The Great American Recipe

This recipe makes a huge pot of soup and doesn't take all day. I like making hearty soups in the winter time, and in addition to being delicious, this soup freezes well. If you like vegetables, add more to make it a little more veggie-forward. I like to think that makes it a little more healthful, too.

NOTE: If freezing servings, you may want to add pasta of your choice when reheating, otherwise the pasta can overcook.

This is a vegetarian version of the traditional Hoppin' John dish made for good luck on New Year's. People I work with expect this now and remind me starting around Halloween!

This is a spicy, garlicky recipe. It looks like a lot of garlic, but it is not, as sliced garlic is not as pungent as chopped garlic.

This recipe has been on our family Fourth of July table for years and years. It just wouldn't be the Fourth without it. All will enjoy! Nana came up with the recipe and for her it has been named Nana’s Torte.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup softened butter
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
Blueberry pie filling or homemade blueberry topping (blueberries cooked down with cornstarch to thicken)
Whipped cream

PBS's home cook competition show The Great American Recipe has been renewed for a second season following the end of its first and the revelation of the winner—and a cookbook from the first season is now available.

Reader Jean SmilingCoyote created this recipe, which uses only indigenous ingredients.

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“It’s kind of like a grassy vanilla, maybe with some coconut or floral overtones,” says author Mia P. Manansala of pandan, which flavors numerous Southeast Asian desserts. That includes Manansala's crinkle cookie recipe, which she shares ahead of an upcoming book.

The new PBS cooking competition show The Great American Recipe spotlights the stories and dishes of home cooks from across the country, and has The Great British Baking Show vibes, according to show judge Graham Elliot, who spoke to us about the series.

"If I have a bad day, I cook," says Jane Reed, whose son Chris started the catering business Bumbu Roux with her to serve the Indonesian food of her youth and the Creole food of his father's. Try an Indonesian recipe from them here. 

“People who go to Senegal say it’s what they remember the most, because it’s easy to remember: yassa!” says Madieye Gueye, the owner of Bronzeville's Yassa African Restaurant. Try a version of the simple Senegalese dish. 

Macaroons are a common treat during Passover, since they don't contain grain and are unleavened. Ursula Siker of the "Jew-ish" deli Jeff & Jude's shares her recipe as well as her love of Jewish delis and inspiraton behind her own. 

Elle Lei of the colorful Chicagoland confectionery SUGOi Sweets has been inspired by the intense seasonality of Japanese desserts ever since she lived there. She shares a recipe for a Japanese treat perfect for spring.