Sukkot

Sukkot is a weeklong Jewish holiday that comes five days after Yom Kippur. It celebrates the fall harvest and commemorates the story in the Torah when the Jews lived in temporary dwellings while wandering in the desert for 40 years after leaving Egypt.

Many Jews build a sukkah, which is an outdoor temporary dwelling, and then they eat their meals there and gather with friends. Even if you don't have a sukkah, it's still festive to be in the spirit and eat a meal outside.

So, for meals in the sukkah, I think of 3 types of dishes:

• One pot meals which are easy to carry outside.
• Fall dishes that showcase fall produce and that feel warm while eating outside in the crisp air.
• Stuffed foods which represent the bounty of the fall harvest.

My favorite Sukkot dishes include Honey Mustard Chicken with Fall Vegetables, Beef Barley Soup, Super Bowl Chili, Butternut Squash and Apple Soup, and Stuffed Zucchini (Kousa Mahshi).