Cured Meat

The secret to making grilled cheese for a crowd? Turn on the oven (the standard skillet method is too labor-intensive). Encourage guests to customize their sandwiches with the cheeses, breads, and fixings you’ve set out. Then simply pop them on a baking sheet and cook.

We especially like the combination of parsnips, kohlrabi, and celery root in this bacony mash. Prepare the dish a day ahead to allow the flavors to meld (and save time on Thanksgiving Day).

Olive oil–enriched mashed potatoes enclose a layer of zesty braised kale in this savory cake, which then gets topped with crispy breadcrumbs.

Channel New England with this rich and warming one-pot clam chowder. If fresh clams are unavailable (or you're running short on time), substitute two 10-ounce cans of baby clams and 6 cups of bottled clam juice. This is part of BA's Best, a collection of our essential recipes.

This streamlined, somewhat lighter cassoulet employs French green lentils, bacon, and smoked sausage.

In Rome, chef Barbara Lynch ate the perfect carbonara: The sauce was bright yellow from fresh eggs, and each rigatoni hid cubes of fatty guanciale. This is her recipe.

Toss with spinach, escarole, or kale, or spoon over pork chops.

Red wine and pancetta add richness to the dish, but good beef broth really takes it to the next level.

A little bit of bacon and a handful of raisins add a smoky sweetness that balances the slightly bitter flavor of the little cabbages.

Want to take your deviled eggs recipe to the next level? One word: bacon.