Meredith Mileti hosts a Q&A discussion

The weather in Pittsburgh is cool and rainy today. Fall is officially in the air. It's the kind of day where the lamps need to be lit in the morning and all I want to do is curl up with a good book and a bowl of something warm, long simmering and delicious. What are your favorite cool weather foods to cook and eat?

I love fall and I frequently spend my Fall Sundays between cooking and watching football with my husband. A perfect fall meal for our family is pork tenderloin in the crockpot with homemade mashed potatoes. If I am extremely lucky I can convince my husband to tear himself away from one of the games to make Beef Stroganoff but as you can imagine it doesn't happen too often!

Do you have a favorite crockpot cookbook you like to use? I have a couple, but not a "go-to" one that always pull out. Any recommendations would be appreciated! Mmm, I love Beef Stroganoff and haven't made it in years. Now, you've got me thinking...

I have a Turkey-and-White-Bean chili recipe that we love. The seasonings include cumin and cocoa, garnishes are cilantro and red onion.

I love anything with cumin and the cocoa sounds interesting in this. Boy, I've missed chili! Our favorite recipe for chili is from the Silver alate cookbook. Along with the regular assortment of chili ingredients, it's got red wine, black olives and dill. Sounds strange, but it's so good!

For cool weather, I love soup, soup and more soup. There's nothing better than soup and bread (in my humble opinion) for a fall/winter feast. What do I like in my soup? Beans, veggies, grains, meat - almost anything except cream.

I'm with you, Bette. I'm not a fan of cream soups either. I also like a chunky soup, as opposed to a puree. Here's the problem with this discussion thread: I keep having to revise my grocery list! Now I'm thinking about a beef barley soup. Or maybe a spicy thai chicken soup with noodles...

Ditto on the cream soups, though I do like pureed — in fact, I just had a tasty carrot and tomato soup at Paris 66 (on Centre Ave in Pittsburgh's Penn Circle). But now I'm craving the spicy thai chicken soup with noodles you mentioned, Meredith!

This is making me want to dig out Dad's recipe for Pasta Fagioli.

So easy! I'll dig out the recipe. Coconut milk, lots of red chili paste, basil and udon noodles. There is something about cooking the chicken in the coconut milk that makes it so tender and delicious. It's going to be cool in Pittsburgh through the weekend...more soup days on the way!

Julie wrote: "Ditto on the cream soups, though I do like pureed — in fact, I just had a tasty carrot and tomato soup at Paris 66 (on Centre Ave in Pittsburgh's Penn Circle). But now I'm craving the spicy thai ch..."

I was just thinking about that soup! I almost made it tonight but opted for chicken with wild rice and mushrooms.

Cara wrote: "This is making me want to dig out Dad's recipe for Pasta Fagioli."

It's very cool here in Chautauqua. Made my grandma's beef vegetable soup, which always warms me up! Even got the kids to eat some!

Sounds wonderful! I don't think anything beats a great bowl of soup on a cool day. Enjoy Chautauqua!

Melissa wrote: "It's very cool here in Chautauqua. Made my grandma's beef vegetable soup, which always warms me up! Even got the kids to eat some!"

I acquired my first-ever crockpot last summer at a rummage sale, for $1. Now that I can slow-cook chicken, my matzoh ball soup generates a lot more enthusiasm and has become our cold-weather favorite. I've been looking forward to making it all summer. Tarragon and some kohlrabi are the secret ingredients (well, maybe the tarragon isn't such a secret.)

I'm all about the soups too. Yesterday I made some butternut squash soup to kick off soup season. Whenever I serve it to others I get rave reviews and it's so easy to make - olive oil, onion, medium butternut squash and vegetable or chicken broth.

I'm actually reading "Aftertaste" now and have been craving comfort foods ever since I picked it up!

I'm trying to perfect Chinese rice porridge. Simple, proletarian food. My mother made it whenever the weather turned. She always had chicken/turkey bones and broth in the freezer to use for this. She'd add dried squid and scallops and cook down the rice. I've yet to reproduce it, but then I never really had to. She's unable to make it anymore and now I have to try as my son loves it. Wish me luck.

