Lemon

The fragrant roasted birds are served with a pan sauce containing whole garlic cloves. Accompany the hens with a crusty garlic bread to mop up the sauce, and pour a light Chianti throughout the meal.

Lemon curd, a classic London teatime treat, is layered between crispy squares of sugared phyllo. Any remaining curd is great on toast, biscuits or scones.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Cunetto House of Pasta in St. Louis has an excellent grilled skewered chicken entrée. Sometimes I even make a special trip just to have it. Could you request the recipe? Georgeann King Memphis, Tennessee

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

The shrimp are simmered and served in a peppery, New Orleans-style sauce-peel them at the table as you eat. Coleslaw, crusty French bread for sopping up all the sauce, and plenty of napkins are ideal accompaniments. For dessert, crullers and coffee with whipped cream would be easy substitutes for traditional beignets and café au lait.

The Strait of Messina is a rich source for swordfish, which the Sicilians prepare in many ways. Here it is at its simplest: grilled and served with salmoriglio sauce. (In Sicilian, it is sammurigghiu sauce.) The words means "brine", a translation that does not convey the taste or texture of this cooked blend of olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and herbs. Serve with bread and pour a white wine, preferably Sicilian. For dessert, offer cannoli from the bakery.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

In Italy a no-cook pasta sauce is known as salsa cruda, and makes a wonderful one-dish dinner. In this version, the combination of artichokes, olives, capers, and lemon zest is not only beautiful, but bold in flavor.

The following recipe is adapted from one that the early Ohio Shakers made often. This lemon pie, a refreshing finish to a hearty meal, shows how the thrifty Shakers were unwilling to waste even the skin of a fruit that had to be purchased rather than grown in their gardens.

Also known as a Champagne Cocktail.

For this recipe, it's best to choose a head of cauliflower with a very dense crown so that the "steaks" will hold together during cooking. However, even if they separate a bit, the dish is still delicious.