This Grandmas Project recipe for minestra di verdure—a chunky Mediterranean vegetable soup—is a great way to cook through a bumper crop of late-summer veggies, which you can vary depending on what’s available (or on sale). We love serving this stew the day after it’s made to let the flavors marry. Minestra makes an even more complete, satisfying meal when served with crusty baguette and a runny fried egg on top.

Featured in “This Italian Nonna’s Vegetable Soup Is a Portal to Her Past,” by Rooksana Hossenally.

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This Sindhi kadhi (Pakistani vegetable curry) recipe is a hot, subtly tart stew that hails from the Sindh province of southeastern Pakistan. Cluster beans, drumsticks, lotus root, and curry leaves are worth tracking down and can be purchased at South Asian groceries; if you can’t find one (or a couple) of those vegetables, simply toss in whatever produce you have on hand in roughly equal quantities.

Featured in “Finding Family History in a Big Bowl of Curry,” by Rooksana Hossenally.

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Natto has diehard fans, but some people cannot get past the thick whipped-up threads surrounding the beans. Here, the natto is not aerated, and the spicy wetness of grated daikon helps mitigate the fermented funkiness, rendering the dish much more widely appealing and a tasty, healthy bite to start the day.

Try to source natto made locally rather than in Japan; imported natto is typically frozen for shipping and loses some of its unusual delicacy. (We like the New York-make NYrture brand—look for it in local specialty stores or online.) Konbu dashi is easy to make from scratch, and a batch can be used to make a variety of vegetarian Japanese dishes.

This recipe is adapted from Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook and was featured in “This 1-Ingredient No-Cook Stock is at the Heart of Japanese Vegetarian Cooking.”

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Serving cold tofu as a light side dish for a summer meal is a popular method for combatting the hot, humid weather in Japan. Here the cucumber vinegar is an especially refreshing and tasty dressing for the tofu, but also could be combined with lightly roasted sesame oil or fruity olive oil as a dressing for summer tomatoes. Konbu dashi is easy to make from scratch, and a batch can be used to make a variety of vegetarian Japanese dishes.

This recipe is adapted from Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook and was featured in “This 1-Ingredient No-Cook Stock is at the Heart of Japanese Vegetarian Cooking.”

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Mountain yam aficionados love its viscosity when finely grated, but for the uninitiated, fresh julienned pieces are an excellent way to enjoy the crisp texture of the tuber. In this mountain yam recipe with vinegared sesame sauce, the rich dressing balances beautifully with the delicately flavored vegetable.

When cutting mountain yam, place a clean cloth atop the cutting board, so the slippery pieces don’t slide around as you julienne. To counteract the itchy properties of mountain yam, wash your hands and forearms with warm soapy water after handling.

Konbu dashi is easy to make from scratch, and a batch can be used to make a variety of vegetarian Japanese dishes. Look for white sesame paste at your local Japanese market, or online. Different brands of sesame paste have varying consistencies, so you may need to add more konbu dashi to make the sauce pourable.

This recipe is adapted from Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook and was featured in “This 1-Ingredient No-Cook Stock is at the Heart of Japanese Vegetarian Cooking.”

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Let me share something with you: I love bread. Baking (and then consuming) a homemade loaf is one of life’s most enjoyable simple pleasures. I admit that the process does require a bit of planning—and a few hours of downtime. And yet the results are incredibly rewarding and absolutely worth the effort. As someone who, years ago, became obsessed with baking bread and then went on to work in a professional bakery, I always advocate for home cooks to try their hand at making their own bread at home. Learning how to make a baguette is a simple and straightforward starting point.

Much like the simple roast chicken or sky-high soufflé, a perfectly executed baguette is considered one of the best marks by which to judge a master of culinary craft. French President Emmanuel Macron successfully advocated to include the slender loaves in UNESCO’s list of “Intangible Cultural Heritage”—a process that took six years to provide the necessary documentation! Amateur bakers tend to test the waters by making boules, bâtards, and pan loaves. A baguette, on the other hand, can seem a bit more intimidating. In reality, these loaves require only a handful of tools and ingredients that you likely already have in the kitchen, and are achievable for anyone with a hot oven and some time. Though your first attempt might not look exactly like those at your local bakery, learning how to make a baguette is all about practice (and enjoying the fresh-baked results).

