The traditional Sweet Potato Bake, topped with gooey browned marshmallows, has become a Thanksgiving tradition—especially if you have kids.

But recipes are now geared toward more adult tastes, be it Creamy Vanilla Sweet Potatoes or Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Pecan Streusel Topping.

Bananas add a touch of the exotic—and a nutritional boost—to today’s Caribbean-inspired recipe. Prep time is 20 minutes, bake time is 40 minutes, and all of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store.

If you’re a fan of TV cooking competitions, you know cheftestants sometimes do themselves in by going overboard with ingredients. Judges remind them to simplify their dishes and allow natural flavors to shine through.

Chef Michael Chiarello, a finalist on the first season of Bravo’s Top Chef Masters and owner of Bottega Napa Valley, gets it. Simplicity trumps fussiness, and his food is clean and elegant. (Check out his recipes for Radicchio Salad and Home-Style Minestrone.)

As noted yesterday, the roasting process is ideal for winter squash, as the vegetable’s natural sugars caramelize as it cooks. Add some organic butter, salt and pepper, and you have an easy-to-prepare side dish for your Thanksgiving table.

’Tis the season to buy winter squash at your local natural and organic food store or farmers’ market.

Whether you select the acorn, buttercup, butternut (above) or Hubbard variety, you’ll enjoy numerous health benefits, as well as a tasty entree or side dish.

Let’s review the four basic ways to get cooking.

1. Bake/Roast

This method is super-delicious because it caramelizes a squash’s natural sugars:

Fall’s dynamic trio—a bowl of homemade organic soup, a tossed salad, and a loaf of crusty bread or homemade biscuits—is hard to beat on a chilly autumn evening.

Creating this filling dinnertime soup couldn’t be easier. Prep time is only 10 minutes, cook time is 20 minutes, and all of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store.

Enjoy!

Savory Vegetable Beef Soup

Makes 6 servings

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate fall than incorporating seasonal textures, flavors and ingredients into evening meals.

Today’s recipe for Beet and Red Cabbage Salad doubles up on nutrient-rich vegetables: pickled beets and sweet-and-sour red cabbage. Finish the dish with crispy tart apples and crunchy toasted pecans.

Prep time is 15 minutes, cook time is 10 minutes, and all of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store.

Most Halloween treats are sweet, but you can also celebrate the holiday with more healthful savory dishes.

Sweet potatoes (or pumpkin) give today’s recipe its orange hue. Use small Halloween cookie cutters (right) to create a kid-friendly side dish that’s rich in vitamin A.

All of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store.

Looking for a Halloween treat that’s easy on your teeth?

Today’s recipes for Black-Cherry Bats and Citrus-Orange Pumpkins won’t screw up braces, fillings or crowns. The key ingredients are natural flavored gelatin (right) and fresh fruit juice.

Each recipe makes 2 dozen treats, and all of the ingredients should be available at a well-stocked natural and organic food store.

These recipes have been adapted from The Braces Cookbook by Pamela Waterman.

Iron Chef, restaurateur and cookbook author Bobby Flay (above) will host Brunch at Bobby's, a new TV show that debuts 2 p.m. Saturday on the Cooking Channel.

Sunday brunch happens to be Flay’s favorite meal of the week, and he’s passionate about it. Brunch @ Bobby’s celebrates his favorite menus, which he’ll prepare from a relaxed kitchen in The Hamptons.

Americans consume 300 million sandwiches daily—roughly one per U.S. resident each day.

While we tend to think of the noble ’wich as lunch fare, Organic Sandwich Night is a great way for families to enjoy a nutritious dinner that requires minimal preparation.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend six 1-ounce servings of grain foods each day, half of which should come from whole grains—a goal many of us fail to meet. A dinnertime sandwich helps ensure you’re eating at least two of those servings.

Before Paula Deen became a bestselling author and celebrity chef, she taught sons Jamie and Bobby how to cook at the family’s restaurant, aptly named The Lady & Sons.

The Savannah, GA-based eatery, which opened its doors in 1989, still specializes in Southern cuisine—from fried green tomatoes and fried chicken to crab stew and barbecued grouper. (Check out Paula’s recipe for Rustic Orange Eggs Benedict.)

The Deen brothers have since hosted the Food Network’s Road Tasted and written several cookbooks, including Y’all Come Eat and The Deen Bros. Take It Easy: Quick and Affordable Meals the Whole Family Will Love.