One-Pot Meals

Brimming with fresh produce in a light, mildly seasoned broth, this is just the soup to serve as an introduction to a festive spring meal such as Easter dinner or the Passover seder.

This soup is very warming, and more filling than more common, very brothy miso soups.

This soup features a slew of compatible ingredients made even more companionable in a mildly curried broth.

For a hearty combination, serve with Hearty Bean Bread (page 146), or for a lighter accompaniment, serve with Bruschetta (page 159).

Cooked cornmeal makes a delightfully dense soup base. Serve this meal-in-a-bowl with a bountiful salad and crusty bread.

This is a good, basic, everyday sort of soup, suitable for cold weather. Try Cheese and Herb Corn Muffins (page 150) as an accompaniment.

Millet, an exceptionally nutritious if rather bland grain, is used to great advantage in this soup, where it has an opportunity to soak up all the spicy flavors.

This meatless version of a rustic Provençal stew is sensual and satisfying. A fresh, crusty French baguette is perfect for soaking up its delicious broth. A bountiful tossed salad makes it a complete meal.

This long-simmering, yet easy winter soup is a natural choice as a hearty main dish. Make Whole Wheat Vegetable Muffins (page 149) while it’s cooking.

This classic recipe is easy and quick to prepare. Serve with Tomato-Olive Bread (page 147) and a simple homemade coleslaw.

(A chunky mélange of rutabaga, carrots, potatoes, and parsnips with a hint of cheese) This hearty soup makes use of a couple of underused winter vegetables—parsnips and rutabaga—to great results. Make sure you have a good, sharp knife for cutting the rutabaga.

Here’s another soothing, mild soup for cold weather. This is delicious with Garlic Croutons (page 159).

Both soothing and lively, thanks to the flavor of dill, this simple soup is one of my cold-weather favorites.

This easy, robust soup, contributed by Marti Hall, has several elements of a certain style of traditional African soups—chilies, sweet potato, and a creamy peanut base. The grain of choice in an African soup like this would likely be millet, but here, quinoa, the nutritious South American super grain, makes for a delightful fusion.

Filling and flavorful, this becomes a meal in itself when served with a robust bread such as Focaccia Bread (page 148). It keeps exceptionally well and develops flavor as it stands.

Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients here. It’s an easy soup to make, doesn’t take long to cook, and is full of exciting textures and flavors. Thanks to Neil Trager, who gave me this recipe many moons ago.

This colorful stew is an autumnal cousin to chili, using Native American ingredients. It’s a good dish to try out on older kids and teens who have begun to appreciate more complex combinations of flavors and ingredients.

This soup (called harira in Arabic) presents a compatible duo of lentils and chickpeas. It can be served all year round, but is especially appealing as a transitional early fall soup, using fresh tomatoes. Serve with fresh pita bread.

The classic Middle Eastern team of chickpeas and tahini (sesame paste) is combined in a tasty, offbeat soup. Serve with fresh whole wheat pita bread. Middle Eastern bulgur salad (tabbouleh) and a steamed green vegetable round this meal out nicely.

While fresh local corn is abundant in early fall, the most tempting way to eat it is right off the cob. But cooking with fresh corn can be equally appealing. Its sweetness and crunch can’t be matched by frozen corn kernels. Serve this with Hearty Bean Bread (page 146) and a green salad for a filling meal.