Andy Ward

A textbook example of a back-pocket recipe, these zucchini fritters can be made quickly with what you have on hand—and they’ll impress every time.

This dressing is also great as a dip, and most of the vegetables listed here can be left in bigger pieces and treated as crudités instead.

Not just for salads: Drizzle over roast potatoes, serve alongside rotisserie chicken, or spoon over a sandwich.

Tomato paste adds sweetness and will help the dressing emulsify.

Far less sweet than the bottled version, but equally delicious whether on a salad or tossed with some soba noodles.

To achieve pillow-light gnocchi, choose potatoes that are roughly the same size and be careful not to overcook them.

This recipe is adapted from April Bloomfield’s version in A Girl and Her Greens. For a dippable version of the ranch spread, sub sour cream for the buttermilk and serve with crudités.

Play around with different herbs in this lobster salad recipe, such as parsley or mint, and other citrus, like grapefruit in place of orange.

So easy a kid could do it. No, really, let your kid do it.

In this turkey-spinach meatballs recipe, you brown them under the broiler instead of in the pan. It’s faster, neater, and big-batch friendly.

In place of pecans, try walnuts, peanuts, or cashews.

Squeeze out as much liquid from the zucchini as possible.

Although it's reason alone to keep a rotisserie chicken on hand, this salad would also be great with shrimp or sliced leftover pork chops.

Adding whole wheat flour ups the nutritional value and adds a nice nutty flavor.

If you prefer a smooth sauce, purée it in a blender. Serve with roasted potatoes and sautéed greens.

Sweet pickle juice and a mashed consistency give this Southern potato salad, inspired by one at Sally Bell's Kitchen, its character.

A little bit of bacon and a handful of raisins add a smoky sweetness that balances the slightly bitter flavor of the little cabbages.

This recipe for braised beef short ribs has many fans—and rightly so. Since it’s even better the next day, it’s perfect for entertaining.

This dish is truly indestructible because the cutlets marinate in lots of yogurt, olive oil, and salt. That way they stay juicy, briny, and flavorful. Because they're pounded thin, they cook quickly and evenly, so there's not a lot of time spent poking and prodding and stressing about whether they're done.