The first thing that hits me about celeriac is the smell. It's like the forest floor and a cabbage patch and a grassy field all at once. It is so intensely vegetal. And let's face it: few vegetables can tread the line between root vegetable and garden vegetable with such success. It has the bulk and heartiness of a potato but the lightness and brightness of a very mild celery. It's gorgeous. More

"You've made ugliness beautiful" is Mark Bittman's promise for this recipe. And he's right: the gnarly, knobby look of celeriac (a.k.a. celery root) is pretty unconvincing when you first see it at the market. But inside is the smooth white flesh that can become a luxurious soup. More

English cheddar soup is actually remarkably light. It relies on a very sharp, very good cheddar cheese, which means you don't need much of it. Onions and leeks provide the base, and just a touch of cream is the final flourish. More

Far be it from me to argue with a curried pumpkin soup, or a pumpkin soup with pancetta, or a pumpkin soup with dancing croutons. I love those guys, I really do. What they aren't, though—what they'll never be—is the good old classic pumpkin soup that got us all hooked on pumpkin soup in the first place. Nope, they aren't The One. But this is. More

Though Thanksgiving is unimpeachably the best holiday, there are moments in early November when the mere anticipation of post-Thanksgiving fullness can make you full, if not ever-so-slightly comatose. At times like these, even the most devout givers of thanks need a simple, comforting dinner like this appealingly basic Potato Leek Soup. More

This soup requires very few novel ingredients. But by roasting your vegetables, the flavors concentrate and caramelize, and you wind up with a pretty standout soup, equally worthy of the dinner table as the brown bag, especially if you supplement it with some good bread and softened, salted butter. More

In my humble opinion, sweet potatoes are the greatest things on earth, behind only rainbows, Tom Waits' Closing Time, and Halloween episodes of Roseanne. They hold up admirably in soups and stews, and here, coupled with brown rice, make for a hearty, cold weather dish. The curry gives the whole thing some kick, and only adds to the warm autumnal hue. Essentially, it's fall on a spoon, with some valuable health benefits. More

Here's the idea: grab some produce, seasoning, and perhaps some protein, throw it on a sheet tray and roast until golden and tender, then mash it up into a rustic, warming soup. Roasting adds a depth of flavor to this Roasted Chicken and Butternut Squash Soup that simmering will never provide, and it also makes for a low-fuss dinner that tastes like it took a lot more effort than it did. More

Most of the cauliflower I eat is roasted or sautéed until it's perilously close to looking burnt. It's hard to describe why it tastes so good when it looks so bad, but it really does a number on me and partly explains why it's one of my favorite things to cook. But this recipe from the Moosewood Cookbook retreats back to a time when cauliflower was treated gently and calmly. More

[Photograph: Blake Royer] Sometimes at fancy restaurants the waiter will begin the meal with a flourish, quietly intoning words to the effect of "compliments of the chef," making you feel as if you're a special guest of the restaurant. The... More