Steak

"I've been cooking since I was twelve, and my husband, Bruce, picked it up during a 'Mr. Mom' phase after our second daughter was born," writes Renee Davis of Cadiz, Ohio. "Although we've since returned to more traditional roles—I usually cook on the weeknights, and he grills on the weekend—we also have a great time coming up with recipes together. Bruce devised this spicy garlic butter to keep lobster tails moist as they cook on the grill." When you want to splurge, this is a sensational and simple dish with assertive garlic and hot (but not too hot) chili flavors.

This may not sound like traditional teriyaki, but we love the combination of coriander and cilantro with the soy marinade. Serve the steak with hot-and-sour cabbage salad .

Cid Prevost, Kansas City, Mo.
An ad director who collects cookbooks (last count: 300-plus), Cid grows 14 varieties of herbs in her garden: "For this chili, I use my own cilantro, basil and bay leaves."

Marinate the steaks one to eight hours before grilling. What to drink: A red wine with ripe fruit (such as Côtes du Rhône) or a pale ale.

(Churrasco de Sao Paulo a la Parilla con Chimichurri Rojo) Churrasco is a very primitive form of cooking meat. The gauchos, or cowboys, of Brazil would kill and butcher the animals out on the pampas, build a big fire, and barbecue the meat on a spit of some sort, basting it with a vinegary liquid. As cities developed, however, this recipe too became more civilized — I do ask you to prepare it the way they do in many Brazilian steak houses, with cebollas fritas (otherwise known as onion rings).

Because skirt steaks can be very long, it's much easier to handle them when they are cut in half.

This elegant entrée deserves special accompaniments, like buttered baby carrots sprinkled with chopped tarragon, twice-baked potatoes (available frozen) and a spinach salad tossed with toasted walnuts. New-York-style cheesecake with strawberries provides the properly indulgent finale.

Those with Texas-size appetites will require an entire steak; for most others — even the heartiest of meat lovers — half of one of these rib steaks is probably plenty.

Serve with: Jasmine rice and a cucumber, red bell pepper, and sweet onion salad with rice wine dressing.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 45 min

Melanie Riggs of Jackson, Mississippi, writes: "Last winter, I visited some friends in Minnesota. We had a fabulous meal at Redstone American Grill in Minnetonka, where I ordered an amazing steak with a blue- cheese-flavored crust." The Japanese-style breadcrumbs known as panko give the steaks a light, crispy crust.

You can also make these with chicken, ham or roast pork.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Start with mugs of tomato soup, then serve a tossed green salad with these open-face sandwiches. To wrap up such a straightforward Rocky Mountain-style dinner, put out giant sugar cookies, a basket of pears and a bowl of candied almonds. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.