Feta

Begin the meal with toasted baguette rounds topped with sautéed wild mushrooms. Marinate the chicken three to six hours before cooking. what to drink: A crisp, fresh white wine, such as a California Sauvignon Blanc.

Donna Knowlton of Atlanta, Georgia, writes: "As the oldest of five children growing up in rural West Virginia, I was always helping in the kitchen. My husband is a doctor and works long hours, but we still like sharing a meal at the end of the day. I don't want to be in the kitchen late at night making something complicated, so I rely on dishes that can be ready in minutes." Donna brought back this version of the classic recipe from a trip to Athens.

Offer this meatless main-course salad with a basket of seeded flatbreads, steamed artichokes, and a lemon-mayo dipping sauce. Follow the meal with a bowl of apricots and some purchased baklava.

At the restaurant, the lamb is served with cilantro-corn mashed potatoes.

Great on its own or served alongside grilled fish, chicken or steak.

A quick appetizer or light main course.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 40 min

With the pizza, serve a green salad tossed with white-wine vinaigrette and pine nuts. Finish with lemon ice cream topped with pureed raspberries.

Pick up stuffed grape leaves, marinated mushrooms and crusty bread from the deli to round out the menu. Finish with an almond tart and brandied espresso.

Elote Asado Out on a walk in practically any Mexican town, who can pass up the always-present fresh ears of chewy field corn, turning and crisping over the coals? Who isn't attracted to the smoky-smelling, pit-roasted ears (pibinales) when they're poured from gunnysacks in Yucatan? And who doesn't like the fried corn kernels with epazote and chiles in Toluca (esquites), or the ones served from big boiling cazuelas in the capital's Alameda Park, or the ones topped with cream, powdered chile and cheese in the northeastern states? Our sweet corn isn't the same to me, boiled and buttered and served as a summertime vegetable. It lacks a little backbone. So when I'm having it, I usually give it a taste of an open fire, a squeeze of lime and a sprinkling of hot powdered chile…or the lavish spread of butter, cream and cheese of this recipe. Serve it anytime you're grilling, and you'll please practically everyone.

A great way to make a different and light meal with leftover lamb.

This tart is delicious on its own, but the garnish of crisp raw beet shreds brings added intrigue. To slice paper-thin spirals of beet, we used a Japanese rotary device known as the Benriner spiral vegetable slicer. This gadget is available from Katagiri, tel. (212) 755-3566, and from Williams-Sonoma, tel. (800) 541-2233 (ask for the "spiral shredder").

A little bit of feta cheese goes a long way in the tangy marinade for this dish.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

There is no oil in this most original salad.