What you need:

Tools:

• 2 large mixing bowls or a stand mixer fitted with dough hook attachment
• Digital Scale*
• Whisk
• Bench Scraper
• Cast iron skillet 
• Parchment paper
• Baking Sheet 
• Very sharp paring knife, razor blade, or bread lame

Ingredients:

• 1½ cups (355 g) warm (not hot!) tap water (between 105°F-115°F)
• 1½ tsp. (5 g) active dry yeast**
• 3¼ cups (462 g) all-purpose flour***  
• 1¾ tsp. (5 g) kosher salt
• Neutral oil, such as canola, sunflower, or vegetable, for greasing
• 2 cups boiling water (very hot tap water can also be used)

*I highly recommend investing in a digital scale for use in any home baking project. In a professional bakery, every ingredient is measured in grams. This is for a few main reasons: Multiples of 10 are incredibly easy to scale up and down as needed, and gram measurements are more precise than pounds and ounces and more accurate than cups and tablespoons. 

**Bread flour can also be used in this method, although its higher protein content will make for a “stronger” dough, with more elasticity when proofing and shaping.

***You are also welcome to substitute instant dry yeast for active dry yeast, just be aware that the fermentation time when using the instant version will be slightly faster. This will speed up fermentation and proofing times by about 15 minutes at each stage. I prefer to use active dry yeast in this recipe because a slower fermentation time results in a more flavorful final product.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Traditional baguettes are made using a type of preferment called a poolish. This mixture of yeast, flour, and water is mixed a few hours ahead of time, then added to the final dough to increase its “extensibility” (in other words, stretchiness, which makes shaping easier). It also lends the finished product a more complex and yeasty flavor than breads made with “straight doughs” mixed without preferments. The loaves are also often cold-proofed for several hours (and even overnight) to increase flavor depth as well. The method in this streamlined tutorial skips those steps, and instead shortens the entire process to about four hours. If you want to get a head start (and a more pronounced flavor), cover the shaped loaves with a tea towel and proof overnight in the fridge before scoring and baking them, as described below, the following morning. 

STEP 1: Mix and knead the dough.

In a large bowl, whisk together the water and active dry yeast, then set aside at room temperature until slightly foamy, about 10 minutes. (If the yeast does not begin to foam at the surface, it’s probably past its prime. Discard it and grab some fresh yeast before continuing.) Add the flour, then, using a fork or your hand, stir until all the flour is absorbed and there are no dry pockets. Set aside to allow the flour to hydrate for 20 minutes.*

Lightly flour a clean work surface. Sprinkle the salt over the dough, then transfer to the surface and knead until all the salt is incorporated and the dough is elastic and mostly smooth, 9–12 minutes. (If using a stand mixer, mix the dough on medium-low speed for 4–5 minutes.) Form the dough into a ball. Lightly grease a clean, large bowl, transfer the dough into it, cover, and set aside until the dough has nearly doubled in size, about 45 minutes. Note: The warmer and more humid the environment in your kitchen, the faster your dough will rise. During the colder months, one of my favorite techniques is to ferment the dough right in my oven with the pilot light on, or near a warm radiator. 

Letting the dough hydrate and rest before adding the salt is a process known as autolyse. This process allows gluten bonds to start forming gently—before you start working the dough—reducing kneading time and resulting in a more irregular, open crumb structure.

STEP 2: Stretch and fold the dough.

Imagine your dough ball as having four corners. Grab the top two corners (furthest from you) and lift them up and away from the sides of the bowl, folding them over towards you. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees and repeat. Now do the same with the right and left sides, respectively. Your dough should now resemble a folded envelope. Carefully remove the “envelope” from the bowl and invert it, placing it back in the bowl, seam side down. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and return to a warm area until doubled in size again, another 45 minutes to an hour. 

You may be used to seeing bread recipes that instruct you to “punch down” the dough (in other words, deflate the dough of any gasses formed during the fermentation process). I don’t like to do that here, because removing these gasses can lead to a denser loaf. Instead, this folding process helps to both redistribute the entrapped gasses and ensure a more even temperature throughout the dough.

