Quick

Start steaming some rice right after you preheat the barbecue to make this a complete meal.

Be sure to buy four extra cups of spinach if you plan to make the frittata.

Gina: This colorful salad is one of my go-to recipes when I need something to satisfy a crowd, whether at a church potluck supper or a backyard barbecue. The champagne vinaigrette gives the beans a fresh, zippy flavor. For the best results, add the fresh beans to the salad just before serving, so they do not discolor.

Good for Slathering: Pork; chicken, turkey, duck; beef; lamb: It doesn't get any easier than this! And this mop is probably what 90 percent of the competition barbecuers use—with maybe a little beer mixed in for good measure!

Tofu noodles replace pasta, so you don't need to boil water. Plus, this comforting dish offers nearly one third of your day's calcium, via the yogurt and broccoli.

Be anything but crabby after enjoying this sunny citrus bisque. You'll net half your daily folate needs per bowl.

Buy the freshest seasonal vegetables for this pasta. A trip to your local farmers’ market might be in order.

This recipe yields enough sauce to glaze three pounds of meat. We doubled it for the chicken and ribs at our barbecue party. You'll use about half to marinate and glaze the meat while cooking, and the rest as a condiment on the buffet for those who like it really saucy.

The good news: This delicious dessert can actually be very low fat if you use the low-fat or fat-free yogurt. The key is to use a good Greek yogurt—the flavor is amazingly rich, even in low-fat varieties. When you're assembling the dish, don't worry about creating perfect layers—this trifle is even prettier when the ingredients overlap a bit.

In Philippine cuisine, dark, fairly harsh soy sauce is favored, but it's often combined with sugar to create a syrupy dressing for vegetables. The added garlic gives this sweet and salty sauce a pleasant kick. This recipe originally accompanied Lumpia Rolls .

This wonderful slaw is a great twist on classic cole slaw. If you like your slaw crunchier, make it just before the party.

This can be a great dish all year round, if you choose the best fruits available. The addition of mint adds a bright, refreshing flavor to the sweetness of the fruit.

This well-known Philippine starter combines attributes of many of the wrapped foods of other countries. It's filled like an egg roll, has an egg wrapper like a crêpe, and is served warm but not fried. All the components, which can be varied according to what you have in your kitchen, are cooked before assembly.

Dashi is a traditional Asian stock. The recipe is simple—the only ingredients are dried kelp (seaweed) and flakes of dried bonito, a type of fish. However, both ingredients are packed with flavor, creating a rich, aromatic broth.

These are very similar to crêpes—the staple of Brittany—but thinner and more delicate (and the filling is like nothing you'll find in the French tradition).

Make this salad for lunch but serve it hot at dinner first. To give kids extra protein at lunch, add 1/2 cup finely chopped cold cooked chicken and round it out with a small whole-wheat roll and an apple.

All the other kids at school will be jealous when they get a look at these delicious, colorful, healthful wraps.

Peanut butter goes well with more than just jam, and this interesting combination proves it. This is delicious with whatever fruit is in season.

Kids and adults alike will enjoy this lunch. Store this tasty salad in a wide-mouthed thermal container, use several Bibb or Boston lettuce leaves to wrap around the salad instead of bread, and pack the nuts separately in a little plastic bag for sprinkling. For those who can take the heat, add a splash of Chinese hot oil or hot sesame oil to the salad.

These roll-ups are great for school and burst with tuna and veggies. If your child likes wasabi's heat, add an extra 1/4 teaspoon to the tuna mixture.