Parmesan

Packed with veggies and two kinds of cheese, this dish is hearty and surprisingly luxurious.

The fried eggs add extra unctuousness to a clever carbonara.

Lemon-tahini dressing unexpectedly emboldens kale and cheesy potatoes with its creaminess and tart richness. We went back for seconds and thirds.

Shake up your casserole rotation with a Greek pastitsio. Layers of ziti, meaty tomato sauce fragrant with spices, and silky béchamel come together in this deeply satisfying yet simple meal.

Luke Ostrom is a great cook. We've worked together for a long time; we've spent long nights drinking and talking food; we even traveled through Italy together. He knows his stuff, no doubt. So when he tells me we should try something, I usually listen. But when he started going on about orzo in our opening-menu-planning sessions, I was less than enthusiastic. He loved it when he was a kid, he said. It was so soul-satisfying and delicious, he said. It would make a great side dish on our menu, he said. But I wasn't buying it. I thought orzo was the kind of comfort food you fed to children and invalids: too bland, too soft, too ... boring. Boy, was I wrong. Luke's take on orzo can definitely qualify as comfort food: it's hearty, warm, and delicious, the kind of thing you can't stop eating. But it's also grown-up and complex: the wild mushrooms give it a rich earthiness, and the orzo has a great mouth-feel. It's sort of like the mushroom risotto of your dreams—only it's way easier. It's a great match with poultry or meat; but as far as I'm concerned, ain't nothing wrong with sitting down to a big heaping bowlful of this stuff all on its own, topped with a handful of Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Pistou—France's pesto—gives these simply poached eggs tons of flavor.

his upscale take on pimiento cheese is smoky and sweet, thanks to paprika and piquillos.

The trick to these poppers is squeezing as much liquid out of the grated zucchini as possible. This helps create a firm but light batter that can be easily rolled into balls and fried.

Three varieties of basil combine to make a powerfully fragrant and versatile topping for pasta, chicken, or fish.

Favorite Mediterranean ingredients come together in this creamy risotto. Adding the liquid from the tomatoes to the chicken stock underscores the flavor of the fresh tomatoes added at the very end. This is delicious made with any ripe red or orange tomatoes.

This homey dish made everyone in the test kitchen swoon. Roma tomatoes become even more intense when roasted, and this comforting, custardy bread pudding proves the perfect match for their bright flavor. Take it to a potluck, serve it with something grilled, or make it a vegetarian main dish with a green salad.

This creamy fettuccine Alfredo is truly luxurious and yet so simple. You'll be rewarded for using the very best pasta and Parmesan.

Simple and sophisticated.

How can you possibly improve chicken Parm? By coating the chicken breasts in grated Parmesan instead of breadcrumbs.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text are from Mario Batali's book Italian Grilling. Reprinted with permission by Ecco. All rights reserved. This was one of the first dishes I put on the menu at my restaurant Pó... a long, long time ago. You can vary it by using different greens, such as spicy young watercress, or other cheeses, including sheep's-milk cheese, semi-soft or aged. The beauty of the dish lies in the seemingly incongruous marriage of anchovies and mushrooms: anchovies plus mushrooms equals steak.