101 Easy Comfort Food Recipes | Best Comfort Food Recipes | Easy Comfort Food Recipes

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Buffalo Cauliflower Baked Mac and Cheese

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Bacon, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Burgers

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Creamy Spinach and Artichoke Chicken Skillet

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Oven-Fried Ranch Chicken

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Garlic Cheese Bread Sticks

Ree avoids the dried-out meatloaf that everyone dreads by combining her ground beef with bread soaked in milk. Topping the loaf with layers of thin-cut bacon also ensures flavorful, decadent results.

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Meatloaf

For the most-comforting side dish ever, layer some sliced potatoes, butter and half-and-half — with a hint of nutmeg for warmth — and bake until bubbling and golden brown.

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Scalloped Potatoes

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Southern Fried Chicken Parmesan

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The Best Chicken Noodle Soup

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Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Shells

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Chicken and Herb Dumplings

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Twice Baked Potato Casserole

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Tex-Mex Chicken Parmesan

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Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

This take on a classic Italian-American recipe is super-easy to make. Slightly reducing the cream and adding a hefty dose of cheese means you don’t have to use flour to thicken the sauce.

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Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo

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Stuffed Sloppy Joe Bombs

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Air Fryer French Fries

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Shortcut Chicken Enchiladas

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Chicken with Mustard Mascarpone Marsala Sauce

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Pesto Lasagna Rolls

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Creamy Broccoli Stem Gratin

Buffalo chicken wings just aren’t complete without a cool, creamy dipping sauce to offset the heat. This recipe offers a tangy blue cheese dressing that will complement your wings perfectly.

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Buffalo-Style Chicken Wings

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Shakshuka

Ree Drummond’s easy pasta topped with a creamy tomato sauce is ready in just 25 minutes.

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Penne alla Vodka

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Cowboy Butter Shrimp and Grits

Stuffed with sweet Italian sausage and prosciutto, Ina’s jumbo meatballs deliver so much flavor that you’d never guess they were built with a base of lean ground turkey.

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Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti

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White Baked Ziti

Ina’s juicy skillet-roasted chicken tastes even better thanks to the rich and earthy pan juices, a byproduct of dry white wine, onions, garlic, lemons and herbs that penetrate the chicken as it cooks. After roasting, the lemons turn from bitter to sweet — almost candied — so that you can bite right into them.

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Skillet-Roasted Lemon Chicken

Giada reinvents this classic childhood casserole for adult palates with a hearty, artichoke-studded ricotta filling and spicy red sauce.

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Turkey and Artichoke Stuffed Shells with Arrabbiata Sauce

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Spaetzle

Giada’s version of this Italian-American classic couldn’t be easier. She tops her cutlets with a simple, homemade tomato sauce, but your favorite jarred marinara will work just as well.

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Chicken Parmesan

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Chocolate-Banana Pancake Breakfast Casserole

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Alfredo Shrimp Scampi Dump Dinner

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Beef Stew

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Chicken Parmesan Lasagna

It may sound odd to make a Bolognese sauce without tomatoes, but this white version is deep with flavor from aromatics, herbs and white wine. Cream adds body and richness.

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Bolognese Bianco

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Chicken Parmesan Stuffed Shells

Skip the fryer and try these oven-fried potatoes instead. All you need is a little olive oil, salt and a piping-hot 450-degree oven.

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Oven-Fried Potatoes

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Jalapeno Popper-Stuffed Chicken

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Cornbread Chili Poke Bake

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40-Cloves-of-Garlic Chicken Alfredo

Classic and easy to make, this version of Alfredo doesn’t require flour to thicken the sauce. Instead, it relies on a slight simmer and a heavy dose of cheese.

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Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

Try this easy four-ingredient side: baked russet potatoes fully loaded with butter, sour cream and extra-sharp cheddar cheese.

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Cheese-Stuffed Baked Potatoes

Comfort food doesn’t always have to be about cheesy, creamy sauces. This fried rice recipe from Food Network Kitchen combines tender cubes of meat with egg and veggies that are cooked in peanut oil for a result that is satisfying and savory.

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Fried Rice

This Southern classic combines three of the most-satisfying comfort food ingredients around: bacon, cheddar and grits.

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Shrimp and Grits

Rachael revamps a comfort food classic with a fun presentation. The individual muffin-size portions cook faster in the oven than the traditional loaf — plus, they’re the perfect size for kids.

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Meatloaf Muffins with Barbecue Sauce

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Cider-Roasted Pork Tenderloins

Though lighter and healthier, these mashed potatoes are not without flavor and comfort-food appeal. Olive oil replaces butter, and a melange of fresh herbs provides springy freshness.

