Dip

This tangy dressing really livens up a plate of crisp salad greens. It's also great on a baked potato or as a dip.

Michael Shrader of Nine Restaurant Group in Palm Springs, Florida, writes: "Both sides of my family cooked a lot when I was growing up, so I've had plenty of inspiration to draw on as a chef. From my mother's Sicilian heritage, I learned about homemade pasta, braised meats, and biscotti—before they became fashionable. My dad is part German, and he was known for his talents working the grill. On my days off from the restaurant, I cook for my wife at home. We tend to eat light, and I cook with foods that are in season since I've never been one for complicated dishes. It's just not my style. I'd rather have sliced tomatoes with a good olive oil or pasta with vegetables than something fussy." A sophisticated, fresh, and spicy dip for tortilla chips or baguette rounds.

Nothing is more basic to French olive people than tapenade, the simple and delicious Provençal caviar eaten with toasted bread. It can be flavored with garlic, bay, thyme, mustard, and even rum or Cognac. Here, it is done the old way.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This recipe originally accompanied Tapenade Goat-Cheese Crackers.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This dip is especially attractive served in a hollowed-out head of Castelfranco radicchio, a white radicchio with loose, pink-streaked leaves that readily open to form a bowl.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 2 3/4 hr

Delicious on crackers or as a filling for small tea sandwiches.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Serve this zesty dip with crackers or cut-up raw vegetables.

This recipe is an accompaniment for <epi:recipelink id="108054">Chicken, Potato, and Carrot Enchiladas</epi:recipelink>.

Roasted eggplant spreads and salads come in many variations throughout Greece and are usually embellished with local flavor. In the North, yogurt is often added to the eggplants, for example, throughout the Cyclades, it is the ubiquitous caper and tomato that season this delicious dish.