This week’s recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

Have a little time to spare this weekend? In this week’s section, I talk about the simple pleasures of a slow-simmered stew:

“Unlike a typical weeknight dinner rushed to the table after a long day, stews are patient, as much about the sheer pleasure of cooking as the finished dish itself. It’s the simple alchemy of time and ingredients layered in a pot to form something lush and rich, with a depth of flavor that cannot be duplicated with a shortcut.”

While I’d argue that a good stew demands patience, not all of them require a lot of time. One of the recipes -- for a richly-flavored butternut squash stew -- comes together in about an hour.

This week’s recipes include:

• Chicken and andouille smoked sausage gumbo
• Oxtail daube (Daube de queue de boeuf)
• Spiced butternut squash stew
• Roberto’s gambas Mozambique from Espana Restaurant

When you try one of this week’s recipes or any L.A. Times recipe, let us know! Upload a photo to the “Our Recipes, Your Kitchen” gallery to share your take on the recipe and tell us about yourself. Your photo will be posted online on our L.A. Times Food page.

ALSO:

The magic of pate-a-choux

Go behind the scenes at the Test Kitchen

Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

You can find Noelle Carter on Facebook, Google+, Twitter and Pinterest. Email Noelle at noelle.carter@latimes.com.