Dairy

Usher in the zucchini season with these neat little vessels. They're tender and moist with a pungent, crunchy top. You might also attract a few young children to zucchini in the process. Let them sprinkle on the cheese and this may actually interest them in eating the final result.

Using canned black beans makes this soup a snap to prepare. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Goat cheese and fennel prove to be the perfect partners for smoked salmon. Pour glasses of Champagne or Sauvignon Blanc.

I appreciate a good lasagne but hate the work and time involved — precooking the noodles, layering the dish, and baking it for an hour. So I came up with this uncomplicated spaghetti recipe which combines all the elements of a good lasagne without the trouble.

The Mango and Red Onion Salsa is nice alongside this low-fat entreé.

Reflecting the cuisines of Israel and the surrounding Mediterranean Middle Eastern countries, this meatless stew is seasoned with mint and lemon. Serve it with sesame seed rolls and a tomato and cucumber salad; have pistachio ice cream for dessert.

At the restaurant, this pizza is made with smoked chicken, but turkey is easier to get and works just as well.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. For this recipe we used a Belgian waffle iron, but a standard waffle iron will also work. The batter yields four 4-inch-square Belgian waffles or eight 4-inch-square standard waffles.

Chili powder and chopped jalapeño add a touch of heat to this smooth appetizer. Try sprinkling it with chopped red onion for some crunch and color.

Offer this with Herbed Eggplant as a first course. Icy-cold ouzo is the perfect aperitif for the meal.

Bisquick got its start in the early thirties when Carl Smith, a salesman for General Mills, took a late-night train ride. He went to the dining car in hopes of finding something to eat, and was pleasantly surprised to be served freshly made biscuits. When he asked about them, the chef confessed that he kept a pre-mixed batch of ingredients for the dough in the freezer for late orders. Smith reported back to General Mills, suggesting that they market such a mix, and they did. But it’s not just for biscuits; Bisquick can be used to make pancakes and waffles, and this luscious coffee cake, too.

Many southerners object to the practice of adding sugar to corn bread, but associate food editor Alexis Touchet, who grew up in Louisiana, is all for it. Sugar, in fact, is listed as an optional ingredient in the recipe for "pain de maïs nonpareil" in The Picayune's Creole Cook Book, first published in 1901. It's important here that your cast-iron skillet is well seasoned and thoroughly preheated—you want the batter to sizzle when you pour it in.

The pancetta and cheese rind give this soup a rich, almost creamy flavor. We removed the stems from the Swiss chard, but if you don't want to waste them, feel free to put them in the soup as well: Once the leaves are sliced, chop the stems and add them to the soup along with the leaves.

You remember s'mores — flame-roasted marshmallows and pieces of chocolate bar sandwiched between graham crackers. The marshmallows melted the chocolate, creating a gooey mess that was so irresistible, you just had to eat some more. My hors d'oeuvre version features flame-roasted mozzarella cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil squeezed between grilled bread slices or crackers. Everyone still winds up with an irresistibly gooey mess — great party fare.