Vegetable

Every October as kids, we loved to go pumpkin picking and buy fresh pumpkins. Our grandmother would take the pumpkin flesh and bake it in the oven with a little cinnamon and sugar, and then we’d stick it in the blender, puree it, and use it for baking. We’d bake pumpkin bread, pumpkin cake, and pumpkin pie, and we would also roast the pumpkin seeds in the oven. Really, she used every single part of that pumpkin! The thing we loved the most was our grandmother’s pumpkin cake. It was more of a cake-bread hybrid: very dense and savory yet sweet. It smelled amazing coming out of the oven. We would sometimes just eat it without any icing, hot from the oven. We’d burn our tongues because we wouldn’t even wait for it to cool!

Fold whipped cream into canned pumpkin purée and then layer with buttery pound cake and airy chocolate mousse for this easy-to-assemble fall dessert.

A vinegary red bell pepper mixture cuts through the richness of this classic Italian-American appetizer for a bite that's salty, smoky, and sweet.

Make a big pot of this classic slow-cooked sauce—it freezes beautifully.

The chicken should be falling-apart tender; if it starts to shred when you plate it, that’s a good sign!

An extra chile for this harissa recipe will play up the heat, and if you’re feeling confident, you can customize the mix of spices as well.

Other tender herbs such as cilantro, dill, and/or tarragon can be used instead for this salsa verde recipe. Though the breadcrumbs don’t stay crisp, they give body and subtle crunch to the sauce.

Chips and dip: classic, and every culture has its take. There's hummus and pita, tortilla chips and guac, British chips and tartar sauce... From time to time, we’ll run an Indian take on chips and dip using crunchy papadums (thin and crispy lentil crackers) with a cold, creamy version of dal (stewed beans and lentils). The trick is to keep the dal super light so it doesn’t snap the papadums.

I love the taste and color of sweet potatoes and yams. They are packed with vitamins and minerals and are delicious to boot! This bread is sweet enough for dessert and savory enough for dinner.

These flavorful marinated onions also make a great condiment for grilled steak.

This chermoula sauce recipe is even better if it sits for a while to let the flavors meld.

When working with a large quantity of greens, it’s much easier to sauté them if they’re blanched first. Their time in the olive oil is more for flavoring and reaching the ideal texture.

What makes this salad so good? A secret ingredient we like to call "flavor flakes."