This Week's Most Popular Recipes

This week’s most popular recipes are a mix of meaty mains, simple pastas, cheesy sides and our best brownies. One thing they all have in common? They’re pure comfort food.

Spicy South African Beef Stew with Olives

“Like a spicy beef bourguignon,” is how one reader described our Spicy South African Beef Stew with Olives . This stew, called trinchado, likely originates with the Portuguese in neighboring Mozambique and Angola. Worcestershire sauce—though neither South African nor Portuguese—is a common ingredient for the dish that adds a characteristic savory-sweetness, while brandy brings a touch of fruitiness, fresh chilies spice things up and olives offer brininess. Like all of our favorite beef stews, this one has layers of flavor. Unlike other stews in our collection, this one is typically served alongside a bed of golden French fries. (You could also serve with bread, but where’s the fun in that?)

Smoky, Creamy Refried Black Beans

These beans are perhaps the best thing I’ve ever made with a canned legume. They’re inspired by the refried lentils at Broken Spanish in Los Angeles, where black lentils are cooked down to near-perfect smoothness, then blended with cheese. We love lentils, but we actually preferred applying this technique to humble canned black beans—not only is it delicious, it’s dead-easy (and pretty cheap). The beans are simmered with some softened onion and garlic, a couple bay leaves and a chipotle pepper in adobo—just to let the flavors meld—then everything (except the bay leaf) is whirred in the food processor until smooth. Next, shredded cheese is processed right into the beans, adding a rich, full flavor as well as a creamy, almost whipped consistency that “pulls” ever so slightly.

Tahini Swirl Brownies

“Why hasn’t everyone made this brownie???” asked one of our readers in the comments section, noting that they’re “[s]imple to make, great flavor, not too sweet, moist and rich, perfection.” We have the same question, actually. In these brownies, a tahini swirl acts as the perfect foil to dark chocolate. Its creamy texture and nutty notes, mixed with sugar, bring the sweet sesame flavor of halvah candy, with far less work. It’s similar in function to a peanut butter swirl, but a bit more refined and unexpected.

Mashed Potato Gratin

This dish is a favorite among the indecisive. It combines two classics: mashed potatoes and cheese-topped potato gratin. Milk-simmered mashed potatoes are the base, sliced potatoes and shredded Gruyère are layered on top, then the casserole is baked until golden. The blanket of shingled slices and bubbling cheese does its job so well, you can't serve this gratin fresh from the oven. Let it rest for about 20 minutes to allow the potatoes to firm up slightly. Even after 30 to 45 minutes, the gratin will be warm enough for serving.

Pasta with Tomato, Onion and Butter

Marcella Hazan’s famous tomato sauce with onion and butter, from her book “The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking,” transforms three simple ingredients into a luscious sauce. Our pantry-focused version replaces the fresh tomatoes with a can of tomato paste to create a dish that can be on the table in minutes. To enhance the sweetness and umami, we finish the sauce with a splash of balsamic vinegar and nutty Parmesan cheese. If you don’t have spaghetti, use another type of pasta, such as fettuccine or linguine. Fresh basil, though an optional garnish, is a great addition; if you have it on hand, toss some into the pasta just before serving.

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Claire Lower

Claire Lower is the Digital Editor for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street, with over a decade of experience as a food writer and recipe developer. Claire began writing about food (and drinks) during the blogging boom in the late 2000s, eventually leaving her job as a lab technician to pursue writing full-time. After freelancing for publications such as Serious Eats, Yahoo Food, xoJane and Cherry Bombe Magazine, she eventually landed at Lifehacker, where she served as the Senior Food Editor for nearly eight years. Claire lives in Portland, Oregon with a very friendly dog and very mean cat. When not in the kitchen (or at her laptop), you can find her deadlifting at the gym, fly fishing or trying to master figure drawing at her local art studio.