Easy

You’d think that a recipe for bread and butter and salt would be unnecessary. But I truly believe that one of life’s greatest eating pleasures consists of a loaf of wonderful crusty bread, sweet butter or olive oil, and salt. Those three components, eaten with your hands and shared among friends, truly is a sustaining combination. The country loaf from Tartine is pictured.

This salad is a traditional way to use up day-old bread; the dressing softens the bread and makes it a little more palatable. You can use fresh bread, but stale bread will hold up better under the dressing (super-fresh bread has a tendency to fall apart).

This hearty salad is a near-constant in our deli case and a favorite among guests and staff . Although the beets are the star of the show, the pickled onions play an important supporting role, adding textural interest and a vinegary punch. At the store, we cook the beets by baking them whole, in a deep roasting pan with 1 inch of water. For a small, at-home quantity I suggest steaming. It’s faster because steam gets hotter than boiling water (which maxes out at 212°F) and uses less energy than turning on the oven. However, if you prefer to roast or boil your beets, feel free—the results will be just as tasty.

This salad is a delightful interplay of sweet, creamy, tangy, and peppery flavors. If you prefer, you can swap in ricotta salata or a mild feta for the ricotta; both are saltier than fresh ricotta, so skip the seasoning with zest, salt, and pepper. Apricots have but a brief appearance even at the peak of their season. If you miss them, you can substitute with any other stone fruit. White nectarines, peaches, pluots, or plums would be particularly nice. In the fall, sliced fuyu persimmons are perfect. Whatever fruit you use, just make sure it’s ripe and flavorful.

This salad is a wonderful way to venture into the world of raw squash. Using the truffle version of pecorino isn’t absolutely critical, but its earthiness is a fantastic counterpoint to the brighter flavors of squash and lemon juice. For best results, use the smallest, firmest, freshest squash you can find— they’re easier to grate and taste better than the more mature ones. And because this salad is so simple (almost minimalist), the quality of your olive oil really counts.

This chilled soup always makes me imagine what summer in Eden must have been like: silky, verdant, bright, and refreshing. My only other need would be a glass of cava or vinho verde to go with it. The quality of your avocados is key to this recipe. Try to find the Haas or Bacon varieties from a domestic grower—the Fuerte ones from Chile (which are common in supermarkets) are too watery.

This is the perfect simple ending to an elaborate meal (or any meal, really). It requires practically no prep and is infinitely modifiable. Figs out of season? Use apples, apricots, or orange segments instead. Don’t like walnuts? Use pistachios or hazelnuts. But you will get the richest, most decadent results by sticking with Greek yogurt.

This recipe is all about the eggs, so use the best you can find; farm-direct pastured eggs are ideal (though even commercial eggs are delicious deviled this way). Deviled eggs tend to disappear the second you serve them, so it’s always good to make more than you think you might need. This recipe can easily be doubled. If you’re bringing these to an event, it’s best to prepare the components ahead of time and assemble the eggs on site. It’s much easier to transport that way.

In this fast and easy recipe, the shrimp release their juices and create a delicious sauce in the pan. Using unpeeled shrimp with heads on does make it a little messier to eat, but the results are finger-licking good. If serving this as a main course, a bed of couscous or steamed rice is a nice accompaniment to help soak up the sauce.

I’m particularly proud of our house-made sausages, which we have been making and selling at the Market since day one. They’re delicious, and they’re also free of the fillers, additives, and preservatives common in commercially made sausages. You don’t need a meat grinder or a sausage stuffer to make sausage at home. You can use preground pork shoulder, mix in the spices of your choice, and form them into patties or kebabs. Here I share three of my favorite spice combinations: a classic breakfast sausage, a hot Italian variety, and a sweet Spanish-style chorizo. If pork is not your thing, ground chicken or turkey that has a 15 to 20 percent fat content will work as well.

These grilled peaches are infinitely versatile: you can eat them by themselves as a light first course; for a more substantial salad, serve them on a bed of lightly dressed arugula. They are even lovely as dessert. The best part is that you can grill the peaches a few hours ahead of time and then assemble them just before serving. For best results, use peaches that are ripe but still relatively firm; the extra sturdiness makes them easier to manipulate on the grill. And freestone varieties (ones where the pit separates cleanly from the flesh) are by far easier to work with here than clingstones. If you can’t find hazelnuts, almonds or walnuts will work nicely, too.

Cherries are just as delightful in savory contexts as they are in sweet ones; here, they’re combined with sage and a little vinegar to complement the mild flavor of pork chops. This is a perfect dish for a romantic dinner for two. This is a classic example of a simple pan sauce and can be modified for different meats or seasons. Try swapping in different fruits, herbs, or vinegars, depending on your whims and desires. If cherries aren’t in season, figs or apricots would be especially good.

This is no ordinary meatloaf. A hefty dose of fresh herbs and dried spices means it’s packed with flavor; the yogurt, tahini, and rolled oats help keep it moist. We developed this recipe as a deli sandwich special, but it’s just as delicious eaten on its own. For best results, try to get ground lamb with 15 to 20 percent fat content; ground shoulder usually falls in this range. Meat from the leg is too lean and will result in a dry end product.

This unique chicken salad is bound together with romesco sauce, the Spanish puree of red peppers, almonds, and olive oil. It takes the classic chicken salad sandwich to another level, but piled on crostini, sliced baguette, or even mini tart shells, you can also turn it into a fabulous hors d’oeuvre.

Chimichurri sauce hails from Argentina and is sort of like a vinegary pesto. The sauce’s bright herby notes bring an unexpected freshness to the plate and balance out the rich beefy steak. Bavette is an underappreciated and fairly inexpensive cut that’s common in French bistros, and very similar to (and from the same muscle group as) flank steak. It’s flavorful but also tender, especially if you don’t cook it beyond medium-rare. If you can’t find bavette, flank or skirt steak would be the closest substitute, but any steak cut would work just as well. If you have leftovers, pile the beef on a baguette or crusty roll, top with onions, and slather on the sauce for a fantastic sandwich.

Tri-tip goes by several other names, including corner cut and bottom sirloin, but curiously it’s generally only found on the West Coast. It’s flavorful and toothsome and worth seeking out, but you can also use an equal weight of flank, bavette, or top round.

The recipe for this homey cake comes from my mom, who made it for us to sell at my restaurant and then in the early days of the Market. I think that cast-iron skillets are one of the most versatile and indispensible cooking vessels you can have, and this cake is proof of that!

So many sweet potato recipes call for lots of additional sugar, which can produce cloyingly sweet results. Wow your guests with this version, which uses mild curry powder, a tiny bit of cayenne, and coconut milk to complement the natural sweetness of the potatoes.

This is one of our all-time classic salads. It’s easy to see why it’s so popular: it has the perfect combination of sweet fruit, crunchy nuts, tangy cheese, and tender spinach, bound together by a delicate vinaigrette. It’s substantial yet not too heavy, perfectly suited as an accompaniment to other dishes.