Recipe Sifter

Focaccia Provencale: a Southern French-style focaccia topped with tomato, basil, garlic, black olives, oregano, and olive oil. Two round loaves for sharing or dipping.

Twice-baked stuffed potato for one loaded with cheddar, Parmesan, mushrooms, green pepper, and tomato. A single-serving meal using yogurt instead of sour cream.

Fourby chili: a vegan black bean chili simmered in stout beer with peanut butter for depth, corn for sweetness, and broccoli florets on top for crunch. An unconventional, deeply flavored chili worth the slow cook.

Freezer-mix lasagna layers cottage cheese, mozzarella, Swiss, and Parmesan over a make-ahead beef-tomato sauce base. A retro time-saver dinner pulled from the freezer.

One-dish spaghetti made from a frozen beef-tomato mix with mushrooms, oregano, chili powder, and melted cheddar cheese. A freezer meal shortcut that cooks pasta and sauce together in one pot.

French-style vegetable stew with eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, and green pepper simmered in a Dutch oven. A ratatouille-inspired one-pot dish ready in under an hour.

Creamy garlic soup made with 40 cloves of garlic, plum tomatoes, and a hint of cayenne and curry. A pureed cream soup with deep mellow garlic flavor and a touch of warming spice.

Gratin of red beans baked with caramelized onions, sweet red peppers, tomato, red wine, and a parmesan-breadcrumb crust. A hearty, mostly vegetarian one-dish dinner.

Green chili with pork shoulder, diced green chilies, and canned tomatoes. A New Mexico-style chili verde browned in lard with no beans and loads of pepper flavor.

Healthy meat loaf packed with sauteed cabbage, shredded carrots, and potatoes mixed into lean ground beef with whole wheat bread crumbs. More vegetable than meat, baked covered then uncovered for a golden crust.

Hearty lentil tomato sauce with dried lentils, fresh tomatoes, and Italian herbs simmered into a thick, protein-rich vegetarian pasta sauce. Meaty texture without the meat.

Hearty ground beef chili loaded with kidney beans, green chiles, tomato paste, and a generous amount of garlic and onion. A thick, satisfying weeknight chili that simmers in just 20 minutes.

French bread pizza hero loaded with homemade mushroom-pepper-onion pizza sauce and melted cheese. Split-loaf pizza with a sauce simmered 15 minutes for real pizzeria flavor without the dough.

Hearty tomato soup with cooked rice, tender carrot, celery, and a base of canned tomatoes thickened with whole wheat flour and finished with milk. A creamy 30-minute one-pot soup that fills a bowl properly.

Herbed chickpea patties blended with egg whites, bread crumbs, dry mustard, oregano, and basil, pan-fried on a nonstick griddle. Low-fat vegetarian fritters similar to falafel but lighter and easier to make.

Herbed oatmeal pan bread, a soft, savory bread machine loaf with rolled oats, butter, garlic, basil, oregano, and a parmesan crust. Tastes like garlic bread and pizza dough had a kid.