Weeknight Meals

"Caribbean food has become a real favorite of mine," writes Cindy M. Wright of Tarzana, California. "I just love the flavors of this spicy cuisine. One of the best places in my area is Cha Cha Cha in Encino. I've enjoyed everything I've had there, but I especially like the shrimp and rice dish called camarones negros."

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes.

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 20 min

The salty nut topping provides a nice contrast to the sweet mashed turnips.

To make this recipe even easier, prepare the toast points two hours ahead and store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

This recipe is an accompaniment for Fish Cakes with Caper-Parsley Sauce This versatile sauce, which can be made one day ahead, also complements roast beef, hard-boiled eggs or potato salad.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Fresh mint, cilantro sprigs and strips of orange peel make a nice garnish for a platter of these Asian-accented skewers.

Okra replaces the usual eggplant in an innovative and appealing appetizer.

The size and thickness of lamb chops can vary greatly, so you may have to adjust your cooking time (see cooks' note, below).

Karla Medina of League City, Texas, writes: "At a food festival in downtown Houston, I had a sampler plate from Carmelo's Italian Restaurant. The eggplant Parmesan and spicy meatballs were very good, but the polenta was out of this world. I'd love to know how they prepared it."

Imported from Italy early in the decade, sun-dried tomatoes seduced the nation. Two other obsessions were pasta and pesto. All those ingredients combine here in a dish that doesn’t age.

Wendy Popp of Richmond, Virginia, writes: "My job as a physical therapist and my hobby, horseback riding, keep me pretty busy. But my sons — Sammy, two, and Weston, four — keep me moving the most, which has changed my cooking style. In fact, a friend and fellow mom had a great idea for a cookbook that she wants me to help her write. We would call it The One-Arm Gourmet, and it would be filled with quick dishes you can make while holding a kid in one arm and cooking with the other. "

Mole, a classic Mexican chili sauce, gets streamlined here. Chipotle chilies (available canned at Latin American markets and many supermarkets) add heat, while unsweetened chocolate provides subtle sweetness. Serve the stew in shallow bowls with steamed rice. Add an arugula, orange, and red onion salad and a basket of warm corn tortillas. For dessert, offer cinnamon-spiked hot chocolate and wafer cookies.

For this recipe, Lisa uses broccoli rabe, a type of bitter Italian green. But the everyday supermarket broccoli works fine, too.