Dairy

Israeli couscous is small, round, toasted pasta with grains about the size of peppercorns. Serve this dish chilled or at room temperature.

Farro, an ancient variety of wheat, has a hearty texture and a nutty flavor. Here, the whole grain is tossed with bitter radicchio and earthy beets for a pretty, delicious, and healthful salad.

Layers of homemade mixed herb pesto lend a fresh brightness to this vegetarian main.

The tangy Teleme cheese is great with the sweet figs and the honey. Making the bruschetta on the grill will free up the oven.

This salad is great with grilled chicken thighs, lamb chops, or leg of lamb.

What makes this beautiful appetizer even more attractive? Both of the salsas and the toasted baguette slices can be prepared one day ahead.

Bite-size portions are just right for a cocktail party. If you'd like to serve the frittata for breakfast or brunch, cut it into larger pieces.

The classic Italian sauce gets an update with the addition of parsley and tarragon.

Making your own coarse fresh breadcrumbs takes just a minute; see "Test-Kitchen Tip" at the end of the recipe for the how-to.

His name is Kumahachi Moreno and he's one of the most famous television chefs in Japan. He showed up at my door one July 4th weekend bearing a bag of Japanese "mystery" ingredients for me to grill. My efforts would be videotaped and the results shown on Japanese television. Seemed like a good idea, but when Moreno opened his bag, out came gobo (burdock root), natto (fermented soybeans), uncooked cod roe, and flat painted cans of azuki (sweet red bean) paste. Decidedly not what most Americans are accustomed to grilling. I sliced the cod roe over freshly-shucked oysters, which I roasted on a wood-burning grill. The burdock went on bamboo skewers with scallions to be grilled yakitori style on a hibachi. The natto went on tortillas with jalapeños and grated cheddar to make grilled quesadillas. I spooned the azuki paste into hollowed out apples—Fujis, no less—and topped them with cream cheese, brown sugar, and butter to be smoke-roasted over applewood in a kettle grill. I held my breath and hoped for the best. Mr. Moreno and his Japanese film crew had never seen the likes of the meal that followed. The oysters came out great, served with wasabi-flavored whipped cream. The film crew ate the natto-stuffed quesadillas with gusto. A mouthful of the fibrous burdock root taught me why burdock is never grilled in Japan. The red bean paste–stuffed apples—the outside tender and smoky, the filling both piquant and sweet—promopted high-fives all around—definitely a first on both sides of the Pacific.

See "Ingredient Tip" for information on buying pizza dough.

Thai red curry paste and unsweetened coconut milk are sold in the Asian foods section of some supermarkets and at Asian markets. Be sure what you're buying is coconut milk, not sweetened cream of coconut, which is used for cocktails.

Sara adds a spoonful of bee pollen granules to this flowery smoothie, which she thinks turns it over-the-top sublime. Bee pollen is a storehouse of all naturally occurring multivitamins, proteins, minerals, amino acids, enzymes and hormones. Mary, however, is not wild about bee pollen's sweet-but-raw earthiness and chalky texture. With or without a dash of pollen, the BEE-ootiful combination of jasmine and pure raw honey calls to mind the rare deliciousness of wild honeysuckle. Remember, the floral splendor of this smoothie lies in the quality of honey that you use. If you prefer a fruitier flavor, mango-peach tea works well, too. Feel free to use frozen peaches as a substitute when fresh peaches are out of season.

Not to be confused with the annual Gaelic Gourmet events in Boston since the year 2000, Marty Lynch and Kevin O'Grady's Gaelic Gourmet BBQ Team has been burning sticks and wowing barbeque judges since the early 1980s. When Marty gave Ardie [Davis] a taste of CAM Onions at the 2008 Great American Barbecue, Ardie said, "You've gotta give me your recipe for the next KCBS cookbook!" Marty gladly obliged. He adapted this from Rick Browne's Oz Onion Pudding in Rick's Grilling America book (2003). Rick gave us permission to share this version, tweaked by Carolyn Wells, Amy Winn, and Marty Lynch—hence the CAM acronym.

Sweet potato curry puffs are a popular Singaporean street food. Slather this luscious curry-spiked sweet potato purée on warm whole-grain paratha bread if you can find it. If not, use whole-grain pita bread instead.

It's not only nostalgia that makes me love arepas; it's also their versatility! These corncakes are hugely popular in many forms in my native Colombia and neighboring Venezuela (among other places) and have now actually caught on in many parts of the United States. What makes them especially wonderful is that they offer cooks fabulous flexibility as far as preparation. So here I'm giving you my basic recipe—and a serving suggestion—but please know you can add whatever you'd like (grilled corn, diced peppers, different cheeses, just to name a few possibilities). Here I'm suggesting that you smear a bit of farmer's cheese—or Mexican queso blanco—on top. Great as an appetizer, these arepas are perfect with any cocktail!

This versatile sauce can accompany any number of desserts, such as Crunchy Toffee Tortoni or Buttermilk Layer Cake. If you prefer, the sauce can be flavored with chocolate, mocha, orange, or liqueur of your choice. It can be infused with crushed coffee beans, or praline can be folded into it.