Zucchini

Ultra-creamy Fontina cheese and a layer of black-olive tapenade give this an unctuous, satisfying quality that is usually missing from other veggie pizzas. What to drink: Dry rosé or a spicy Rhône-style red.

Enjoy a taste of the islands with these healthful, low-fat tostadas.

In this perfect no-cook dish you can substitute crumbled bacon for the chicken or just omit the meat altogether.

It may appear very oily at first, but this dish comes together in the end without being the least bit heavy. We realize that not everyone will have 3 colanders on hand. You can also toss the vegetables with salt and let them drain in large bowls.

Head north of Sunset, and you will happen upon this live-music supper club tucked away in the hills of tony Bel Air. The swank venue features a stage surrounded by tables where you can spy toe-tapping regulars such as Nicolette Sheridan and Virginia Madsen taking in the soulful jazz tunes. You can make a meal of chef Sharon Funt's delicious flatbread appetizer; each serving provides more than 8 grams of fiber.

Improv: Add or substitute corn on the cob, eggplant slices, or portobellos.

We tested this recipe using a charcoal grill and a gas grill and found that grilling the dough over charcoal required both direct and indirect heat, a process too involved for Quick Kitchen. We prefer supermarket mozzarella rather than fresh for this pizza because fresh mozzarella exudes too much liquid when cooked. If your pizza dough is frozen, allow 2 to 3 hours to let it thaw.

This creamy chilled soup will make you hope for an abundance of zucchini in your garden this year. Thin-sliced zucchini blossoms, available at produce markets and specialty foods shops, add a beautiful hint of color while lending texture to the soup's smoothness.

Carbonara is a legendary Roman pasta dish. Here's a version that includes sautéed zucchini. It's meat-free yet every bit as delicious as the egg-and-bacon original.

Rajas are chile strips cooked with onion (raja means "slice" in Spanish).

Serve with: Sesame breadsticks, and arugula tossed in balsamic vinaigrette.