STEP 3: Cut the dough into three pieces.

Carefully transfer the dough to your lightly floured surface, once again taking care to not deflate it excessively. Place a large cast iron pan on the floor of your oven, adjust the oven rack to the center position, and  preheat to 450ºF. Using a bench scraper or sharp knife, divide the dough into three equal pieces (extra credit here if you have a kitchen scale!). Roll each piece into a tight oval (the dough should be springy if you poke it with your finger). Cover the ovals with plastic wrap or a tea towel and set aside at room temperature until the dough is “relaxed,” 15–20 minutes.

STEP 4: Shape and final proof the baguettes

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, dust lightly with flour, and set aside. On your lightly floured work surface, lightly press and stretch one of the dough pieces into a rectangle. Pick up the top two corners and fold them towards you, stopping halfway. Repeat with the bottom corners (away from your body this time). The dough should now resemble a tube, with a seam running along the center. Place the tube seam-side-down, and repeat the process with the other two dough pieces. 

Then, go back to the first tube: Position your hands at the center, then carefully roll the log of dough back and forth, applying pressure toward either end and elongating the dough as you go. Repeat this process a couple of times until the loaf is about 16 inches long, and tapered at the ends. Continue with the other two pieces of dough, then place the baguettes seam-side-down on the lined baking sheet. Cover with a sheet of plastic wrap or very slightly damp tea towel and set aside at room temperature until the loaves are slightly puffed up and the dough bounces back slightly when poked gently with your finger, 20–30 minutes.

STEP 5: Score and bake the baguettes.

After scoring your baguettes, you’ll want to move as quickly as possible when loading them into the oven, so be sure that it’s fully preheated before you proceed. 

Using a sharp knife or razor blade held at a 30 degree angle, cut four evenly spaced slashes along the top surface of each baguette. If you have a spray bottle on hand, give the loaves a light spritz of water, then, quickly and carefully transfer the baking sheet to the oven, pour at least 2 cups of boiling water into the hot cast iron skillet, and shut the oven door. Bake the loaves until golden brown, 25–30 minutes. Remove the baguettes from the oven and do your best to let them cool before diving in. 

A steamy oven is crucial for achieving a good rise and a thin and crispy crust. The steam created from the initial heat of the skillet will fill the oven, then condense and settle over the surface of the baking loaves. That moisture keeps the outside of the dough hydrated and springy, allowing for more “oven spring” as the loaves bake. Without steam, the outer layer of bread “crisps up” before the internal temperature has risen enough to cause the gasses to expand, and your bread can end up dense, hard, and misshapen.

Tip: Most home ovens have vents that let out steam, usually above and behind the cooktop. In order to retain as much steam as possible, I recommend using a rolled up kitchen towel to block these vents while you bake—every little bit of steam helps!

How to store leftover baguettes

Baguettes tend to go stale within a day or two, and leftovers are best kept at room temperature in a bread box or a waxed canvas or plastic bag. Fully cooled bread can also be wrapped tightly in plastic and stored in the freezer for several weeks. And should you find yourself with some stale leftovers, don’t throw them out. I like to cube stale bread, toast in a 375°F oven until golden-brown, then toss them in some olive oil and savory seasonings to make croutons. Or, simply pop the cubes in the food processor and blitz them down into homemade breadcrumbs. 

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Vegetables are far too often an afterthought when it comes to weeknight dinners. Playing second fiddle to the meat and starch, they’re like an addendum that makes the meal legal. But celebrated British cookbook author Nigel Slater aims to change that with this fast, unfussy take on broccoli, which turns the oft-maligned veg into a main course with wonderful complexity in flavor and texture. It calls for just a handful of ingredients to boot.

Reprinted with permission from A Cook’s Book: The Essential Nigel Slater by Nigel Slater, copyright © 2023. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House.

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Welcome to One Pot Bangers, Benjamin Kemper’s weeknight cooking column, where you’ll find our freshest, boldest ideas that require just one pot, skillet, or sheet pan. Busy week? We’ve got you covered with these low-effort, high-reward recipes from around the globe.

