Here’s a rustic, traditional soup that’s part of our winter menus and also of our Tu BiShvat menu, when it’s customary to eat barley. Pearl barley soup, Krupnik, is a Polish Ashkenazi specialty that warms both body and heart. It’s a lovely way to cook pearl barley, if you have some sitting in your pantry without knowing what to do with it. You can make it with or without meat; both options are given in the recipe.

Kreplach (or krepler, as we call them at home) are Ashkenazi filled dumplings, German in origin, that come in both cheese and meat versions. The best-known kreplach are usually filled with chicken or beef and served in chicken soup, but today I’m sharing a vegetarian (parve) version that’s every bit as tasty!

A flavorful recipe for beef shank so tender it falls apart, very simple to make for an excellent result.

A tender, flavorful braised beef neck, slow-simmered in a Dutch oven or pressure cooker with onions, tomato paste and balsamic vinegar. A comforting, generous meat dish you can make ahead.

Stuffed cabbage is a charming, old-fashioned dish, one of those comforting family meals. I discovered it in Israel, where it is firmly rooted in home cooking, a recipe inherited from the Ashkenazi tradition. It has plenty of cousins, since stuffed vegetables of every kind are part of the Jewish culinary tradition.

Soft, moist, fragrant and dairy-free, this carrot cake has it all!

Matzo ball soup, or kneidlach in Yiddish, is a great classic of Ashkenazi Jewish cooking. If you’re new to it, these are dumplings made from matzo meal, served in a lovely golden chicken broth. Simple to make and delicious, it’s a beautiful recipe to introduce you to Ashkenazi cooking and a magic remedy when you catch a cold.

A great classic of French cooking, beef bourguignon is exactly the kind of easy braise we all love: melt-in-your-mouth meat in a rich, velvety sauce. This kosher meat version is even better eaten the next day.

A tender, juicy veal roast cooked in the oven, served with a silky sauce scented with porcini mushrooms. A real centerpiece for the family table, the kind of dish that smells of sharing and that I’m especially fond of.

A few years ago I shared a delicious recipe for banana chocolate muffins. Here’s a recipe in the same spirit: it’s truly indulgent, with a light, pleasant texture. Part of the oil is replaced with applesauce (you can’t tell) and part of the white flour with whole spelt flour, which is better for fiber and keeps you full longer. So it’s perfect if you’re looking for a slightly healthier recipe. It’s kosher, and parve if you use plant-based yogurt. You’ll never throw out your ripe bananas again. In our house, it’s a keeper!

Keftas are a type of fish ball, and what makes them special is their slightly flattened shape and the fact that they are fried. Enjoy them as an appetizer or alongside a fish couscous.

A great American classic, pulled beef is full of flavor and easy to make. Just put your seasoned beef (I went with a homemade barbecue sauce) in the oven and let it cook quietly on its own. All that’s left to do is shred it once it’s done. It’s hard to do better.

This braised beef brisket is a flavorful dish that I’m sharing with you here with a fig and red wine sauce. The meat is meltingly tender, and it’s perfect for a festive meal, especially for Rosh Hashanah or Sukkot.

After my asado slow-cooked with onions, here is another version of oven-baked beef short ribs, this time caramelized in a homemade barbecue sauce, American ribs style.

Roasted and marinated vegetable antipasti are a staple of Italian starters. Colorful and full of flavor, they also make a great side, especially with a beef carpaccio or a beautiful burrata.

Every braid and every festive shape, move by move, in 21 printable pages to keep on the worktop. $6, to support the blog.