Soup/Stew

Not so many years ago dried "exotic" or wild mushrooms could be found only in fancy specialty shops, but no longer. Many good urban and suburban supermarkets now carry little packages of various varieties. And Asian markets are a great source for dried shiitake, also known as Chinese black mushrooms. The dried mushrooms are an optional addition to this soup, but they do add a deeper, woodsier flavor.

Called pho in Vietnam, this unusual soup is a wonderful party centerpiece dish for an informal gathering. Start out by supplying everyone with a large soup bowl and a ladle. Place the soup tureen in the middle of the table. Have each guest take a generous helping of noodles first, then some meat and broth. Each serving is topped off with shredded lettuce, sliced green onion and a squeeze of lemon juice.

A mixed vegetable stew, seasoned with spices characteristic of Morocco. Serve it with rice or couscous.

Serve this hearty stew with plain yogurt or raita for a high-protein vegetarian meal.

This easy zuppa di pesce is a staple of the anchovy packers of Mazara del Vallo on the northwestern coast of Sicily. It always comes with bread to soak up the juices.

This Colombian-style one-dish meal is perfect for a cool winter evening.

Low-fat buttermilk and nonfat yogurt provide the base in a refreshing, tangy soup.

Chef Louis Diat created this famous cold soup (without the peas, which are a nice addition) during his tenure at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New York. Diat named the soup after Vichy, the resort town near his boyhood home in France. Hot potato-leek soup had been popular with French chefs for centuries, but Diat-inspired by his own childhood habit of adding milk to hot soup to cool it of-served his version cold. Exactly when vichyssoise first appeared on the hotel menu is unclear, but British food writer Elizabeth David claimed that it debuted in 1917.

For toppings, provide some diced avocado and extra chopped cilantro.

When stewed, the dried corn kernels sold as "posole" or "hominy" expand and become tender. At Cafe San Estevan, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, chef Esteven Garcia makes posole as a mild, brothy side dish, unlike the heartier and spicier stew type.

We like this stew with egg noodles (12 ounces of dried pasta), cooked and tossed with two tablespoons of reduced-fat sour cream and a quarter cup of chopped fresh dill.