Recipe Sifter

Chunky black bean dip with carrot, celery, garlic, and warm spices folded into sour cream. Half-mashed beans give body while whole beans add bite. No-cook party dip ready in 15 minutes.

Meatless farmer's chili with kidney beans, zucchini, corn, carrots, and bulgur wheat in a cumin-chili tomato broth. Hearty, crunchy, and better the next day.

Texas-style no-bean chili with coarse ground beef and suet, loaded with chili powder, cumin, and cayenne. A purist's bowl of red with no tomatoes, no beans, just meat and spice.

Tomato, barley, and chicken soup: bone-in chicken legs simmered with pearl barley, tomatoes, carrots, and herbs into a thick, hearty bowl. A weeknight one-pot supper.

Mock ravioli casserole: layers of butterfly pasta, a meaty tomato sauce, and a herby spinach-egg-parmesan filling. All the flavor of ravioli without rolling a single sheet of dough.

Slow cooker Texas chili soup with ground turkey, kidney beans, stewed tomatoes, green chilies, and a bold cumin-chili spice blend. Dump-and-go comfort in a bowl.

Freezer-friendly eggplant and tuna casserole layered with breaded eggplant, zucchini, mozzarella, and a seasoned tomato-wine sauce. Make two, bake one now, freeze one for later.

Pasta e fagioli: Italian bean and pasta soup with white kidney beans, canned tomatoes, sun-dried tomato, basil, and oregano. A rustic vegetarian one-pot that thickens into a hearty meal.

Mexican pasta casserole with chicken, jalapeno, olives, and Monterey Jack cheese in a cumin-chili tomato sauce baked with rigatoni. A spicy, cheesy one-dish dinner.

Three-bean vegetarian minestrone soup with chickpeas, adzuki beans, kidney beans, pearl barley and tomatoes, finished with red wine, soy sauce, and grated Parmesan. A hearty Italian soup packed with protein and fiber.

A scrumptious dish that is very popular in East Asia.

Beanless ground beef chili spiked with cocoa powder and cinnamon for a rich, earthy depth. Thickened with masa harina and loaded with cumin, oregano, and five tablespoons of chili powder.

Hearty vegetarian stew of brown rice, lentils, and mushrooms pressure-cooked in stock with oregano and mustard, finished with tomato sauce and fresh parsley. High-fiber comfort in one pot.

A spicy, but savory dish made with pinto beans and smoked ham that tastes great after being left to simmer in a crockpot.

This recipe is a faily old (circa 1983) but reliable one, somwhere in between competition and eating and chili. It would be a good starter for any novice cook.

Bean and pasta soup with kidney beans, elbow macaroni, spinach, and stewed tomatoes in vegetable broth. A one-pot Italian-style soup with Parmesan on top in 30 minutes.