Molly Stevens

Why you'll make it: Because it's the perfect summer pasta — few ingredients, easy prep, big flavors.

Why you'll make it: Because it's an all-purpose refresher — drink it straight, top with sparkling water, or spike with vodka, gin, or tequila.

Why you'll make it: Because it's special enough for company but easy enough to pull off any night of the week. Start the spice rub at least four hours ahead.

The pork belly needs to cure overnight, so start this one day ahead. If you can't find pork belly, use bacon instead. Mix 12 ounces diced browned bacon, 2 tablespoons drippings, 1 minced garlic clove, 1/2 cup chicken broth, and 1/4 cup dry white wine in large skillet. Bring to simmer; keep warm. Cook pasta; proceed with recipe.

Charmoula is a zesty herb and garlic sauce from the Middle East.

In this dish, the mint pesto says spring every bit as much as the carrots do.

Peppadews, small peppers from South Africa, add a briny-sweet note. Look for them in jars or in the deli section of some supermarkets and at specialty foods stores. You can order them from igourmet.com or amazon.com.

The pork and figs need to marinate overnight, so be sure to begin one day ahead.

Cracklings made from the leftover duck skin top this satisfying pasta dish.

The filling: rich chunks of leftover brasato and vegetables . The topping: mashed parsnips and potatoes.

Brasato (which means "braised" in Italian) is the ultimate pot roast.

Piquillos are sweet Spanish peppers with a rich, full flavor.

Start this early in the day or the night before. Chilling the chicken uncovered for several hours makes the skin crispy when roasted.

Editor's note: The recipe below originally appeared in One Potato, Two Potato by Roy Finamore with Molly Stevens. It was reprinted, along with the introductory text included here, in The 150 Best American Recipes by Fran McCullough and Molly Stevens. __ Probably the most frustrating part of preparing Thanksgiving dinner is the last-minute potato mashing and gravy making. If you have this recipe in your arsenal, you can knock off the mashed potatoes 2 days ahead and have them sitting pretty in the refrigerator, ready for a last-minute heating. But that's not the only time you need these potatoes; they're also great for a buffet or for any crowd. These luxurious mashed potatoes have a couple of other virtues, too. They're light and fluffy because they're whipped with an electric mixer, and they're incredibly luscious because they have sour cream and butter, plus cream cheese to give them a little edge. __

One of the most beautiful and inspired cookbooks of the year was The Breath of a Wok. Grace Young's stories and recipes make us want to set off in pursuit of wok hay, the special taste of wok-cooked food. But if the wok itself is too much to tackle, Young gives us permission to stir-fry in a skillet, as her parents did when they emigrated from China to San Francisco.... Young tells us that the Cantonese word for lettuce sounds like the words for "growing fortune," which makes this an auspicious dish to serve for the lunar New Year.