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Mashed Potatoes with Olive Oil and Herbs

Giada suggests using homemade fettuccine — it’s fresher and cooks faster than dried pasta. Finish cooking the pasta in the cream sauce — that way, the noodles will absorb the sauce’s buttery flavor.

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Fettuccine Alfredo

Ree prepares an easy butter spread using rosemary and lemon zest. Be prepared to roll up your sleeves — Ree says the most effective way to coat the chicken is to use your hands.

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Roast Chicken

A white bechamel sauce base makes Giada’s dish ultracreamy. Combined with garlicky mushrooms, sauteed chicken and pasta then topped with breadcrumbs, this baked dish is a crowd-pleaser.

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Chicken Tetrazzini

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Detroit-Style Pizza

Ree uses breakfast sausage in her calzone filling, but you can tailor the recipe to your liking by using your favorite add-ins. After all, “the great thing about a calzone is that you can customize what you put inside,” Ree says.

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Easy Calzones

Easy enough for everyday and delicious enough for company, Ina’s recipe for the old-fashioned classic comes together with chunky vegetables, a can of whole plum tomatoes and lots of red wine.

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Company Pot Roast

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Enchilada Lasagna Roll-Ups

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Herby Spinach and Mushroom Baked Ziti

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Bangers and Mash

This quick and easy garlic bread has a perfect blend of buttery flavor and crunchy texture. Serve it alongside your favorite cold-weather soups or stews.

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Herbed Garlic Bread

The best part about this ultra-creamy comfort food is that you can whip it up in no time at home. But because the sauce requires a lot of egg yolk, Giada suggests eating it right after making it. Otherwise, “it’s like making your scrambled eggs the morning before you’re going to eat them,” she says.

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Chicken Carbonara

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Chicken Alfredo Stuffed Shells

Amy’s beef short ribs couldn’t be easier: Just roast them in the oven and finish with a dark, treacly porter beer glaze. Where the glaze adds deep, almost chocolatey flavor, cilantro and lime provide balance with their high notes.

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Oven-Baked Short Ribs with Porter Beer Mop

The key to perfect, crispy roasted potatoes lies in the cooking fat. For this recipe, Food Network Kitchen uses butter and, for flavor, garlic and parsley.

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Roasted New Potatoes with Garlic

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Cheesy Broccoli-Stuffed Chicken with Tomato Rice

This dish requires very little cooking. Simply toss the cooked pasta with the tomatoes, kalamata olives and other fresh ingredients. Food Network Kitchen recommends using bocconcini — or “baby mozzarella” — to ensure a bit of creamy cheese in every forkful.

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Penne with Baby Mozzarella, Tomatoes, and Herbs

If you’re cooking for a crowd, Ree recommends using a large enough skillet so you can cook your pork chops three at a time. Serve the chops with mashed potatoes for a simple yet satisfying meal.

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Pan Fried Pork Chops

When cold weather sets in, treat yourself to a generous helping of this buttery beef Stroganoff. The tender slices of beef and mushroom with noodles are sure to warm you up.

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Beef Stroganoff

From the chunks of thick-cut bacon to the melted pecorino and Parmesan cheeses, this carbonara recipe leaves little to be desired.

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Spaghetti Carbonara

To achieve just the right flavor, Ree dredges her steak in a flour mixture that’s been enhanced with paprika and cayenne. Topped with cream gravy, this is a cowboy classic on a whole new level.

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Chicken Fried Steak with Gravy

Take mashed potatoes to the next level: Add bacon for smoke and crunch, cheddar cheese for sharpness and scallions for an onion-flavored finish.

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Bacon-Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

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Grilled Cheese with Caramelized Onions

This version of chicken Parmesan from Food Network Magazine is ready in a snap. Top your golden, breaded cutlets with a thick slice of mozzarella and let the broiler work its magic.

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Chicken Parmesan

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Creamy Chicken Pasta

Put leftover white wine to good use in the white clam sauce for this comforting pasta dish. You can also use clam juice in its place for an extra-briny taste.

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Linguine with White Clam Sauce

Chicken-fried steak just isn’t complete without a generous spoonful of thick, creamy gravy. Luckily, this version from Food Network Magazine comes with a gravy recipe that’s rich, satisfying and incredibly easy to make.

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Chicken-Fried Steak with Cream Gravy

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Stuffed Shells Bolognese

Got one or two overripe bananas? Throw them into a resealable plastic bag and freeze them. (They’ll keep for a month.) When you have enough, use them to make this easy banana bread. Just bring them to room temperature, then peel and mash.

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The Best Banana Bread

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Instant Pot Creamy Ranch Chicken Pasta

How to make great French toast: Use stale bread, making sure to slice it at least 3/4 inch thick (which helps to maximize soaking for a custardy interior), and watch your soaking time (a shorter time leads to a slightly drier toast, whereas a longer time yields a more custardy one).

