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A mixture of white wine and white wine vinegar, plus a host of spices and vegetables, infuse these shrimp with tangy, fragrant flavor. Serve them as a cocktail party hors d'oeuvre or toss them into a salad.

Borani is a Persian dip made with yogurt. The chioggia beets in this recipe give the dip a gorgeous hue.

Adding any of these flavorful ices on top of your oysters is an easy way to up your raw bar game.

"Never met a fritter I didn't like, and I love this one." —Allie Lewis Clapp, food editor

You can also make this dish with littleneck or cherrystone clams instead of mussels.

Making the eggplant spread ahead of time has a double upside: The flavors of the mixture will deepen as it sits, and you get to cross something off the list.

The best blue cheese for this is salty but creamy, not too sharp or funky.

Use very ripe—even overripe—tomatoes; they'll give up even more juice.

Yes, you can treat parsley as a salad green, as long as your bunch isn't woody. Sweet molasses and tart sumac make it vibrant.

A super-juicy watermelon is key; it should feel heavy for its size and sound hollow when tapped.

Delicate squash blossoms are a farmers' market treasure. Look for flowers with perky, intact petals and a generous length of stem still attached. Wrap them loosely in damp paper towels and tuck them into a zip-top bag; they'll keep this way in the fridge for a few days. Or bypass the storage completely and turn them into a predinner bite as soon as you get home.—Alison Roman

If you love dipping bread into tomato soup, you’ll love this rustic Italian dish, known as pappa al pomodoro.

Mixing sorrel with spinach makes an outstanding spanakopita, but the combination is nothing new. The Greeks have been doing it for a long time and it makes a lot of sense. The distinctive tang of sorrel not only replaces the lemon juice often found in spinach fillings for spanakopita, but it also balances the brininess of the feta.

Purslane has long been considered a weed, but it is increasingly showing up for sale in bunches at farmers markets. Meanwhile, Mexicans have known about its healthful properties for hundreds of years and they eat it both raw and cooked. In Mexico it's called verdolagas. Cooking mellows its tang and shrinks it, which means you can eat more of it! Paired with avocado and a tomato relish, this is a super-healthy vegetarian snack or main dish.

We think fat spears of asparagus have the best texture. White ones take a little longer to cook, so boil them separately.

Can't find favas? Double up on peas. No pea shoots? Use mĊche or baby spinach instead.

Swap the black pepper for other spices, such as cumin, or fresh chopped herbs.

Dark-meat chicken is the best for grilling: Unlike lean breasts, thighs have plenty of fat, so they won't dry out.