Kielbasa

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Complete the menu with a tomato and red onion salad, sourdough bread, and poached pears (or canned) with raspberry sauce.

To begin, offer a bowl of brine-cured green and black olives, another of marinated artichoke hearts, and some pâté and toast. The cassoulet needs only red wine and a loaf of good French bread as accompaniments. A pear or apple tart would add an appropriate French country flourish.

Active time: 1 1/4 hr Start to finish: 12 hr (includes soaking beans)

You can grill any cooked sausage you like for this sandwich, but we recommend kielbasa or kosher salami (not dried beef). Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 30 min

Lots of fun: pizza with flavors reminiscent of the classic Reuben sandwich.

Sauerkraut gets a smoky taste from bacon and sausage in a recipe from Orbit, a Polish restaurant in Chicago.

Duck, turkey or dark chicken meat can substitute for the goose with equally delicious results. Fine accompaniments are a green salad with Roquefort vinaigrette and hot crusty bread. For a quick and sophisticated dessert, add a bit of red wine and ground cinnamon to canned pears with their syrup.

Classic choucroute garnie combines sauerkraut, potatoes, and a variety of meats. Here, chunks of smoked sausage are cooked with sauerkraut and flavored with caraway. On the side, have boiled red-skinned potatoes tossed with parsley and a spinach salad. End with purchased apple strudel.

This simple dinner of grilled sausage and cabbage gets added heft from small potatoes that go fork-tender in a foil packet in just under half an hour.

This meaty, cheesy one-skillet dinner boasts big beer hall energy.