Lettuce

A few years ago, when I was in southeastern Turkey working on my book Mediterranean Grains and Greens, I noticed that the women didn't soak their bulgur in water for some summer preparations. When I asked a Turkish friend about this, she let out a laugh. "In Turkey, no man would marry a woman who just used water! For cold bulgur dishes we always soak in tomato juice, onion juice, or fresh pressed and strained sour grape juice to flavor the bulgur first."

"My brother has a small shrimping net, and once, years ago, he brought me several pounds of shrimp after a successful trip," says Robert Randolph of Perdido Beach, Alabama. "I created this appetizer as a way to use all that shrimp. Now, whenever my brother stops by with his catch, my family requests this dish."

Start with chopped fresh tomatoes, basil and garlic spooned onto toasted baguette slices. Grill slices of potato to have with the tuna; follow with biscotti and fresh figs.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

One of the best ways I know of serving a dish the second time around is to dress up the leftovers in tortillas, bake them in a spaghetti sauce, and top them with crunchy stuff. Even a picky kid might not recognize last night's dinner — if you're lucky. You can use the same fillings and toppings you would with tacos or try some others.

Smoky andouille sausage is the perfect counterpoint to the delicate scallops.

Pipián is an earthy, pureed seed sauce that is traditional in Mexican cooking. Serve this dish with rice to soak up the sauce.

Look for hearts of romaine near the bagged lettuces in the produce section.

Called fattoush in Lebanon, this colorful dish is offered as a first course at Al-Amir restaurant in Portland, Oregon.

In doubling or tripling this recipe, you can put all the ingredients for the dressing into a blender (cutting the amount of garlic in half) for a quick whirl. Store the dressing in a screw-cap jar until the salad is ready to be tossed. The flavor is the same, but the texture of the dressing is creamy and looks less attractive on the romaine.