Comfort Food Cooking: Some Ideas
Now that the evenings are darker that little bit earlier in the day, it seems like the right time for some good, old fashioned comfort food. There’s just something about this time of year that makes us want to reach for hearty, cheese-filled, stodgy meals – do you agree?
With that in mind, then, we’re bringing you some of our favourite comfort food recipes, which are just perfect for autumn and winter. Read on for our top picks…
Pasta, Pasta and More Pasta!
At this time of year, you want something filling – ideally something hot and with plenty of cheese. May we recommend this cheesy chicken pasta with broccoli, then? It makes use of tagliatelle pasta, which you could make yourself from scratch (as pictured below), if you’re feeling fancy.
To make this dish, you’ll need tagliatelle pasta, broccoli, a chicken breast or two, some grated cheese, olive oil, dried thyme and some salt to taste. Head to the link above for the exact ingredients and the method.
Other pasta recipes worth trying at this time of year are this simple lasagne from Tesco Real Food or BBC Good Food’s ultimate spaghetti carbonara.
Pizza
Sticking with the Italian food theme, how about a slice or two of homemade pizza? It’s delicious and doesn’t have to be too indulgent in terms of calories. It’ll still feel like a naughty treat, but go easy on the cheese – and choose a thinner crust than a thick one. The Everyday Health site offers eight ways you can make your pizza healthier, here – if you want to, that is.
If you want to go all-out, though, Trend Hunter has 30 indulgent pizza recipes here.
Easy French Onion Soup
If you’re looking for a tasty starter or a lighter evening meal, why not try this easy French onion soup? Serve it with cheese-topped bread or have it without the bread before your main meal. This recipe is quite heavy on the ingredients, to say you’d expect the soup to contain not much else apart from a pile of onions, but it’s so worth the effort.
Give it a try this weekend – it’s a hearty treat for the whole family.
Beef and Bean Chilli
We love TV chef The Pioneer Woman, who lives on a US ranch with her family and makes easy but tasty meals everyone will love. This beef and bean chilli is, like many of Ree Drummond’s (the chef behind The Pioneer Woman) recipes, absolutely worth cooking up. Featuring ground beef, garlic, tomato sauce, chilli powder, plenty of herbs and spices and salt to taste, the chilli is the perfect accompaniment to your evening at home.
Serve with tortilla chips or a good chunk of bread – homemade or otherwise. Then just tuck in and enjoy.
Will you be trying any of these recipes? Let us know if you have a failsafe comfort food recipe that you always come back to when you want something tasty to eat during autumn and winter.
Until next time…