a beer-spiked cream sauce with cayenne. A bold Cajun-Polish mashup ready in 40 minutes.

Red braised pork shoulder slow-cooked in dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, star anise, cinnamon, and rock sugar. A classic Chinese hong shao technique for meltingly tender pork.

Hard-boiled eggs steeped overnight in a fragrant brew of black tea, star anise, cinnamon, soy sauce, and tangerine peel. Beautiful marbled shells reveal deeply seasoned, silky eggs.

A creamy, relatively low-fat recipe using yogurt and peanut butter. Serve it with whole grain pasta or cut the carbs and use just veggies for the base.