Kidney Bean

Suitable accompaniments to this risotto-like dish are crusty bread, an avocado and orange salad with a cilantro vinaigrette and, to top it off, coconut pie.

Turn your leftover turkey into a warming, crowd-pleasing chili for dinner tonight.

Using packaged chili seasoning--the kind with separate pouches for the seasoning and the hot pepper--allows adjustment of the "heat" in this southwestern-style dish.

A colorful dish that has great texture and deep, rich flavors.

This variation on the southern staple can be prepared easily with ingredients one usually has on hand. It's hearty, flavorful, and foolproof — a good choice when you come home from work and need supper in a hurry.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Corn tortillas and bottled salsa are great with the salad. For dessert, top purchased vanilla pudding with fresh blueberries and a touch of cinnamon.

Serve this flavorful chili with chopped green onion, cilantro and red bell pepper.

New herbed chicken broth is used in this soup; adding the cheese-garlic bread makes it a filling entrée. Serve with a salad of chopped tomato and herbed olives tossed in bottled or fresh balsamic vinaigrette with chopped fresh marjoram. End with slices of pound cake spread with bottled lemon curd and surrounded by tangerine sections.

Don't waste your time looking for green peas in this recipe. In Jamaica, you'll often hear kidney beans called peas. Locals consume "rice and peas" so frequently that some people say it should be on the nation's coat of arms. In this version — which Lezlene Brown, a cook at a villa in Ocho Rios, serves to guests and family — the Scotch bonnet chile is there to contribute only the merest hint of heat and to amplify the flavors of the other ingredients.

Note that the heat level of Cajun seasoning blends can vary widely. Serve with: Baby spinach salad, corn bread, and pickled okra.

"This is a recipe I created on a snowy night when my family needed a little warming up," writes Rebecca Averill of Beverly, Massachusetts. "I combined the spices of India with the flavors of the Southwest, and added bulgur to give the chili a meaty texture. "

Try this with ciabatta or whole wheat bread.

In Cuba, this versatile side dish is known as congrí. Louisiana has its own version of red beans and rice, of course, but in that one you won't find the oregano, cumin or cilantro.

Steve Delaney, West Chester, Pa.
"My recipe reflects the Caribbean influences in the foods of Miami, where I lived for many years."

Here's a chunky, hearty beef stew that's just right on a cold winter day.

Ask your butcher to cut the ham hocks.

Sophisticated and satisfying, this can be offered as a vegetarian main course or as a hearty side dish.