Zucchini

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional sitting time.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This recipe originally accompanied Veal Scallops with Squash, Tomatoes, and Roasted-Garlic Basil Sauce.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This variation on Spanish rice is wonderful with spicy Southwestern dishes.

Pair this with a green salad for a light lunch.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Have more French bread on hand to serve with this colorful main course. A dry white wine is a good match.

Hélène Wagner-Popoff writes, "My husband, Ivan, and I moved to Corsica from Madagascar eleven years ago on a whim. We restored an abandoned convent and saved the thousand-year-old olive grove surrounding it. Today we produce an olive oil called 'de pays de Corse Ivan Popoff.' Although I was born in Lyons, the subtle flavors typical of Corsican cooking have definitely influenced my style. My dishes are extremely varied and well thought-out, but most of all simple. I like to surprise my family and guests with unexpected flavor combinations that don't take a lot of effort." While this is delicious on its own as a side dish, Hélène also recommends it as a sauce spooned over roasted fish.

Squash blossoms are extremely perishable; it's best to use them the day you buy them.

Jewish chicken soup is usually served with thin egg noodles or with matzah balls. The zucchini is my, not MGM's addition.

Only native Californians like two wine-making friends of mine in Salinas can regularly throw together a vegetable chili such as this utilizing their almost year-round abundance of fresh vegetables and herbs. For those of us with seasonal gardens, various substitutions often have to be made (canned tomatoes, dried herbs, and the like), but such is the availability almost everywhere today of certain fresh produce even in the coldest months that no imaginative cook should have much trouble concocting a very tasty vegetable and bean chili according to this basic recipe. One advantage, by the way, of using a 28-ounce can of tomatoes with their juices instead of the fresh is that most likely you won't have to add any water to keep the chili slightly soupy.

"At the Manhattan law office where I'm a legal secretary, it seems as though the phones are always ringing," writes Lisa Caiazzo of Franklin Square, New York. "And if it isn't the phones that have me occupied, then there are lots of documents that need my attention. By the time I get home from the city, I usually have only about 45 minutes to put together dinner for my husband, Angelo, and myself. Still, that's enough time to make something filling and delicious, like a salad and a hearty pasta or soup. My best cooking, though, is done on Sundays during the fall and winter, when I become a football widow. An afternoon of cooking can be very therapeutic after a busy week." Any mixture of vegetables you have on hand would make a great filling. Serve the wraps with purchased salsa and sour cream.

Suitable sides for the vegetables and pasta are grilled pita bread and assorted olives. End with baklava and fresh apricots.

If you enjoy spicy food, pass some hot pepper sauce to sprinkle on top of this light, soufflé-like omelet.

Here is a light and festive way to introduce a holiday meal. This elegant soup goes very well with Champagne.