Weeknight Meals

For a hearty vegetarian version of this pasta recipe, use squash, mushrooms, or eggplants in place of shrimp.

Think of this butternut cacio e pepe recipe as pasta cacio e pepe...with sausage. It’s comfort food-y, so it could use some fresh greens and/or veggies to help balance it out. Check out step-by-step photos here.

If you don’t happen to have or particularly enjoy pastrami, bacon or pancetta would be a delicious substitute for this minestrone recipe. Check out step-by-step photos here.

Kabocha squash is a tempura classic, but acorn squash works well too. The honey and crushed red pepper flakes, albeit untraditional, add a spicy-sweet dimension to the dish. 

Cooking the brussels in two stages for this recipe ensures that the cores will be tender and the outer leaves will still have bite.

Spicy, mouth-tingling, porky: Those are the words you’ll be using to describe this tofu recipe.

Garlic and collard greens make a healthy addition to this porridge recipe, but you can use any leftover greens you have on hand.

These are extra saucy and a little sweet like the original SpaghettiOs, but with grown-up flavors all around.

You don’t need hours to simmer tomato sauce. This recipe shows you how to make an excellent one in 30 minutes, with 5 ingredients, in 1 pan, with very little effort.

The genius of this pasta recipe is in the contrast of the textures and flavors. If spicy isn’t your thing, sub in any fresh sausage you like.

Not a big fan of chorizo? This chili recipe can also be made with chicken, turkey, or Italian sweet or spicy sausage.

This colorful salad packs a bit of heat by adding the jalapeño; it balances out the cooler flavors, but feel free to omit it.

There’s no law that says watermelon salads must incorporate feta. This renegade combination is at once sweet, tart, and savory—the kind of dish that’s as comfortable at the breakfast table as it is at a potluck.

Watermelon and prosciutto may seem like an unlikely pair, but the salty-sweet mix will make this your new go-to fruit salad.

This bean salad is taken to new, luxurious levels with the addition of eggs, anchovies, and your favorite summer squash.

Progression of a tomato sandwich: On buttered bread with salt; on bread with mayo and cheddar; seasoned and grilled with cheddar and mayo. They’re all pretty perfect, but we’ll take the advanced version, thanks.

These shishito peppers, along with spicy mayo, nori sheets, and sesame seeds, help make up the Shishito Dog. But you can use this recipe to make delicious blistered peppers that you can use alongside just about anything.

Use this creamy slaw as one of the toppings for the Ranch Dog, or as a condiment or side next to pretty much anything else!

This twist on the traditional Italian peperonata omits the tomatoes, but the bell peppers are hearty and colorful enough on their own. Serve as a side dish or pour over steak.

You can find long beans, the Rapunzel of green beans, at Asian markets.