Sour Cream

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 10 hr

Toni Grekin of Deposit, New York, writes: "This recipe was given to me by my friend Barbara Leeds. It's wonderfully rich and overwhelmingly addictive." Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 2 1/2 hr

"At Highland's Garden Cafe in Denver, Colorado, I had an unusual and delicious lunch entrée of fish with sambal vinaigrette and wasabi cream," says William Starret, Jr. of Washington, D.C. "I would greatly appreciate it if you could get the recipe for me."

A grill pan is just the thing for cooking the chicken and zucchini in this recipe.

George Kelso of Edinburgh, Scotland, writes: "Although I grew up in Scotland and spent my early years as a chef here, I didn't start specializing in Scottish food until much later in my career. After working in London and at various restaurants in England, I returned to Scotland in 1988 to become chef at Ardsheal House in Argyll, where I started cooking exclusively with Scottish ingredients. We grew our own fruits, vegetables, and herbs, and even raised our own hens and ducks. That experience inspired the kind of cooking I do today at Haldanes, where I'm chef and owner. I keep the food preparation simple and use the freshest produce. That's why I use local suppliers as much as possible." This easy version of the classic egg yolk and wine sauce is made with mayonnaise and toasted peppercorns. It works well on meats, poultry, fish, and even sandwiches. Here, it ups the ante on vegetables.

For this recipe you will need three mini-muffin pans, each containing twelve 1 3/4-by-1 inch cups.

Start making this at least one day ahead.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

For decades, the restaurant Lutèce—with chef André Soltner behind the stove—was the pinnacle of French cuisine in New York City. Soltner's Alsace onion tart, one of the best we've ever tasted, was the inspiration for this version.

Tangy crème fraîche and a very grown-up rum-pineapple topping take cheesecake to an entirely new level. For best results, use Philadelphia-brand cream cheese.

Active time: 3 hr Start to finish: 4 hr

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.