Nut

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Brown sugar, almonds and oats combine for a crunchy topping in this lovely dessert. A touch of kirsch, a clear cherry brandy, enhances the fruit.

This warming and satisfying winter soup is a delicious starter, and the vegetables add color and sweetness.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Though detested on lawns, dandelions are now cultivated commercially and are widely available at farmers markets and supermarkets. Great additions to this salad are red onion and shaved Parmesan.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Serve the curry with steamed white rice and Indian beer, and make a stop at an Indian restaurant to get some samosas — savory filled pastries — to pass as appetizers, and the flatbread called naan to sop up the curry sauce. For dessert, how about assorted teas and a carrot cake?

In 1933, Ruth Wakefield of the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusetts, chopped up some chocolate bars and added the chunks to cookie dough, hoping that they would blend into the dough as they melted. Instead they held their shape, and Toll House cookies were a delicious creation. By the 1940s they were a hit.

Jennifer Martin of Portland, Oregon, writes: "I am not formally trained in cooking but grew up working in food service, from chopping vegetables at food festivals to catering parties for a little extra income. Today I own Epicure Custom Cooking, a gourmet takeout shop and catering company with a few tables for dining. Our specials change weekly and are geared toward what I like to cook and eat. I simply love the business, even with my 12-hour days." Use bananas with some black spots on the skin, a sign that they are really ripe.

Stir-fried Sugar Snap Peas and Cherry Tomatoes and buttered couscous are great sides. Round out the meal with sugared strawberries and toasted pound cake.

Jason Gareffa of Los Angeles, California, writes: "Pursuing a career in acting keeps me tremendously busy. Between my improv comedy classes, performances, auditions for film and television roles, and gigs as a DJ for weddings, I don't have a lot of extra time on my hands. But good food is important to me, especially since I need a lot of energy to stay on the go. So over the years, I've started experimenting in the kitchen. Now the other members of my improv group even like to come to my 'wrap parties' to taste my creations." Serve basmati rice (or regular white rice) on the side to complement the Indian flavors.