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Classic French Toast

Host a fondue party: Amy Theilen jazzes up her cheese pot with aged cheddar and Gruyère with a melange of gourmet skewers for dipping: grilled tomatoes, onions, bacon and ciabatta.

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Aged Cheddar Fondue with Grilled Tomatoes, Bacon and Onions

Amy fries fresh onions in clarified butter to make this caramelized onion dip. Clarifying the butter, or removing some of the water and milk solids from the butterfat, ensures that the onions don’t burn.

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Fried Onion Dip

Amy uses coarse country bread, sausage and fresh sage to make stuffing for an impressive roast chicken dinner for family and friends.

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Roast Chicken with Green Herb Stuffing

Sloppy joes may be a classic kids’ favorite, but Rachael’s recipe is so comforting and savory, adults will be happy to dig in as well.

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Super Sloppy Joes

Take Sunday brunch to the next level with this fabulous bread pudding recipe, loaded with the familiar tastes of French toast. Thick challah bread provides heft, while honey, orange zest and maple syrup add subtleties of flavor.

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French Toast Bread Pudding

Two comfort food favorites, meatloaf and lasagna, come together in this fun, crowd-pleasing new dish. To save time, use a cup of your favorite prepared red sauce.

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Meatloaf Lasagna

This spaghetti recipe is anything but ordinary: Huge hunks of beef and pork meatballs topple over a hefty tangle of noodles and spicy tomato sauce. The spiky spice comes twofold from cayenne pepper and hot sauce.

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Sunny’s Spicy Spaghetti with Mega Meatballs

Feed a crowd with this hearty meatloaf recipe. Sriracha and apple cider vinegar add kick to Sunny Anderson’s special, spicy ketchup sauce.

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Meatloaf Is the Way to My Heart As Long As It Has Kick and Potatoes Are Around

How to stack this tasty open-faced sandwich: Nestle a single fried egg (sunny-side up) over a juicy, smoky beef patty, a quick garlic-lemon mayo and finally, a thick slice of buttery Texas toast.

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Sunny Side Up Burger

These potatoes are simple but effective. Boiled in a flavorful water bath of garlic, bay and black peppercorns, these golden nuggets are finished with a knob of butter and a generous sprinkle of salt.

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Boiled Potatoes with Butter

Load her up: These baked potatoes are packed with sour cream, crispy bacon and a fresh sprinkling of chives.

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Baked Potatoes

These hearty grilled sandwiches are loaded with caramelized onions, ground beef and Swiss cheese, which oozes out like creamy lava.

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Patty Melts

Tyler’s meaty, buttery beef Stroganoff requires minimal prep work, and best of all, it practically cooks itself. The short ribs are roasted on low heat until the meat is fall-apart, melt-in-your-mouth tender.

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Beef Stroganoff with Buttered Noodles

This juicy, panko-crusted chicken is a great alternative to the traditional deep-fried versions. For spicy, Tennessee-style flavor, use paprika and cayenne in the breading and hot sauce in the wet dredging mixture.

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Pat and Gina’s Oven Fried Chicken

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Rotini with Chicken Marsala Ragout

Everything bagels meet pigs in blankets in this creative recipe from Food Network Kitchen. Perfect as a quirky appetizer or for a quick breakfast, these baby sausages are enveloped in buttery, oniony pastry heaven.

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“Everything” Pigs in a Blanket

Serve these sandwiches fresh off the griddle. That way, guests can bite into layers of warm, melted Swiss.

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Patty Melts

Ina Garten uses melted pecorino and heavy cream in this pasta dish for a rich meal that is stick-to-your-ribs good.

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Pasta with Pecorino and Pepper

Patrick and Gina Neely created this meatloaf by baking the ground turkey mixed with different flavor-filled seasonings, then topping it all off with their famous BBQ seasoning.

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BBQ Turkey Meatloaf

Food Network Kitchen’s quick marinara sauce lends this hero a wonderfully rustic, chunky texture. Best of all, the sauce will require very little shopping, as you’re likely to have most of the ingredients stocked away in your pantry.

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Eggplant Parmesan Hero

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Lasagna

Jeff makes a quick and simple roux to thicken the sauce for his creamy pot pie filling. Then he combines toasted pine nuts with frozen and thawed peas in the food processor for an easy pesto topping that’s bright and flavorful.

For his take on this family favorite, Tyler makes his own savory sauce from pantry staples like ketchup, mustard and red wine vinegar, and he tops the sloppy joes with homemade pickles for a cooling bite.

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The Ultimate Sloppy Joes