Roast

Indulgence on a platter: Lobster, shrimp, scallops, and crab legs make one impressive presentation. (Ask the market to cut the lobster tails and crab legs in half lengthwise for you.) A selection of sauces adds to the party fun.

This version of the Italian classic is an irresistible mix of crusty-chewy bread cubes and colorful roasted vegetables, all bathed in a lusty balsamic vinaigrette. Be sure to use a good-quality French-style baguette, as a lesser bread won't keep its texture.

This can be served hot or at room temperature.

Roasting the garlic mellows the flavor, which results in an aioli that is less pungent than traditional ones. Besides enhancing the taste of Cornish hens, this makes a perfect accompaniment to vegetables, lamb, and fish, and it's great as a dip.

ARNI GEMISTO ME HORTA KE FETA Editor's note: This recipe is excerpted from Aglaia Kremezi's book The Foods of the Greek Islands. To read more about Kremezi and Greek Easter, click here. This recipe comes from Andros, and it is one of the most delicious ways to cook a whole Easter spring lamb or kid. The various spring wild greens on the island, seasoned with fennel, mint and other aromatic herbs, together with the local slightly sour fresh cheese, are used to make the stuffing. In my version, instead of a whole tiny lamb, I use a shortened leg of lamb (shank half) partly boned, to make room for the stuffing. The result is quite different but equally enticing. Serve with Roasted Potatoes with Garlic, Lemon, and Oregano.

Makedonitiki Melitzanosalata Editor's note: The recipe below is excerpted from Diane Kochilas's book The Greek Vegetarian. Kochilas also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page. To read more about Kochilas and Greek cuisine, click here.

The trick: Roast on paper.
Cooking on parchment, a nearly indestructible cooking paper, removes the need for most of the oil. The paper's waxy surface keeps food from sticking. "We can replicate a pan-fried finish by roasting anything on parchment," says Steve Pernetti, executive chef at Cal-a-Vie in Vista, California. Pernetti's Parchment-Roasted Vegetables offer C, A, folate, potassium, and calcium.

Sunday-night dessert. From Golden Door in Escondido, California. Talk about sweet justice: You can eat "cream" with our spa meal plan. This dessert drives its silky texture from tofu and its tangy flavor from orange zest, plus it's loaded with beta-carotene from the squash. Look for squash without green streaks — they're the sweetest.

This cut of meat yields a juicy roast with no fuss. And the spicy parsley sauce is tasty enough to keep some on hand for chicken, fish, or pasta.

Often called a boniato, a batata is what most of the world knows as a sweet potato. White-fleshed and drier than typical orange, moist-fleshed varieties, the tuber has a delicate, slightly sweet flavor reminiscent of chestnuts. We like to serve them with a flavorful compound butter.

This Mediterranean dish can be served with bread or crackers as a meze (appetizer), and it's also great as a sandwich filling.

Ideal for a picnic, these sesame-speckled chicken wings are so good, you'll be happy to lick your fingers clean.