Your Comfort Food Recipes

Comfort Food for the Soul

When the weather is cold or you're feeling blue, what foods warm your soul and delight your palate?

We asked our readers to share the simple and easy recipes they turn to on days when only a delicious homemade dish can soothe the soul. Whether macaroni and cheese, peanut butter-banana-bacon sandwiches, meat loaf, or mashed sweet potatoes, these recipes connect our readers to happiness and comfort.

Cook these easy food recipes on days when you need comfort.

Editor's Note: The recipes featured here have not been tested by Beliefnet.

Tortellini Soup

One of the things I love about this soup is you can make it as easy or complicated as you'd like. You can use homemade broth, lots of veggies and spices, and let it simmer all day. Using mostly pre-packaged ingredients, I had a comforting meal in about 20 minutes.

Recipe shared by hudson_heightsAdd hudson_heights as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
2 packages tortellini (any kind: cheese, spinach, ricotta etc.)
2 large boxes broth (I use Swanson's Natural Goodness)
1 to 2 lbs. Italian sausage (sweet or hot)
1 14.5 oz. can tomatoes (I prefer them fire-roasted with garlic)
1 can cannellini beans (or great northern or navy beans), rinsed
2 carrots, sliced
Fresh spinach (or escarole)
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation
In a separate pot, bring water to boil for tortellini. Don't cook the pasta in the soup; it gets too mushy and "steals" too much of the broth.

Meanwhile, cook the sausage according to instructions in a pan, and then drain and cut them into bite-size pieces.

In a large pot, combine broth, sausages, tomatoes, and carrots. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to simmer.

Add salt, pepper, oregano, or any seasoning of your choice. (Note: When using sausage, I find I don't need any additional flavor. The broth, tomatoes, and meat are enough).

When the water in your other pot boils, add tortellini and cook according to the package directions. Shorten the cooking time by a minute or two to avoid mushiness. Drain tortellini.

Just before serving, add tortellini, beans, and spinach to the soup pot.

Serve with crusty bread, fresh apples, and cheese.

The Elvis Sandwich

Recently, I read that a team of Canadian explorers set a speed record reaching the South Pole by eating a diet of mainly bacon and butter.

The Elvis Sandwich is a classic named after the famous singer because he loved fried sandwiches with peanut butter and bananas. Some versions include bacon. I think bacon is the perfect comfort food when the temperature is cold. Be sure you have a safe brand of peanut butter.

Recipe shared by resonance
Add resonance as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
1/4 cups natural unsweetened peanut butter
2 slices sandwich bread
3 slices bacon
1/2 banana
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon butter, melted

Preparation
Cut bacon slices into 3 inch strips. Fry until crisp. Drain well on paper towels.

Slice banana lengthwise and then slice into 1/2 inch thick pieces.

Spread one side of each bread slice with peanut butter, leaving about 1/2 inch space at the edges (otherwise peanut butter will run out when you fry the sandwich).

On one slice of bread, stack banana and bacon slices. Drizzle with honey. Put the other slice of bread on top.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Carefully fry the sandwich on each side just until the sandwich is just brown.

Have plenty of napkins handy, and devour.

Dave's Rutabaga-Leek Soup

Someone gave me a box of vegetables. I gave some to the llamas--they loved the kale--and I ate some myself. I was left with a large leek and two rutabagas. I said, "Ok, let's make soup.” This is what I came up with and I think you'll find this to be a great comfort food on a cold day. If you want to make Vichyssoise, follow the instructions but serve the soup cold.

Recipe shared by mountain_man
Add mountain_man as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
1 rather large leek
2 nice-sized rutabagas (or 2 big potatoes)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 strips bacon or 1 cup bacon bits
1 cup cream
2 teaspoon butter

Preparation
Put the bacon in a large pot and fry until crispy. Add the butter.

Slice the leek and add to the pot. Cook until the leek is wilted. Add the chicken stock.

Dice the rutabagas and add them. Add the bacon bits if you're using that instead of regular bacon.

Bring to boil, then simmer for about 30 minutes or until everything is real soft.

Puree everything using a blender, food processor, or (my favorite) a hand-held blender.

Add the cream and blend a bit more.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Heart-Stopping Macaroni and Cheese

Set the table, grab a glass of wine, claim your spot on the couch, eat, and nap. Wake me up in March.

