Bean and Legume

This variation on the southern staple can be prepared easily with ingredients one usually has on hand. It's hearty, flavorful, and foolproof — a good choice when you come home from work and need supper in a hurry.

This light starter reinvents the classic side dish of lima beans and corn.

Virginia Flesher of Charleston, West Virginia, writes: "Last spring I attended my oldest grandson's college graduation in New York. The evening before the ceremony, the entire family dined at Town in the Chambers Hotel. I can still remember chef Geoffrey Zakarian's superb lentil soup."

Couscous is easy to cook—just add it to boiling water, remove it from the heat, and let it stand for a few minutes until the water is absorbed. The addition of cinnamon, lemon peel, garbanzo beans and golden raisins gives this side dish a Mediterranean flair.

This Asian-style stew features egg linguine, an easy substitute for Chinese egg noodles. Look for Chinese five-spice powder and hoisin sauce in the spice aisle or the Asian foods section of the supermarket.

Thakkali Rasam We liked this soup on its own, but in India it is frequently served over rice and topped with a spoonful of warm ghee.

Serve these beans with bread to sop up the juices.

A spicy spin on the classic side dish. Any leftovers make an excellent omelet filling when paired with turkey and Monterey Jack cheese.

Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 45 min

Many dark, leafy greens, like kale, contain calcium. The beans have it, too.

Celery root, a popular fall vegetable, tastes like a cross between celery and parsley.

"I dined on the most sumptuous grilled radicchio salad at The Dish Bistro and Wine Bar the last time I was in Tucson," writes Cindy Shafer of Huntington Beach, California. "Please get the recipe — I must have it." Yellow and green beans, and artichoke hearts are grilled along with the radicchio in this recipe. Serve the salad while the vegetables are still warm.

The tuna sauce for this salad is based on the Northern Italian tonnato— a summer sauce served over chilled veal roast. You could use light tuna, but white tuna makes the sauce a more attractive color.

This salad is dressed with a red pepper and tomato sauce.

Refried beans are typically made from pinto beans, but black beans work well, too. Add a dab of sour cream if you crave a little richness.

Accompany the risotto with a lettuce and radicchio salad, and pass a basket of poppy-seed breadsticks. A strawberry tart would be a nice way to end the meal. See how to finely chop herbs.