Parade

This recipe is a yummy one-pot entrée from The Elements of Taste, by Gray Kunz and Peter Kaminsky. The secret here is browning the meat.

Briefly cooking the spices brings out their oils and enhances the flavor. Before pureeing the soup, be sure the carrots are tender. Once the orange juice has been added, reheat the soup over very low heat.

When you're cooking with veggies, don't overlook dessert! This cake has great texture, thanks to both pureed and grated carrots. It's delicious with or without frosting and great for parties.

When you brush the bottom pie crust with an egg wash, you keep the fruit from making the pie soggy as it bakes. By sprinkling the top crust with sugar, it makes for a great sugary crust.

Flounder is a lean, thin fish that cooks very quickly. So be sure to cook it 4 to 5 inches from the heat source — and watch it carefully! Clover sprouts are available in the produce department of better supermarkets.

Fresh blackberries are plentiful in July and August, but since we must use frozen in the winter, be sure they're individually quick-frozen (available in plastic bags in the supermarket). Don't use berries packed in syrup.

The free-form crust of this large, rectangular tart is easy to create, but be sure to leave enough of a border (1 to 1 1/2 inches) to fold the edges up over the fruit filling. To serve, cut into squares.

Coarse salt acts as an abrasive, making garlic easier to chop finely. Tangerine juice adds a bright, exotic flavor to roasting vegetables. Call your butcher ahead to order the pheasant.

Wilt the vegetables over low heat, stirring often so they do not burn.

What's better than fresh, creamy tomato soup on a Sunday night? Ground cloves add the flavor we all remember as kids. Just go very easy, as it is a strong spice.

For the fudgiest brownies, be sure not to overbake these, from Steffi Berne's Cookie Jar Cookbook.

Ellen Schwab, Bethesda, Md.
"I created this cookie, which combines my two favorite flavors — hazelnut and chocolate — just for this contest."

Asparagus heralds spring! It still may be a little early, but as the asparagus season moves along, the stalks will be less woody.

Soaking the leek in vinegar and water helps to pull out the dirt and sand. Be sure to rinse well.

When adding the diced vegetables to the flaked salmon, fold the ingredients together gently so that the salmon doesn't break up.

Both the sugar and the vanilla enhance the flavor of the whipped cream.

Happily, this fish dish can be made a day ahead. Simply remove it from the refrigerator and arrange 2 hours before serving. Even better, the sauce also can be made 2 days ahead and kept, well covered, in the refrigerator. It's from Mexico, One Plate at a Time (Scribner), by Rick Bayless, the celebrated Chicago chef and cookbook author.

Soaking the crabs in milk helps plump them up when cooked. Combining butter and oil results in crispy crabs.

When cooking with tomatoes in September, buy them ahead of time and let them ripen on your counter.