My all-time favorite recipe for mujaddara—that vegetarian Middle Eastern rice-and-lentil dish topped with crisp-fried onions and tangy yogurt sauce—borrows ingredients and techniques from cookbook authors like Yotam Ottolenghi and Paula Wolfert, plus skilled home cooks who let me peer over their shoulders. If you have time, toast the spices whole, then grind them yourself—it’s worth the extra step.

Note: Using canned (such as Goya brand), packaged, or frozen lentils in this mujaddara recipe means one fewer pot to wash, but if you can’t find them (or prefer to cook your own), boil 1 cup of lentils in a pot of well-salted water until soft but not mushy, 15–25 minutes. Drain and set aside. 

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Welcome to SAVEUR’s column on making the most of local produce according to contributing editor Fatima Khawaja. Here you’ll find creative, unfussy meal ideas plus plenty of cooking advice—like what to do with that bumper crop of zucchini or how to store delicate heirloom tomatoes. Follow along, and you’ll learn how to turn the season’s bounty into easy plant-based meals.

Sabzi is the generic term for the Pakistani vegetarian dishes that commonly play second fiddle to our heavy meat-centric mains. But in this winter sabzi recipe, root vegetables take center stage. Sweet parsnips replace half of the typical carrots, which cook down gently with plenty of warm South Asian spices. Feel free to cut the vegetables bite size or smaller—just make sure they are the same size so they cook evenly without one turning into mush.

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Though chicken or beef broth is often the chosen base for soups and sauces, it’s time to ditch the impulse to compare a well-made vegetable stock to its meat-based brethren. A proper version relies on the inherent flavor and diversity of produce scraps to create a complex liquid that works as a building block to any broth or sauce. When former vegetarian Lauren Garaventa trained as a butcher and opened her own shop and restaurant, The Ruby Brink, on Washington’s Vashon Island, she chose to use vegetable stock for its earthy singularity. Here she shares her tips on how to make a vegetable stock that you just can’t quit.

What you need

• Assorted vegetables: enough to fill ⅓ of your stock pot, including one potato, some alliums, and plenty of mushroom stems and scraps.
• Herbs and aromatics such as parsley stems, peppercorns, and bay leaves
• 20-quart stainless steel stock pot
• Fine mesh strainer

STEP 1: Fill the stockpot with vegetables, herbs, and aromatics.

The most important part of making a good vegetable stock is using a diverse selection of ingredients, Garaventa explains. She collects the scraps from various other dishes and throws them all into the stock pot, aiming to fill it about one-third of the way up before adding water. Along with traditional stock vegetables, like celery, she makes sure to add plenty of mushrooms—especially leftover stems—and a good selection of alliums like onions, leeks, scallions, and shallots. The one non-scrap—and somewhat non-traditional—vegetable she always includes is a potato, which she calls a key ingredient for how it transforms the consistency of the stock. “It mellows it out and makes it taste so good.” 

STEP 2: Add water, bring to a boil, then simmer.

Fill the rest of the pot with cold water—essential to extract the most flavor and produce a clear stock, according to Garaventa. Then bring it to a boil over high heat. When it starts to boil, turn the heat down to simmer, then Garaventa leaves it for four to five hours—longer than most vegetable stock recipes call for, but the amount of time she feels it takes to get the flavor where she wants it. While meat-based stocks require much longer simmers, the fresh flavors will degrade after a point, and vegetables will break down and make a cloudy stock.

STEP 3: Let the stock settle and strain.

After four to five hours of simmering, turn the heat off under the pot and let the contents settle. Once most of the flotsam sinks, strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer. Discard the remaining vegetable matter, and let the liquid cool completely before storage. The stock will keep a few days in the fridge, or up to many months in the freezer—even then, it doesn’t go bad after time, as much as the flavor fades and degrades.

Final Thoughts

Thinking of vegetable stock as only an alternative to meat-based stocks does it a grand disservice. Vegetable stock that fully employs the complexity and depth of mushrooms, onions, and herbs gives all cooks a versatile, useful addition to their arsenal that’s vegetarian-friendly and wildly cost-effective. Stir it into mushroom dishes, use it to simmer squash, or build it into layers of grain dishes. Made properly, vegetable stock brings more flavor to any dish, especially ones that benefit from a little extra earthiness. 

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