Cooler weather means the return of soup season (and grilled cheese for good measure)! This chicken soup has turmeric and ginger in it and features carrots and rice noodles. I first cooked a whole chicken in the instant pot, then shredded the meat, and returned the bones to the pot with water and the other ingredients to make a flavorful stock. After all the pressure cooking, I heated the rice noodles and carrots and reheated the chicken to bring it all together. It wasn’t a time saver, but it was yummy.

This curry cauliflower and chicken salad is my take on a famous chain’s seasonal salad. I chop cauliflower and red onions and toss them with olive oil, curry powder, and salt to roast in a hot oven until browned. I saved the chicken breasts from above and chopped them up. There’s also quinoa and craisins on top of all of that lettuce. For dressing, I make Tahini yogurt sauce by combining tahini, yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper and thinning it with more water or lemon juice until it’s the consistency of salad dressing. Some sriracha on top gives it a spicy kick!

I actually made this shredded tofu and mushroom stir fry after hearing about it on a podcast mid-week! The tangy flavor of lime juice is not something I use in my stir fry often enough. The shredded tofu takes on the consistency of cooked egg whites, giving this dish a very satisfying, comforting texture. I tossed in some chopped bok choy along with the mushrooms for some extra veggie power.

Butternut squash and leek soup looks like such a fancy dish, but it is so easy to make and the base soup freezes really well. The herb butter is absolutely necessary to stir in before serving since it brings a creamy texture to soup that can otherwise be a little thin. My favorite part are the sherry shallots and chives, though!. So much flavor from such tiny ingredients!

These lettuce wraps are made with store bought bulgogi, white rice, and pickled radishes for a really quick and easy dinner. We keep a jar of quick pickled radishes in our fridge all the time to give an acidic jolt to stir fries and noodle dishes.

We’re having this maple pear upside down cake tonight! I used pears that must have been on the larger size, because I had to cram all the slices in to get them to fit in the pan. That meant not as much room for all the batter, which baked over a bit. I put a cookie sheet under it and ate what dripped down, so even though we haven’t cut the cake yet, I can tell you I expect it to be very tasty!

By the way, if you don’t have the maple sugar this recipe calls for, here’s a very similar recipe that uses maple syrup instead. I’d been looking for a good chance to use our maple sugar ever since we got in from the CSA a few years ago!