Cilantro

Use leftover chicken if you have any on hand, or start with a rotisserie chicken. Be sure to pick up the sliced peppers from the salad bar while you're at the market. Crunchy sesame breadsticks are all you need to complete the meal — except, of course, dessert, which could be pineapple slices sprinkled with coconut and broiled.

Grilled steak with late summer corn and a squeeze of lime juice. Sound wonderful? It is. Grilled potato wedges make a terrific side.

At Las Ventanas this soup and a corn soup are ladled side by side into the serving bowl.

Look for wasabi powder in the spice aisle or the Asian foods section of the market.

This is an easy dinner party appetizer. Start it at least one day and up to one week before your party. Offer guests small plates and forks.

Juana Vázquez-Gómez of Redondo Beach, California, writes: "Growing up in Cuernavaca, just outside Mexico City, I remember my grandmother cooking elaborate Mexican meals every day. My mother continued that tradition, but not in such an all-consuming manner. For her it was a great joy to plan a menu and then invite people to help with the preparation. "The women in my life taught me the beauty of a good meal. I still use many of their recipes today, but unlike my grandmother I don't spend an entire day in the kitchen. Fortunately, my husband and kids like to cook, so I've found a balance between my grandmother's time-intensive recipes and my mother's practicality. "

Serve with jicama sticks, radish slices, peeled cooked shrimp, and corn tortilla chips.

It's important to use large lettuce leaves (about 6 inches) for this salad, so you may need to buy 2 heads of lettuce in order to get 6 good leaves. Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 45 min

This recipe is an accompaniment for Yellow Tomato Gazpacho with Cilantro Oil and Avocado.

Fresh mint makes this starter all the more cooling. Use Haas avocados for the creamiest texture. What to drink: Throughout the meal, go with the classics — beer and Margaritas.

The cilantro lime topping in this recipe is a Southeast Asian variation on the classic Italian gremolata, which is made with parsley, lemon zest, and garlic. Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 20 min

Chopped fresh ginger and cilantro give an exotic edge to the classic summer side dish.

Look for chili-garlic sauce in the Asian foods section of the supermarket.

Fresh corn from a farmers' market or a grower's farmstand will taste the sweetest.

This recipe is an accompaniment for Fried Clams .

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This dip was inspired by a recipe for bissara, a garlicky purée from Egypt made from dried broad beans, in Claudia Roden's Mediterranean Cookery.