196 lounge recipes

Pigs in a blanket the old-country way: cabbage leaves wrapped around sausage and rice, layered with sauerkraut, tomatoes, and browned pork chops, then braised low and slow until everything melts into one pot.

Although I have not tried it, I assume any firm winter squash could be substituted for the pumpkin

Slow-simmered vegetable soup with tomatoes, okra, pinto beans, potatoes, and mushrooms. Vegetarian, hearty, and meant for long, gentle cooking that deepens every flavor.

Anyone who is a fan of pickled beets will love this tangy dish that is made with orange rind.

A quick but succulent chicken dish that is the perfect dinner to make after coming home from a long day at work!

Italian barley soup slow-simmered for 3 hours with red wine, tomatoes, garlic, fresh herbs, and Parmesan. A thick, hearty vegetarian soup with deep, layered flavor from the long cook.

Italian meatball sandwich: pork-and-beef meatballs simmered for an hour in a long-cooked red wine tomato sauce built on salt pork, garlic, basil, and marjoram. Piled in a crusty roll with Parmesan and roasted peppers for a proper Sunday sub.

Double chocolate chunk biscotti loaded with cocoa, white chocolate chunks, and semisweet pieces. Twice-baked Italian cookies built for serious coffee dunking and long shelf life.

Authentic Italian focaccia with two long three-hour rises, kneaded with olive oil and salt, then pressed thin, drizzled, and baked golden for crisp-bottomed, chewy bread.

Norwegian cookies (biscotti-style) with chocolate chips and a cinnamon sugar topping. Dough baked in long rolls, then sliced diagonally into crisp strips. One batch makes four dozen.

A succulent dish made with juicy tomatoes, bell peppers and succulent shrimp and chicken breasts.

Chocolate dunking cookies cut into long fingers, baked firm for plunging into milk or coffee. Egg-white-based, lower fat than typical, with cocoa powder backbone.

Butter-sauteed shrimp deglazed with white wine, served over thin pasta with a slow-simmered Provencal tomato sauce rich with basil and oregano. Worth every minute of the long, lazy simmer.

Traditional lasagne from Bologna uses handmade egg pasta, a long-simmered pork Bolognese with white wine and cream, silky bechamel, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. No mozzarella, no ricotta, just the real deal.

Red bell pepper bisque thickened with overcooked rice instead of flour, pureed silky smooth with cream, milk, and a touch of cayenne. A make-ahead soup with vibrant color.

Penne with Provencal eggplant, slow-caramelized sweet peppers, garlic, and fresh basil in a lemony Italian-herb dressing. A meatless pasta bowl built on long, gentle cooking.