A perfect fall dish - warm, filling, and so delicious. The sweetness of the squash is offset by the richness of the sausage and ricotta, the slight crunch of carrots and celery, and little bursts of tart cranberries. Make it with acorn or other smallish squash and give each person a half for a whole meal, or use a big butternut and serve alongside roast chicken and Brussels sprouts or a kale salad. The filling also makes an excellent gluten-free substitute for stuffing, come Thanksgiving!

Brined pickles are easy to make, delicious, and good for you. The fermentation process increases vitamins and healthful enzymes, and they're probiotic, too!

Cucumbers with dill are the most traditional pickle in the US, but nearly any vegetable and herb mixture will work. (Ripe tomatoes are too soft, and I wouldn't try raw potatoes, but we've had good success with every other veggie we've tried so far.)

These are grain-free, have no added sugar, mix up quick, and keep both big and little bellies full for a nice long time. We often have them for breakfast with butter and maple syrup or blueberry jam, but with a pinch more salt and some garlic they make a nice side to a roast chicken (we always roast a squash and a head of garlic alongside our chicken, so that makes it pretty easy). Mashed sweet potatoes can be subbed here with good results.

I threw this together this week when the fridge was nearly bare and bellies were growling. I think it would work with various leftover meats, though Brussels sprouts do pair particularly well with strongly-flavored cured pork products - pepperoni in this case, though a kielbasa or other sausage would probably do well, as would some bacon. You could probably incorporate other leftovers into the mix - roasted potatoes, for instance. As is, it's a quick and tasty lunch or side dish. Slicing the sprouts into thirds or fourths across the equator (parallel to the stem end, rather than through it) lets some of the leaves fall apart and makes them cook quickly (and also helps them not look like Brussels sprouts, if you have any skeptics in your household). This recipe is also great for the larger, looser Brussels sprouts tops.

This dish is brightly colored and warmly flavored; a great soup for a cold, gray day.

This is our favorite way to cook full-grown and storage potatoes. (Smashed Oven Potatoes is the best recipe for new potatoes in the spring.) The technique comes from Cook's Illustrated, and it produces a potato with a crispy, crunchy outside skin and a creamy, steamy interior. It's worth the extra step of parboiling the potatoes.

This versatile slaw is a nice side dish for roasted chicken or grilled cheese sandwiches. The specific vegetables can be swapped based on what looks good at the market or in your root cellar, but it's good to shoot for a balance of sweet and spicy (and a mix of colors never hurts).

Shredded or julliened root vegetables:
2 cups sweet - carrot, parsnip, celeriac, beet, sweet potato
AND
2 cups spicy - turnip, radish, daikon, kohlrabi, rutabaga

Mix to taste with:
Good-quality mayonnaise
OR
Mayonnaise mixed with Dijon mustard, lemon juice, and salt
OR
Garlic aioli
OR
A vinaigrette made with 1 tsp each Dijon mustard & salt, 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, 2/3 cup olive oil, and a handful of fresh parsley (you may not need all of it)

Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. If you have time, let sit in the fridge for 20 minutes or so. Yum!

This is the simplest way to cook any winter squash, including butternuts, acorns, sunshine kabochas, and pie pumpkins.

Preheat your oven to 375. Split your squash in half with a heavy knife, and scoop out the seeds (you can reserve them to roast as well if you like). Rub oil on the cut surface and place cut-side down on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 20-40 minutes, or until a fork easily pierces the thickest part of the flesh. (We recommend roasting a head of garlic at the same time - just pull off the loose papery bits, drizzle a little oil over it, and wrap it up in tinfoil. Roasted garlic makes everything better.)

If the squash is particularly big and hard to cut, you can even roast it whole, pricked with a fork in several places; it will take a little longer and the seeds are harder to remove, but it's better than chopping a thumb off!

Once cooked, the squash can be scooped out of the shell and mashed with butter or olive oil, maple syrup, and cinnamon. Enjoy!