5 Cozy Big-Batch Dinners to Get You Through Fall
In addition to craving comfort food on a very, very regular basis these days, I’ve found myself leaning on big-batch recipes more than ever. Large-format meals like casseroles, soups, and stews always prove helpful when you have a lot of people around the table, but for my small family (two adults and a toddler), big-batch dinners are how I get a reprieve from cooking down the line. These dinners leave us with plenty of leftovers to be repurposed for meals throughout the week and tucked in the freezer for future dinners.
This week my meal plan is stacked with cozy, big-batch dinners that are perfect for fall. Here’s what I’m feeding my family.
Monday: Slow Cooker Pork and Cider Stew
I plan to make the stew during my Sunday meal prep session, so that it just needs to be reheated at dinnertime. I like to partner it with thick slices of crusty bread for mopping up all the sauce, although if you’d like to stretch this stew a little further, egg noodles make a nice addition.
Get the recipe: Slow Cooker Pork and Cider Stew
Tuesday: Pumpkin Soup
Since this soup requires such minimal effort and time, I plan on doubling the recipe. We’ll eat a couple of portions for dinner, paired with a simple arugula salad; reserve a couple of portions for lunch later in the week; and freeze the rest for later.
Get the recipe: Pumpkin Soup
Wednesday: Smoky Sweet Potato & Black Bean Casserole
I have some sweet potatoes and a bag of shredded Monterey Jack cheese (I’m swapping it for the mozzarella) that’s needs to be used up, and this veggie-forward casserole is my favorite way to do it. It feeds eight as a main, and could be stretched a little further with a side dish. We’ll save the leftovers for lunch, and wrap them in a warmed flour tortilla.
Get the recipe: Smoky Sweet Potato & Black Bean Casserole
Thursday: Thanksgiving Lentil Salad
Despite the name, this plant-based salad is definitely worth keeping in the rotation all year long. And with lentils and roasted squash as the base, it’s filling enough to be served as a main. The recipe calls for butternut squash, although you could easily substitute sweet potatoes or delicata squash.
Get the recipe: Thanksgiving Lentil Salad
Friday: Gnocchi Lasagna with Spinach, White Beans, and Sausage
We made it to the end of another wild week, so Friday deserves something extra comforting. The casserole can be made with any type of sausage meat, including Beyond Sausage if you’d like to keep it plant-based. We’ll dig into the leftovers, which keep well for a handful of days, throughout the weekend.
Get the recipe: Gnocchi Lasagna with Spinach, White Beans, and Sausage
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This post originally ran on Kitchn. See it there: A Week of Cozy Big-Batch Dinners to Get You Through Fall