Chicken

These individual puff pastry-topped chicken pot pies are the perfect comfort food for guests. Prepare the filling and cut out the pastry ahead to save time in the kitchen.

During the developing and testing process for this book, this dish became Hubby's new favorite. Totally unexpected—I was sure he'd steal a line from the kids and say, "Thank you anyway, but this is not my taste." (We taught them to say that instead of "Ooo, yick!") It's just not the usual stuff and spices he goes for, but apparently the combination was soooo his taste. And mine, too. It's one of those winner recipes that will make you dance around your kitchen. You may hug me now.

This chicken takes about 10 minutes to pull together and then about a half hour of mostly hands-off time in the oven. In theory, you could time things so the chicken is ready as soon as the kids go to sleep. But if you can't for the life of you figure out a way to steal the few minutes needed for prep while the kids are awake, then just take care of step 1: Preheat the oven.

Recently, I have become a bit of a chicken thigh person, finding the meat moister and more succulent than the ubiquitous chicken breast. The addition of harissa, the spicy, tomato-y Moroccan paste, adds a subtle kick to this "hunter-style" Italian dish, but for those not in love with an extra bit of spice, then tomato purée works beautifully too.

Sweet and smoky flavors make this quick and easy pizza a new favorite.

The juices from cumin-rubbed chicken thighs soak into grapes, fennel, and squash as they all roast together in this simple, flavorful one-pan dinner.

This entire Italian-inspired dinner is cooked on two baking sheets, making clean-up a breeze.

When lacquered with a rich, complex sauce and roasted, chicken becomes a delicious crowd-pleaser. There's enough chipotle here to make your lips hum, but not so much as to overshadow the balancing act created by the other ingredients—toasty garlic, onions, and ketchup, plus a kiss of brown sugar and cinnamon.

It's all about the paprika in this warming, saucy chicken dish.

These spiced-up dinner bowls feature rice noodles, kale salad, and a deeply flavorful poached chicken.