5 Ingredients or Fewer

Complete the entrée with roasted red-skinned potatoes and boiled green beans. Serve pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This side dish would be a perfect way to round out a meal of leftover roast chicken (or a bird from the local deli).

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

To ensure you get moist, beautiful-looking apricots, avoid those sold in boxes and bags that you can’t see through. If you buy Turkish apricots, keep in mind that they’re usually sold pitted but whole and, unlike most California apricots, will need to be halved horizontally.

The sophisticated chocolates are deceptively easy to make and are particularly nice with coffee (and Cognac) after a special meal.

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 40 min

The 1766 Tavern at Beekman Arms teams this delicious steak with grilled onion rings.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

No backyard barbecue is complete at the Rodriguez household without some of these plantains. Once you have tried them, you'll feel the same way. The important factor here is to choose plantains that are neither too green nor too ripe. Only the yellow and sweet but firm ones will do, the ones that are called "pinton."

Supermarkets, as well as butcher shops, sell a variety of chicken sausage — just use your favorite.

If you're planning to use the leftovers to make the fried rice with pork and kale , reserve 3/4 cup of this sautéed kale.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 1 hr

It wouldn't be Christmas without some red and green on the table.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 15 min

The roast can be prepped one day ahead. What to drink: A robust, medium- to full-bodied red, such as an Italian Barbera. Susan Simon also recommends a Carlo Hauner 1998 Rosso Antonello (made with Sangiovese and Nero d'Avolo grapes); it's produced on the Italian island of Salina.

Hélène Wagner-Popoff writes, "My husband, Ivan, and I moved to Corsica from Madagascar eleven years ago on a whim. We restored an abandoned convent and saved the thousand-year-old olive grove surrounding it. Today we produce an olive oil called 'de pays de Corse Ivan Popoff.' Although I was born in Lyons, the subtle flavors typical of Corsican cooking have definitely influenced my style. My dishes are extremely varied and well thought-out, but most of all simple. I like to surprise my family and guests with unexpected flavor combinations that don't take a lot of effort." While this is delicious on its own as a side dish, Hélène also recommends it as a sauce spooned over roasted fish.