Root Vegetable

Like chocolate, the chile peppers that give chili its name and flavor come from Mexico. By assembling the many ingredients below and allowing them to cook together over low heat, you can easily imagine earlier versions of this Mexican stew (despite a few modern concessions). The cocoa powder adds depth and earthiness to the spicy indigenous flavors. This is a big batch and serves 15 people. You can also freeze it.

What better way to indulge in a little chocolate than by adding it to a plethora of healthy greens, pine nuts, and feta cheese? You’ll be looking for an excuse to eat your vegetables with this surprising twist on vinaigrette.

Although this dish calls for leftover Orange Sesame Pork (page 208), it’s so versatile that you can use almost any leftover lean meat—from baked chicken to Taco-Rubbed Flank Steak (page 184). No frozen peas and fresh carrots on hand? No problem. Use what you have—bell pepper, broccoli florets, asparagus, or whatever vegetables you prefer. You’ll need about 2 1/2 cups in addition to the onion.

While this meat-and-potatoes combo cooks, prepare a green vegetable and one of our speedy desserts.

Top oven fries with the works—tender beef, broccoli, brown gravy, and a bit of blue cheese. You can use leftover roast beef, such as part of the extra Tuscan Braised Beef (page 172), or buy the lowest-fat, lowest-sodium cooked beef you can find.

Now you can have sweet caramelized onion without a lot of time and effort. Cook the onion over high heat, add a bit of sugar, then reduce the heat to finish the process. If you planned ahead and have some Grilled Sirloin with Honey-Mustard Marinade (page 176), it would be wonderful in this dish.

Lean ground beef and lots of vegetables, seasoned with peppers, garlic, gingerroot, and green onions, make a flavorful one-dish meal the whole family will enjoy.

Don’t be scared off by the use of sugar in this highly aromatic one-dish meal. It just heightens the flavors of the spices, onions, and pecans.

Today’s low-fat sausages make it easy to enjoy heart-healthy versions of some Eastern European dishes, such as this one.

Shredded potatoes serve as a tasty alternative to the bread crumbs that traditionally hold meat loaf ingredients together.

Both the turkey supper and the vegetarian version are good over brown rice. Add a cup of soup or a fruit salad to round out the meal.

It takes only a few minutes to make this out-of-this-world steak sandwich. Smoked paprika is what adds the “ultimate” to this dish.

You may want to prepare this meal quite often—not just for the holidays—when you see how easy it is.

These “pass arounds” will be a family favorite. You’ll like them because they utilize planned-overs from Taco-Rubbed Flank Steak (page 184), making it easy to get dinner on the table in next to no time. Your kids will like choosing their own combination of condiments and creating their own burritos. And everyone will like the taste.

Cubes of beef are browned and simmered with colorful vegetables and thin noodles in this tasty, soupy Asian stew.

Buy marinated chicken fajita meat at the grocery store, choosing the one with the lowest sodium, or marinate chicken tenders in a low-sodium fajita marinade. You can even use leftover cooked chicken or lean beef. Warm it with the pasta and sauce.

This recipe boasts a Japanese marinade and a slightly sweet glaze. Like many other Asian stir-fries, it goes well over steamed brown rice.