Dairy

Have some carrot sticks, sweet gherkin pickles and buttered dinner rolls with the salad; if the picnic is taking place in the back yard, offer some corn on the cob as well. Oversize oatmeal cookies and watermelon wedges are a great finish. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

We make half of this mac 'n' cheese plain, for kids, and into the other half we stir some chipotle chiles to give it a grown-up kick. Any tubular pasta will do, but we like to use cavatappi, a ridged, spiral macaroni that lends the dish a particularly festive air.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Begin the meal with chilled canned vichyssoise sprinkled with chopped fresh chives. A bowl of marinated green and black olives goes well with the salad, and a compote of the season's best fruits — berries, melon and peaches — is a nice finish.

Tender biscuits that are rich and flavorful.

Gregg Thompson of St. Joseph, Missouri, writes, "A good many years ago, my wife and I enjoyed a beefy curried mousse at Snaffles restaurant in Dublin. The recipe was published in You Asked for It in your January 1972 issue. It's a wonderful dish that I have continued to enjoy through the years, and I believe it should be resurrected." Active time: 5 min Start to finish: 8 hr This is a great hors d'oeuvre to make the night before it's served, and it's best when made with the freshest garlic you can find.

Serve this dish at the end of a meal — it's a fruit and cheese course in one. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 25 min