98 smart recipes

Giblet gravy done right starts with a slow-simmered broth of turkey neck, wing tips, and giblets with aromatics, then finished with skimmed pan drippings. The backbone of every classic Thanksgiving plate.

Feed this sweet, yeast-based starter with flour, sugar, and milk every few days to keep it alive. Use it for Amish friendship bread or share with friends to start the tradition.

Start your own sourdough with just flat beer and flour. Stir 3 times a day for 5 to 10 days and you've got a bubbly, tangy starter ready for any sourdough recipe.

Cayenne corn bread made easy in a bread machine. Cornmeal and bread flour with a kick of cayenne pepper and a touch of applesauce for moisture. Just load the machine and press start.

A milk-based sourdough starter jump-started with yeast: flour, water and yeast left to ferment, then enriched with milk, sugar and flour. Keep it in the fridge and feed it after each use for ongoing baking.

Traditional French onion soup starting with homemade beef bone stock simmered for 3 hours, then finished with caramelized onions and melted Gruyere. This from-scratch version takes patience but delivers deep, rich flavor.

This Austrian homestyle vegetable soup starts with a butter-flour roux for body, then simmers potatoes, carrots, and broccoli in a savory broth. Thick, warming, and endlessly adaptable to whatever's in your fridge.

Sybil Carter's homemade barbecue sauce starts with bacon drippings and builds layers of tangy tomato, brown sugar sweetness, mustard bite, and hot pepper heat. Doubles easily and keeps in the fridge for weeks.

Red snapper baked en papillote with a creamy green peppercorn pan sauce. A bistro-style fish dinner with tender flaky fillets and a peppery wine cream that takes 30 minutes start to finish.

Rich West Indian Christmas cake soaked in rum and sherry with dried fruits, warm spices, and browning for deep color. Start the fruit a month ahead for a dense, boozy holiday cake worth the wait.

Sourdough starter from scratch in two days using water, active dry yeast, sugar, and flour. The fast-start version that skips the wild-yeast wait, refresh with flour and water as you use it.

A bright summer breakfast sundae layered with vanilla yogurt, cottage cheese, fresh seasonal fruit, and crunchy granola. This no-cook breakfast comes together in minutes and makes a beautiful, protein-packed start to warm weather mornings.

No-bake chocolate mousse pie made with blended cottage cheese, skim milk, and cocoa on a cinnamon-graham cracker crust. Light, creamy, and high in protein. A smarter way to satisfy a chocolate craving without heavy cream or butter.

Start your day with one or two wedges of this cheesy and tasty broccoli frittata with a cup of orange juice or some fresh fruits. It satisfies your taste buds and provides enough nutrients before the lunch hunger hits you.

My hearty soup starts with a homemade stock simmered low for hours, then strained and skimmed clean before a load of vegetables, pasta, and pulled meat go in. A from-scratch, stick-to-your-ribs bowl made the old-fashioned way.

Thursdays at The Dove's Nest means Potpie Day, and our customers start calling early in the morning to reserve one in case we run out before they get seated. Most tell us that it's the best chicken potpie they have ever tasted.