Our Food Editors Are Obsessed with These Comfort Food Recipes This November

November can often feel like one long teaser for Thanksgiving, with menu planning, turkey how-tos, and pumpkin pies dominating the culinary conversation. But aside from that one, gluttonous Thursday, November is a lovely month for cooking. We’re now squarely in fall and the days have gotten cooler, even in the most temperate of climes. Now it’s time to let the fog roll in if you’re on the coast, watch fat snowflakes fall if you’re in the mountains, and to put on a light sweater for a cool desert night if you’re in the Southwest. Pair those cozy vibes with fall produce like red kuri squash, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and cauliflower that have been roasted or braised. Rich stews made with tougher cuts of meat are now the weekend’s raison d’etre, with my Le Creuset Dutch Oven and Instapot both in heavy rotation. One of my favorite slow-cooked dishes are braised short ribs, a classic fall dish, cooked in wine with root vegetables for a glossy sauce to spoon over mashed potatoes, noodles, rice, or simply on its own.

I know what you’re thinking: November recipes mean turkey, mashed potatoes, and a handful of stuffing options. Not necessarily. We wanted to focus on the other 29 days of the month for this Recipes You Should Be Cooking in November list — the days that aren’t ruled by cranberry sauce and casserole. These dishes are homey and simple (save the labor-intensive dishes for Turkey Day) and remind you that winter will soon be arriving. I’ll be working to perfect this Braised Pork With Mustard, Rosemary, and Capers, which has a salty, tangy sauce made of whole-grain mustard and chicken broth. I like to eat it with an arugula salad or, on the especially chilly night, a bowl of cheesy, garlicky pasta. Besides these luscious cuts of pork, there’s a range of other recipes on our list, too. Some of my other favorites that I’ll be making this month: Garlicky Steak Salad With Chickpeas and Artichokes, Miso-Glazed Eggplant, and this Creamy Squash Soup With Salad Topping that uses almond butter for a nutty, not too sweet base. Happy cooking!

More to Read

• Here are 10 of our favorite soups right now, or “Bowls of Comfort,” as we like to call them at the Sunset office.
• Cosmic Crisp, a new apple variety developed by Washington State University, is launching on December 1. But will it be sweeter than Honeycrisp?
• Put those cremini, chanterelle, and portobellos to good use with these these 43 mushroom recipes.
• We’re big fans of whole grain bowls for a workday lunch, especially these quinoa, farro, and freekeh recipes.

Looking for more inspiration? Head over to Sunset Recipes for our fall cooking highlights.