Lately all of my favorite food websites and blogs have been awash in the bright, fresh colors of spring. From crisp asparagus to sweet fresh peas, there are signs of abundant warm-weather vegetables and salads everywhere I look. And while my senses love it all, on cooler spring afternoons, comfort food is still the order of the day. So last weekend I pulled together this creamy baked orzo to have for a lazy lunch when lofty plans for hiking flew out the window at the first sign of a drizzle. 

Q: I lost my recipe for spinach casserole with Boursin cheese. I make it every Easter. Can you help me? Please!!!

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Remember when everyone could eat bread? With more and more people avoiding gluten, bread has become a guilty pleasure at the dinner table, even for those of us who can tolerate it just fine. My deepest sympathies to those with gluten intolerance, who may want to look away while I take a moment to appreciate warm, soft, chewy, crusty, wonderful bread and all the ways you can turn a day-old loaf of it into a full meal.

The only possible cure for the late-winter blues is brunch. A big brunch. One with friends dropping by, trays upon trays of sticky buns, mimosas and coffee, and muffins for nibbling when you think you're almost full. Oh, yes! Let's do this.

A pasta bake is a wonderful thing. You make it for dinner one night and can enjoy the leftovers for lunches and quick meals during the entire following week. Any odds and ends from the fridge can be folded into the casserole and are all the better for it. And baking one on a chilly night makes the kitchen a warm and cozy place, drawing everyone in the house with its mouthwatering aromas and promise of a very good dinner.

One of the remarkable things about this savory potato and leek galette is that it looks fancy, yet the ingredients are simple and inexpensive. The potatoes are plain old russets, the fat is olive oil instead of butter, and even though it's gluten-free and vegan, the galette is pleasantly starchy and creamy — a perfect cross between comfort food and an elegant, company-worthy dish. More

A panade is one of those dishes that is way better than it has any right to be -- or than it looks to be. It's an assembly of day-old bread, shredded cheese, and handy pantry ingredients (in this case, cranberry beans, swiss chard, and sausage) that gets doused with broth and baked until bubbly. Not quite a soup and not quite a casserole, it's something more: the best of both worlds.

I had a few realizations over the holidays this year with family. There were the usual suspects, of course: travel mayhem, gifting stress, and family drama. But this year there was a new player on the block: bad casseroles. I'm not sure if it was just chance or if my mom and sisters were digging through old late 1980's cookbooks, but we had some very heavy, flavorless casseroles during the Christmas holiday. One such recipe was that infamous Tuna Noodle Casserole made with canned soup. I hadn't had it in years, and the whole time I was eating it, I couldn't help but think: there's got to be a better way! More

It's January, which means we are all craving food that is a little lighter, a little healthier, and a little more in line with the way we've resolved to eat this year. But at the same time, it's January and when we're wrapped up in sweaters and blankets, it's comfort foods we're dreaming about. That's where this recipe comes in. With its rich, mushroom-studded filling tucked under a layer of soft mashed sweet potato, it has all the hallmarks of a good shepherd's pie, but it's completely vegan — and includes a secret ingredient that adds body and creaminess to the filling, without any cream. More

I first came across "Aunt Cleo's Chicken Pie" while digging through my fiancé's tattered purple recipe folder, filled to the brim with handwritten index cards that his mother, Tina, had originally sent with him to college. We were only in the beginning phases of dating when I rummaged through the file, but I figured out pretty early that he was a sucker for his mom's home cooking. More