520 bay leaf recipes

Tender beef simmers with warm cinnamon, cloves, and cumin, balanced by sweet raisins and red wine for an exotic slow cooker stew served over fluffy rice.

Fragrant biryani with yogurt-marinated chicken or lamb layered over saffron rice with crispy fried onions and whole spices. Authentic South Asian comfort food from scratch.

Cincinnati chili: thin, spiced ground beef sauce with cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and a touch of molasses, simmered low and slow. Serve over spaghetti with cheddar, onions, and beans.

Vegan shepherd's pie style casserole with a mashed potato crust, savory tofu filling, mushrooms, corn and spinach, smothered in homemade brown gravy. Hearty plant-based comfort food.

Lean turkey and pinto bean chili with bell peppers, jalapeño, and chili powder. Hearty pot of chili in an hour with cooking spray instead of oil for a lighter base.

Rich South Texas duck gumbo with a dark roux, okra, tomatoes, and Cajun seasonings served over rice. A slow-simmered hunter's gumbo built for wild mallard duck.

This is an authentic family recipe that my mother taught me in 1950 in New Orleans. It makes a great dinner party main dish. Like chinese food, it is long on chopping and assembling, but goes together and cooks rather quickly.

Massive pot of black bean cassoulet soup with garlic sausage, Italian sausage, bratwurst, and a meaty ham bone. Simmered for 5 hours with sherry, brown sugar, and lemon. Feeds 16.

A deeply flavored beef stew braised in Burgundy wine and rich stock with carrots, potatoes, rutabaga, mushrooms, and caramelized tomato paste. Thickened with a dark roux for velvety body.

Hearty black bean cassoulet soup loaded with three kinds of sausage, a meaty ham bone, cumin, oregano, and a splash of dry sherry. Feeds a crowd of 16 with a sour cream finish.

A slow-simmered lamb chili with black beans, fresh ginger, allspice, and Zinfandel wine. Beans cook with lamb bones for deep flavor. Best made a day ahead for the richest taste.

A triple-protein vegetarian chili loaded with TVP, tempeh, and tofu plus three kinds of beans, mushrooms, and warm spices like cinnamon and allspice. Hearty enough to convert any meat-lover.

Cincinnati-style 5-way chili spiced with cinnamon, chocolate, cardamom, and allspice. Served over spaghetti and topped with kidney beans, raw onion, and melted cheddar.

Texas-style beanless chili with cubed pork loin and beef brisket braised in beer, tequila, and triple cumin, thickened with masa harina. Six pounds of meat, no beans, all heat.

Slow cooker beef and pork chili with secret Southern twists: bacon drippings, coffee, cocoa, and a touch of sugar for deep complexity. Simmer for hours until thick and rich.

Vegetarian saffron rice timbales stuffed with spicy black beans and topped with fresh avocado-tomato salsa. A stunning three-component plant-based main dish.