Herbs & Spices

Many riffs on Caesar salad are too heavily dressed, but here a hefty handful of basil keeps things fresh and herbal.

The slightly sweet, almost flowery flavor of marjoram adds a delicate note to this Middle Eastern—inspired salad, though oregano is also fine. To be sure the eggplant is tender, slice into it before taking it off the grill—when properly done, it will be moist all the way through.

Caution: May require finger licking. Gooey chicken wings are sure to please a crowd, not to mention your wallet. The sweet and spicy glaze requires only five ingredients, including peach preserves (though apricot preserves work well, too).

Searing the tuna well on the outside but leaving it rare on the inside gives you a lovely contrast between the two textures. That said, if you like your tuna cooked through, the salad will still be delicious.

Because of its shape, orzo can do nearly anything rice can do, and if you're a pasta lover, you might say orzo does it better.

It's not a real party without chocolate! Savor this sweet treat and you'll get 20 percent of your daily calcium.

The yogurt in this lightly spiced marinade results in extremely tender lamb, chicken, or shrimp.

The famous Argentine herb sauce is thinned out with a little more olive oil and vinegar to make a bright herbal dressing for the salad. Instead of a big rib eye, this recipe calls for flank steak, a thin cut that's ideal when you're pressed for time.

A couple of rosemary sprigs are all you need to flavor each whole trout. Serve with tabbouleh.

If the poblanos aren't hot enough, add some chopped jalapeños to the salsa verde. Garnish enchiladas with fresh avocado slices and drizzle with crema mexicana (a nutty cultured cream available at some supermarkets and at Latin markets) or stirred sour cream if crema is unavailable.

Raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries are baked between a crisp pastry crust and a crumbly streusel topping.

The lamb (grass-fed, ideally) needs to marinate overnight, so be sure to begin one day ahead. Ask the butcher to bone and butterfly the lamb for you.

Frozen organic strawberries look great in the wineglasses—and help keep this pretty cocktail cool. Double the recipe if you'd like to be able to offer your guests seconds.

Although this is a chilled beverage, it is traditionally enjoyed in the winter. The "fire" of the cinnamon and ginger is supposed to warm you up, while the coolness of the beverage balances the heat. Not being much of a traditionalist, I like to make it during the summer and keep pitchers of it available as an alternative to iced tea.

This healthy main is cooked completely on the grill and is flavored by a simple, four-ingredient marinade—so there's very little cleanup required. Some grilled rustic bread would be nice alongside. And if you happen to have fig balsamic vinegar, use it in place of regular. It makes an excellent complement to the other flavors.

One 16-ounce container of ricotta is enough for this recipe and leftovers.

There's no oil in this easy main course and, if you'd like to make it even healthier, low-fat or nonfat yogurt can be used instead of the whole-milk variety. Round out the meal with dal (Indian-style lentils) or some sautéed spinach. The yogurt marinade is also great for chicken.

The dip gets better the longer it sits, so make it a day ahead.

Good for Seasoning: Flank steak; pork; chicken; salmon This is the original three-ingredient rub, and it packs in a lot of flavor and texture. If I am feeling ambitious, I make a chimichurri sauce to drizzle on top, but the rub itself has so much flavor that all you need is a light coating of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. The recipe calls for the amount you need for one night's dinner, but because the rub doesn't have any salt or pepper in it, you can increase the amount by simply multiplying. For example, if you are making 10 flank steaks, multiply by 10.