Ham

Here's a great prelude to a main-course pasta.

Try preparing this salad for casual luncheons.

The secret of making fried rice lies in the use of cold, cooked rice. Freshly cooked rice will only produce a sticky mess.

Ham and Thousand Island Dressing

A magnificent centerpiece for Easter dinner.

Bonnie Wilkens Metully of Cincinnati, Ohio, writes: "As much as my husband and I love to go out to eat, it's just more fun, intimate, and cozy to cook and entertain at home. I've taught a lot of our friends just how easy it is to prepare restaurant-quality dishes themselves. Who taught me? My older sister, who's a professional chef. She showed me the importance of getting everything prepped beforehand and seeking out the freshest ingredients." This sophisticated appetizer is one of Bonnie's greatest party hits.

Valerie Silveira of Bellevue, Washington, writes: "My husband and I recently dined at Cafe Juanita in nearby Kirkland, where we had a lovely appetizer of pasta with a creamy lemon sauce and prosciutto. That was six weeks ago, and I've been thinking about this marvelous dish ever since. I would very much appreciate your publishing the recipe so that others could enjoy it, too."

The green onion oil that is brushed on the custard cups becomes a topping once the eggs are turned out.

Traditionally, this flavorful sauté would be composed entirely of fresh cèpes (we know them better by their Italian name, porcini) gathered from the forests around Bordeaux. In this recipe, dried porcini mushrooms are supplemented with fresh large button mushrooms.

This lemony pasta dish is great with sesame breadsticks and a salad of sliced tomatoes and Vidalia onions in a red-wine vinaigrette. End with hazelnut cookies and a mixed-melon compote splashed with Champagne.

Gail W. Dorsey of Lynnfield, Massachusetts, writes: "Fresh figs were featured in an unusual appetizer at The Gatehouse Restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island. The figs were stuffed with cheese, wrapped in phyllo, and served with two sauces. They would make an impressive starter for a dinner party." This is terrific made with fresh figs when they're in season. But dried ones, which are readily available year-round, work well, too.

Jean-Yves Jaulin's Mojhettes au Jambon