Soup

This celery looks very much like the variety found in most supermarkets, but its stems are thinner and it has an abundance of leaves that resemble Italian parsley. Cooking mellows Chinese celery's pronounced flavor — for a stir-fry, it's often blanched first. Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Market tip: Go for Dungenesse crab from the Pacific coast or blue crab from the Gulf of Mexico or Atlantic coast.

A mix of butternut and acorn squash makes this soup silky and flavorful. Keep it bubbling on the stove to warm up any roaming ghosts and goblins as they return home from their Halloween rounds.

A simple and satisfying version of a typically time-consuming restaurant classic.

An adaptation of a recipe from Mexican Light Cooking by our friend Kathi Long, a chef and author in Santa Fe.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Although the morels add a woodsy intensity to the flavor of the consommé, they are not essential. You can substitute other dried exotic mushrooms or eliminate them altogether and simply float a thin slice of fresh white mushroom on the soup right before covering the bowl with the pastry.

This simple and delicious starter gets a hint of spiciness from cayenne pepper.

A make-ahead smoked salmon butter and some fresh cod dress up clam chowder beautifully for company. Team the stew with a favorite coleslaw and warm buttermilk biscuits for a cozy winter meal.

Some soups genuinely do inspire a devotion akin to love, and this is one of them. In the cold of winter, when Gourmet editors ponder the matter of what soup to cook up in a steamy Saturday morning kitchen to provide comfort all weekend long, they decide with remarkable frequency to make the following one. Those in the know also add about a pound of smoked sausage; even the best can be made better.

Complement the delicious soup with biscuits and a spinach and red bell pepper salad. Top it all off with some sliced sweetened plums spooned over vanilla ice cream.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.