Recipe shared by darcamani
Add darcamani as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
A good amount of your favorite pasta
2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar, gouda, parmesan, and whatever else is lurking in the fridge)
1 cup heavy cream plus some whole milk
1 stick butter
5 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Goldfish crackers, crushed

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350.

Butter a baking dish and boil a pot of water and salt.

Make your cheese-and-cream sauce by first creating a roux by melting butter and whisking in flour. Cook for 3 minutes on low heat, or until you can smell that the flour is cooked.

Gently whisk in the cream and then the cheese. Adjust the consistency with milk.

When the water is boiled, cook the pasta until it's al dente (it will finish cooking in the oven). Drain the pasta.

Put the pasta in a casserole dish, pour the cheese-and-cream sauce over it. Mix well. Top with crushed gold fish crackers.

Cover the mac and cheese and bake it for 15 minutes. Then, uncover and bake it for 15 more minutes. Remove the mac and cheese from the oven.

Smoked Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese

In Philadelphia, where I live, I am very fortunate to have the Reading Terminal Market, a huge farmer's market in the center of the city. Several of the stands have a great selection of cheeses, and one stand sells applewood smoked cheddar, which is what I usually use in this recipe. Any good cheddar will be good in this dish, but if you can find a good smoked cheddar, it gives an unusual flavor, along with the Tabasco, to make a mac and cheese that is very different and really delicious.

Recipe shared by rasphila
Add rasphila as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
6 oz. macaroni or other pasta (shells and mini-penne)
4-6 oz. shredded cheddar cheese, preferably applewood smoked
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon butter
Salt to taste
Tabasco sauce to taste (I use 14-16 drops for a lot of bite)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Cook pasta as directed on package.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Melt the butter and whisk in flour. Cook slowly for 1-2 minutes. Add the milk and continue to whisk until the sauce has thickened.

Add salt and Tabasco to taste. Stir in about 1/3 of the cheese.

Drain the pasta. Stir into the sauce. There will be a lot of sauce for the amount of pasta, but don't worry. The pasta absorbs the sauce in baking and everything becomes thick and gooey.

Pour the sauce and pasta out into a shallow baking dish. Spread the remaining cheese on top.

Bake 20 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and the cheese on top is beginning to brown.

Serve with a strong-flavored green vegetable like brussels sprouts or broccoli.

Drink red wine with this dish. Beer or apple cider also go very nicely.

Serves 3. Suitable for non-vegan vegetarians.

Comfort Chili

I must have this comfort food at least once a month. Make the chili in a large pot, pan, dutch oven, etc. This is the same recipe I use for pasta dishes, minus the beans.

Recipe shared by noreen
Add noreen as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
Ground hamburger meat, as much as you wish
1 jar tomato sauce
1 large can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 large onion, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
1-5 garlic cloves, minced
Some sugar
Salt and pepper to taste (I prefer lemon pepper)

Preparation
Cook the ground hamburger meat in a pan on the stove.

Add the tomato sauce, onion, tomato, and garlic.

Add the sugar to remove the bitterness of the tomatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Heat and mix well. When finished cooking, serve the chili with garlic bread.

Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes with Gravy

My family's favorite. This is not a turkey loaf--something has to moo or oink. You can make sandwiches with leftovers. Call friends and family to the table and serve everything together.

Recipe shared by darcamani
Add darcamani as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients

Meat Loaf
2 lbs. ground beef or pork meat (there needs to be at least 20% fat)
Half a loaf stale bread, cut into pieces
Some heavy cream or whole milk
1 jar tomato sauce or ketchup
1 egg
1 onion
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
Worchester sauce
Dry Herbs: Oregano and basil
Dry Spices: Garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper

Mashed Potatoes
A couple Yukon Gold potatoes, unpeeled
Some heavy cream or whole milk
Some butter
Salt and pepper

Gravy
Your choice of stock: beef stock, wine, beer, milk, or tomato sauce
2 tbsp. of flour

Preparation

Meat Loaf
Preheat oven to 350.

Soak the stale bread in most of the heavy cream or whole milk (save some heavy cream or whole milk, set aside).

Finely chop or grate the onion, carrot, and celery stalk.

Blend the oregano, basil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper together. Set the seasoning aside.

