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WHY IT’S LIGHT Traditional split-pea soup is often made with ham or bacon; this version is completely meat-free, relying on a combination of vegetables, garlic, and dried thyme for flavor. It also uses water, not broth, as the base.

GOOD TO KNOW Using poached chicken keeps this Asian-style soup on the more delicate side; with this method of cooking, you get tender and moist meat as well as a tasty broth, which you can use in a variety of dishes.

WHY IT’S LIGHT For beefy taste without excess fat, use ground sirloin instead of chuck. This chili is also bulked up with extra portions of beans and tomatoes. Briefly cooking the cocoa, chili powder, and tomato paste before adding the beef helps intensify their flavors.

WHY IT’S LIGHT This leaner take on a classic soup includes meatballs made with ground turkey instead of beef for less fat and fewer calories. To ensure the meatballs are juicy and flavorful, use dark-meat turkey with at least seven percent fat.

GOOD TO KNOW There are few good no-fat options for dessert, but sorbet is among them, and it’s definitely one of the most refreshing. It is also simple to prepare at home, and with less sugar than store-bought varieties. You can experiment with other types of fruit juices, alone or in combination, following the formula below.

This pretty-in-pink punch is a festive and delicious way to kick-off your holiday celebration. If you prefer a punch that's less sweet, use fresh squeezed pomegranate juice instead of bottled (see Cooks' Notes).

Polenta is ground corn cooked in water to make a thick and creamy porridge. Coarse, stone-ground dried corn makes delicious polenta and long, slow cooking allows its full flavor to develop. When hot and just cooked, it is soft; as it cools, it becomes firm and can then be cut into shapes and fried, grilled, or baked. Polenta is versatile; serve it with all kinds of roasted or braised meats and poultry, vegetable stews, tomato sauces and ragus, beans, mushrooms, and greens. This recipe adds the sweet taste and crunchy texture of fresh corn.

I make this soup year-round with fresh shell beans in the summer and fall, and with dried beans in the winter. The other vegetables in the soup vary with the season. It can be put together quickly if the beans are already cooked.

Cooking dried beans is as basic as it gets: put the beans in a pot, cover with water, and simmer until tender. What varies around the globe is the variety of bean and how they are seasoned. There are many heirloom varieties to choose from and they are all delicious flavored with a mirepoix (a mixture of diced or chopped onions, carrot, and celery) and a few herbs, and if you like, a bit of cured meat. Cook beans that you intend to add to a soup or some other dish with whole, not chopped, vegetables and remove them at the end.

Dirty rice is a spicy Cajun dish typically made with sausage, chicken giblets, and vegetables—the meats color the rice and make it look “dirty.” There are as many versions of the dish as there are cooks. This one, contributed by Tanya Holland of Brown Sugar Kitchen, in Oakland, California, is spicy, light, and meatless.

I like an uncomplicated tomato sauce that tastes of sweet, flavorful tomatoes, garlic, and chile. It makes a delicious pasta sauce by itself, or it can be garnished with fresh herbs and cheese, and it can be the base of many other sauces.

French green lentils are plump and speckled dark green. They are very flavorful, hold their shape when cooked, and are good for making salads and soups. For this rustic lentil soup, the lentils are cooked until they are tender and can be easily mashed—longer than they would be for a salad. The yogurt garnish brightens the earthy flavor of the rosemary and lentils.

This is a good soup to make in the fall months when mature leeks are at their flavorful peak and are plentiful in the markets. It is a traditional French soup that is typically puréed, but I prefer it with a clear chicken broth and sliced vegetables.

This is the soup I always make when I want something comforting and restorative. This method easily becomes second-nature and is good for all kinds of seasonal vegetable soups: Soften the vegetables in oil or butter, add stock, and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Flavor with herbs, and, for a more substantial soup, add cooked pasta, beans, or, as in this recipe, chicken. Brothy vegetable soups are even better with a plate of garlic croutons (see page 37) to dip in the soup.

Not only is homemade stock easy to make and economical, but it also tastes better than any you can buy. I always like to have a quart of fresh stock on hand—or in the freezer—because then I know I have the makings of many a meal, notably a soup of seasonal vegetables. A whole chicken makes the most flavorful stock; otherwise, the meatier the chicken parts you use, the better. Sometimes I cut off the breasts of a chicken to save for another meal, and make stock with the rest of the bird. Whenever you roast a chicken, freeze the carcass to save for making stock; add it along with the other chicken parts.

Parsnips look like large ivory-colored carrots. They are indeed related to carrots, but biting into a raw parsnip is not a good idea: they are almost inedible. When cooked, however, the flavor of parsnips is nutty and sweet. They are wonderful roasted or mashed, by themselves or with other vegetables, and they add a deep, complex note to broths and soups. At the market look for medium-size, firm, smooth-skinned parsnips; when you peel small ones, there’s not much parsnip left to eat, and very large ones have a woody core that needs to be removed. Prepare parsnips just like carrots, peeling away the skin and trimming off both ends.