5 Cozy Community Recipes, Made With Lots of Love

In our latest recipe contest, we asked our community members to share their best dish made with love. We asked for a main course that was easy for the recipient of the loving meal to transport and serve. For this contest, we also asked our community members to give us a special headnote telling us the story of how their dish is made with love.

Our community members generously shared both their recipes and their stories, and we loved seeing this additional dimension to everyone's cooking.

1. Long Distance Ragù by italianenough

We were totally taken by italianenough's headnote that described both her family connection to this beautiful ragù and her long distance love story. This dish is a labor of love that is a perfect afternoon project—and it freezes beautifully, so you can enjoy the effort for weeks to come. The richness of the three types of pork (shoulder, ground, and pancetta) is nicely balanced by the heat as well as the acid from the wine and tomatoes.

2. The Cuban by antoniajames

We would love to join AntoniaJames' and her family for a beach trip to enjoy these delicious Cuban sandwiches. Her story really resonates with all of us whose family food traditions translate into storytelling and acts of remembrance. This Cuban sandwich is truly spectacular with the perfect amount of seasoning and great textures. We recommend that you make her rolls to accompany this sandwich if you have the time.

3. Nordic Salmon Soupe by Chefanna

We loved this glimpse into Chef Anna's Scandinavian heritage with this delicious "soupe." This delicious dish is a comforting bowl of love. It's a good reminder that not all comfort foods have to be rustic. Chef Anna's soup will make the eater feel very special with the delicate flavors and elegant touches of herbs and creme fraiche.

4. A Favorite Meat or Turkey Pie by Bevi

Bevi's savory dinner pie will give you an opportunity to be a little creative—and artistic—when you decorate this crust on this dish to add a little more love for your recipient. This pie hits all the notes of comfort and we loved the enhanced dough approach. We suggest you follow Bevi's advice and serve this with some nice fruity applesauce or tart cranberry sauce.

5. Not Your Grandmother's Cabbage Roll Soup by lakelurelady

We could picture lakelurelady making her family's treasured cabbage rolls as we ready the headnote and it made us so excited for her adaptation of that recipe as a soup. Her soup did not disappoint. We were pleasantly surprised how the sweetness of the soup really rounded out the meat and cabbage flavors. The cranberries added a lovely layer of tartness to this thoughtful recipe.

Give one or all of these recipes a try in your kitchen and let us know your thoughts!

Voting for the final two recipes will open January 1, 2022 at 12 p.m. EDT here. May the best dish win!