Gently combine the meat, bread mixture, seasoning, egg, and most of the tomato sauce or ketchup (save some sauce or ketchup, set aside) together a bowl.

Form into a loaf. Don't pack it too tight. Be gentle. This is a food of love.

Place the loaf in an oven-friendly pan. Roast it uncovered for about 30 minutes.

Take the pan out. Pour the rest of the tomato sauce on top. Continue baking for another 30 minutes.

When the meatloaf is done, remove it from the oven. Take it out of the pan and let it sit for about 10 minutes.

Mashed Potatoes
Boil a pot of water and salt.

Toss in the unpeeled Yukon Gold potatoes. Cook until tender and drain.

Put the potatoes back on low heat to dry out. Do not allow potatoes to sit in water!

Put the butter butter and the remaining cream or whole milk into the pot.

Mash together using a masher or fork, with a cheerful disposition. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Gravy
Drain off most of the fat from the meat loaf pan. Keep about 2 tbsp. of fat and keep all the brown bits.

Add the flour and stir together over medium heat.

Add your chosen stock and stir for a few minutes. The gravy will thicken.

Simple Spaghetti

You can eat this dish right away, but I think it’s better the next day after all the flavors mix together. The dish is also great as a lasagna sauce. All you need is a nice Chianti or Pinot Noir, some wonderful fresh bread, and a nice green salad.

Recipe shared by Spidertotem
Add Spidertotem as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
2 large cans plain tomato sauce
1 small can tomato paste
1 cup water
Some red wine
Some ground meat (if you want)
1 yellow onion
1 clove fresh garlic
1 green pepper
Some mushrooms
1 good size clove of fresh garlic
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons basil, chopped (I like a lot of basil)
Oregano
Virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation
Chop up onions and garlic into fine small pieces. In a pan, cook onions first in a small amount of olive oil on medium to low heat.

When the onions begin to clear, add the garlic. Stir it constantly so it doesn't burn.

Remove from heat and set aside. Do not drain.

In a large pan, mix tomato sauce and tomato paste on low heat. Add 1 cup of water and stir constantly.

Add the onions, garlic, and oil from the pan. (Yes, the oil too.)

Add about 2 tbsp of basil, a pinch of salt and pepper, sugar, and a very small pinch of oregano. Be careful that the oregano doesn’t dominate the sauce.

Add a small amount of red wine.

Add the peppers and mushrooms. If you are adding meat, you can add it now.

Add one small bay leaf, but don't leave it in the pan forever.

Simmer on low heat, and stir as often as possible. Cook for at least 2 hours on low. Let it cool down, and place in the fridge.

Mother's Pot Roast

Cold weather and comfort means pot roast in my house. I make great pot roast, something I learned from my mother.

Recipe shared by BeliefnetCheryl
Add BeliefnetCheryl as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
Chuck roast (I prefer flat to roundish roast, around 3 lbs.)
1/3 cup red wine
1 teaspoon Thai chili garlic paste
A couple onions, quartered
Several cloves of garlic
Soy sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation
Start browning the meat with a little olive oil in a pan. Add the quartered onions, the garlic, and some salt and pepper.

Add the red wine, a good splash of soy sauce, and the Thai chili garlic paste. (The soy sauce adds a nice, full flavor called “umami,” a Japanese word that means “savory.”)

Put the lid on the pan and let everything simmer for at least 3 hours, though longer is even better.

Some people put carrots and potatoes in with the meat, but I prefer to roast additional vegetables instead.

You can reduce the liquid in the pan and make a nice sauce. You could make gravy, but I am not a gravy person.

Camotes, or Mexican Sweet Potatoes

The most delicious way to eat sweet potatoes is the way Mexicans eat them. In the winter, my mother always makes warm, sweet, and very comforting camotes (pronounced cah-moe-tes). The flavors take me back to my childhood. Delicioso!

Recipe shared by suprememagnetic
Add suprememagnetic as Your Beliefnet Friend

Ingredients
5 sweet potatoes, peeled
3 pilonsillos (brown Mexican sugar cane candies, pronounced pee-lone-see-ose)

Preparation
Put the peeled sweet potatoes and the pilonsillos in a pot.

Boil on low until the sweet potatoes are hot and the pilonsillos melt to a caramel-like honey.

Serve hot.

Add cold milk to cool to finish off the dish.