Basil

Don’t skip the first step of salting the eggplant slices; it draws out excess moisture so that the eggplant will absorb less oil and stay firm when cooked.

Pho, the Vietnamese noodle soup, is traditionally made with long-cooked beef stock. Our quick version calls for deli sliced beef and canned beef broth instead.<

Cooked meatballs can be purchased at many supermarket deli or meat departments. They make this dinner a snap to pull together. Toss a salad, then tuck chocolate wafers into scoops of orange sorbet for dessert.

Arugula replaces lettuce in this clever pasta dish. Serve with: Whole-wheat breadsticks and carrot sticks with blue cheese dip. Dessert: Cherry-vanilla ice cream cones.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 30 min

Meatless pasta loaded with bold flavors.

Toss this delicious pesto with 1 1/2 pounds of your favorite pasta, or spread it on slices of Italian bread.

Try a fruity, spicy red wine, such as a California Zinfandel, with this main course.

Broil slices of packaged polenta to go with the chicken. Round out the main course with an arugula salad and chunks of crusty whole wheat Italian bread. For dessert? Brownies topped with vanilla gelato drizzled with sambuca.

"I dined on the most sumptuous grilled radicchio salad at The Dish Bistro and Wine Bar the last time I was in Tucson," writes Cindy Shafer of Huntington Beach, California. "Please get the recipe — I must have it." Yellow and green beans, and artichoke hearts are grilled along with the radicchio in this recipe. Serve the salad while the vegetables are still warm.

Noël McAlpine of Dallas, Texas, writes: "When I was in Florence for a business conference, I had the pleasure of dining at Trattoria Garga. I really enjoyed the scaloppine al carciofi (veal cutlets with artichokes) and would like to add the recipe to my collection."

To bring out the best in this dish, buy or order the finest cheeses from a cheese shop or Italian deli: fresh ricotta, mild imported provolone, and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

I like using Israeli couscous for this dish, although pearl barley may be substituted. This couscous is quite starchy and should be rinsed after cooking.

This versatile tomato sauce gets its name from the addition of chiles—arrabbiata is Italian for angry. It's great on pasta (especially linguine with clams), roasted meats, and fish.

The leftover braising oil is extremely flavorful. You can toss it with pasta or use it in dressings. This recipe is an accompaniment for Monkfish and Clam Bourride .

Smothering is a Cajun cooking term that refers to browning anything from meat to vegetables in oil, then braising it in a small amount of liquid, tightly covered, until tender.

The corn coulis also pairs nicely with pork tenderloin, shrimp, or grilled chicken. Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 45 min