I love butternut squash. My father-in-law just gave me a half a dozen from his garden. I think I'll try your soup! Glad that Aftertaste has piqued your appetite!


Betsy wrote: "I'm all about the soups too. Yesterday I made some butternut squash soup to kick off soup season. Whenever I serve it to others I get rave reviews and it's so easy to make - olive oil, onion, med..."

Darlene, this sounds so intriguing! What happens to the rice - does it completely breakdown? I love the addition of the dried seafood - one of the things I love about Chinese cuisine. Good luck with your efforts to recreate it. I'd love to hear about your adventures.

Darlene wrote: "I'm trying to perfect Chinese rice porridge. Simple, proletarian food. My mother made it whenever the weather turned. She always had chicken/turkey bones and broth in the freezer to use for this. S..."

I add a cup of apple cider to my butternut squash soup, which really complements the soup, I think.

Meredith wrote: "I love butternut squash. My father-in-law just gave me a half a dozen from his garden. I think I'll try your soup! Glad that Aftertaste has piqued your appetite!


Betsy wrote: "I'm all about..."

Mmm. Delicious! I actually have two pots of soup going at the moment. Went to the market yesterday and saw the most beautiful Tuscan kale. Got the butternut squash soup and a ribolita simmering as I write. Love this chill, rainy weather!

Melissa wrote: "I add a cup of apple cider to my butternut squash soup, which really complements the soup, I think.

Meredith wrote: "I love butternut squash. My father-in-law just gave me a half a dozen from h..."

Meredith wrote: "Darlene, this sounds so intriguing! What happens to the rice - does it completely breakdown? I love the addition of the dried seafood - one of the things I love about Chinese cuisine. Good luck w..."

Yes the rice breaks down and becomes a soupier version of risotto. I tried making it in a slow cooker overnight but it broke down the rice so much there was no texture left. I am collecting chicken bones in the freezer to make my own stock!

I always seem to choose the same soups over and over...creature of habit I guess - when we need comfort, we know what does the trick. As soup is always warm and comforting, I always find myself some days getting bored with my favorites. So, the other night, we came across a great fall receipe. Sauteed asparagus with fennel and gorgonzola. It has a crisp bite to the dish and gives you those savory flavors that you may be looking for. Cut up the asparagus along with a large fennel bulb and saute with some olive oil. Crumble on the gorgonzola at the end and enjoy.

Yestrday I made a simple but yummy broccoli and leek soup. Add some garlic croutons and swirl of sour cream and dig in.

I love fennel--especially when it's cooked. What a great fall salad! Thanks for sharing.

Chanelle wrote: "I always seem to choose the same soups over and over...creature of habit I guess - when we need comfort, we know what does the trick. As soup is always warm and comforting, I always find myself so..."

I just pulled out my stash of chicken bones from the freeze this morning. Time to make some chicken stock! Actually - I didn't have enough, so I cheated and bought two rotisserie chickens from the grocery store. I reserved the meat for serving in the soup and added the bones to what I had already collected. Smells lovely!

Darlene wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Darlene, this sounds so intriguing! What happens to the rice - does it completely breakdown? I love the addition of the dried seafood - one of the things I love about Chinese cui..."

OK this is going sound stupid, but I always thought one should only use raw meat bones for broth. Is there enough flavor left on cooked bones to make broth?

I wouldn't use all cooked bones, however I think that the roasted bones do impart some good flavor to the broth and they also give it a nice rich color.

Mu husband is on a diet that calls for precise food measurements. I needed 6 oz of rostisserie chicken so I bought two of them, portioned the meat and froze some for later in the week. Then I made stock from the bones and bits of meat leftover. I refrigerated it overnight and skimmed off the fat this morning. I'll use it for the next bach of soup. Even though the bones were cooked the stock came out quite tasty.