Side

Baby artichokes are much easier to prepare than the large ones, as they can be eaten choke and all. For ease of serving, these vegetables may be tossed with the roasted potatoes (see Green Olive, Lemon and Garlic-Roasted Leg of Lamb with Potatoes and Pan Gravy ) for a delicious all-in-one side dish.

Many southerners object to the practice of adding sugar to corn bread, but associate food editor Alexis Touchet, who grew up in Louisiana, is all for it. Sugar, in fact, is listed as an optional ingredient in the recipe for "pain de maïs nonpareil" in The Picayune's Creole Cook Book, first published in 1901. It's important here that your cast-iron skillet is well seasoned and thoroughly preheated—you want the batter to sizzle when you pour it in.

Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 1 hr (includes cooling)

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

The use of raisins and pine nuts in lightly sweet-and-sour sauces probably came to Sicily from Turkey; these ingredients also turn up in the cooking of Venice, long a commercial gateway to Turkey and the East, but less commonly in the anchovy-and-tomato sauces that are so fundamental to the Sicilian kitchen. Note that the zucchini in this dish is cooked rather soft, in the traditional Italian manner; if you want a more contemporary crisp product, add the zucchini toward the end for a quick cooking in the thickened sauce.

Lorraine Stevenski of Clearwater, Florida, writes: "I cook just about every weeknight for my family. To speed things up, I do my grocery shopping on weekends, along with making quick breads, cakes, and other baked goods. My 12-year-old son, Billy, is also a big help in the kitchen. He has practically become my personal sous chef with all the chopping and grilling he does."

The wine glaze both balances the natural sweetness of the beets and intensifies the savory beet flavor. In Tuscany, this is a favorite side dish for game and fowl.

Fresh orange juice always makes the best cranberry relish. Zest whole oranges before squeezing them for juice.

Stuart Faber of Los Angeles, California, writes: "When I'm not in my law office, I fly my own plane and write for In Flight USA, a magazine for private pilots. One of my favorite things to do when landing someplace new is to find a restaurant and ask if I can work for free. I've found some of my best recipes this way. Usually the chefs will let me hang out for a few days and help, but some do look at me a little strangely." A dressed-up version of a dinnertime classic.

Just four ingredients add up to a rich and delicious side dish. Once the potatoes are sliced, the gratin comes together quickly and then bakes unattended for about an hour and 15 minutes.

These can be cut out the night before, refrigerated unbaked on a baking sheet, and then popped into the oven in the morning. They will be ready in just 20 minutes.

For a more elegant presentation, we cut out rounds from the gratin with a 4-inch cookie cutter. Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 2 hr

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Use this dressing on crisp lettuce or omit the buttermilk and serve it as a dip with crudités.

This dish is also known as Texas caviar.

Remember the green bean casserole made with nothing but convenience ingredients: frozen or canned green beans, canned cream of mushroom soup and, for the topping, canned fried onions? Here it is again, only fresher and better.

"My husband and I spent a weekend in Mendocino, and one evening out we were served a red pepper soup," says Leslie Cohen of Loomis, California. "Not being a red pepper aficionado, I was surprised at how delicious the soup was and vowed to replicate the recipe." Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr