Seed

I have to admit that making a vegetarian dinner is liberating. When I don’t include meat, I feel entitled to splurge on other riches, in this case avocado and pumpkin seeds. Nonetheless, these veggie-packed tacos are proof that something can be hearty and healthful at the same time.

Better than any store-bought energy bars, these are great for breakfast-on-the-go, brown-bag lunches, and snacks. Make a batch on the weekend to get you through the work week.

This salty-sweet granola makes a great snack and is good with yogurt. Skip the salt if you're serving it with milk.

These pumpkin muffins are light and fluffy.

The technique: A single-crust pie requires only a bottom crust and is the best choice for a custard filling, like pumpkin pie.
The payoff: You have to make only one pie crust, and if it breaks or cracks it's easy enough to cobble the crust together in the pie dish. Most of the bottom crust will be covered with filling, so it doesn't have to look perfect. The topping mixture is sprinkled just inside the crust, leaving a circle of filling peeking out in the center of the pie.

The technique: To show off the tangy freshness of cranberries, don't cook them at all. The payoff: Chopping the berries in the processor gives them a coarse texture, which is great alongside the turkey and the trimmings. Plus, the recipe comes together in 20 minutes.

Learn how our executive food editor rediscovered the joys of fresh pesto and made it her own.

The juicy Honeycrisp apple is the sweetest of the bunch. Combine it (instead of berries) with tart, creamy Greek yogurt for a seasonal, satisfying breakfast.

Trust us, this combination is super-clean and green, refreshing and yummy. The alkalinizing fresh pineapple pairs beautifully with the spice of the arugula/rocket. And macadamia nuts are a high-energy food that adds a crunchy rich texture and a healthy dose of protein and fiber (we don't mind at all if they do not fully incorporate) as well as monounsaturated fatty acids—or "good" fat—that significantly reduce blood serum cholesterol levels. Think of this smoothie as a cleansing, satisfying meal replacement. Get to know chia seeds. These miraculous little seeds are a form of easily digestible protein that is full of minerals, vitamins, and soluble fiber. Rich in omega fatty acids, and similar to flaxseed, chia seeds have the significant advantage of being more stable.

Use a V-slicer for the vegetables and a peeler for the Parmesan.

Pumpkin seeds give earthy flavor and lovely color to this side dish.

Recipes from two New York women respected in the food business influenced this dish: In her book A Fresh Taste of Italy, Michele Scicolone (once my Brooklyn landlady) offers Spaghetti with Rubies, where the rubies are chunks of roasted beets sautéed in olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes. At her legendary Brooklyn trattoria Al di Là, chef/co-owner Anna Klinger serves ravioli stuffed with beets tossed in brown butter and poppy seeds. Beets, together with poppy seeds, are typical in dishes of the northern Italian regions of Friuli and Alto Adige. With all these factors in mind, I came up with my own combination of pasta with beets and poppy seeds.

Too often crackers get short shrift as merely vehicles for a slice or smear of cheese. Not here. By incorporating cheese into the dough, along with the tiny crunch of poppy seeds, these crackers become crisp snacks that keep your fingers reaching for another and then another and, well, you know how it goes. In no time, they're history.

These hearty rolls are packed with good-for-you stuff: whole wheat flour, old-fashioned oats, and wheat bran.

A treat that's rich in superfoods—blueberries and flaxseeds!

Plums and pluots—a hybrid that blends the color of plums with the flavor and soft texture of apricots—have a natural tartness that flatters the accompanying pound cake (which tastes even better if made a couple of days ahead).

Smoky grilled vegetables—not a cloying amount of meat or cheese—rule here. Instead of embellishing the enchiladas with a complex (and time-consuming) Mexican pipián (pumpkin-seed sauce), cook a few customary pipián ingredients and then purée them with cilantro for an easy enchilada that's herbaceous and fresh.