ready in about 20 minutes; serves 12
You might need to buy:
  • salt
  • wheat germ
  • whole wheat flour
  • warm water
  • honey
serves 4
You might need to buy:
  • pine nuts or walnuts
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Aside from the endive, cilantro, radishes, and feta, the list of ingredients below is a rough sketch. I’ve been known to substitute fennel for radicchio, and occasionally I add a few nuggets of Parmigiano Reggiano, some meaty flakes of smoked trout, or even just a few canned chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and dried. The key, in any case, is the quality of the ingredients. For salads like this one, I like a Hass avocado that’s on the firm side of ripe: not hard, but solid, with just a hint of give—the potential for softness, you could say. I buy my endive on the small-to-medium size—no larger than 3 ounces each—with no bruises, brown spots, or other blemishes, and I look for tight, compact heads of radicchio, each about the size of a large man’s fist, with smooth, shiny leaves. I serve this salad on its own, as the center of the meal, with a hunk of crusty bread or a few roasted sweet potato “fries” on the side.

serves 1
You might need to buy:
  • vanilla
  • margarine
  • nuts
  • water
  • sugar
  • salt
  • baking soda

Everybody LOVES this. Labor intensive. I tend to frost it afterwards with regular buttercream frosting.

You might need to buy:
  • salt
  • flour
  • vanilla extract
  • sugar
  • milk
  • large egg
  • active dry yeast

Hot and crusty, most Americans call these popovers, but at our house, it’s Yorkshire Pudding. Serve with roast beef and gravy – yum.

ready in about an hour and 5 minutes
You might need to buy:
  • eggs
  • flour
  • milk
  • oil
serves 2
You might need to buy:
  • long-grain brown rice
  • butter
  • chicken stock
  • grated Parmesan
  • Parsley for garnish
serves 4
You might need to buy:
  • nonfat dry milk powder
  • sugar
  • cocoa unsweetened
  • vanilla
  • trays ice cubes
  • corn oil plus a 5-second squirt of non-stick spray for emulsification purposes
ready in about 50 minutes; serves 3
You might need to buy:
  • hoisin sauce
  • baking soda
  • baking powder
  • cornstarch
  • flour
  • sesame oil
  • cornstarch
  • toasted sesame seeds

omg yum

ready in about 35 minutes; serves 4
You might need to buy:
  • angel hair pasta
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • hot pepper sauce
  • Parmesan cheese