Cheese

This sandwich made of mozzarella, tomato, and basil is my version of a BLT. It’s simple, quick, and oh so yummy! The term alla Margherita was invented in 1889 when an official from the royal palace asked a local to make pizzas for Queen Margherita. Her favorite was the one made with three toppings: tomato (red), cheese (white), and basil (green)—the tricolore of the Italian flag. So anything using those three toppings is known as alla Margherita.

When asparagus is in season in springtime, use it to capture the flavors of the garden with a minimal amount of effort. It cooks quickly by any method—steaming, boiling, grilling, or sautéing, as here—and it’s very easy to prepare. To trim asparagus of its woody stem end, simply hold one end of the spear in one hand, the other end in the other hand, and bend gently until the spear snaps—which it will do exactly where the stem starts to get woody. Asparagus has its own built-in sous chef.

It’s very European to use potatoes in omelets, tarts, and frittatas—even on pizzas. The key is to use small cubes of potato, as here, or very thin slices. You don’t want to be biting into a whole mouthful of starch, and you want your potatoes to cook through in a reasonable amount of time.

A bit of mascarpone in the batter gives this cake just the slightest tang and keeps it moist, making it a good candidate for freezing. I always keep one of these in the freezer and when kids come to visit I pull it out and serve it with some strawberries and chocolate sauce for dipping.

Make these for your little girl’s next tea party; they are pretty and so easy to make. Or feel free to make these in a regular-size muffin tin, increasing the baking time by about 5 minutes.

Here is my version of chicken pot pie, with my twist being the addition of a pizza crust in place of the expected pastry topper. This is the kind of thing you can make for kids or adults: use a slightly larger ramekin for an adult-size serving and serve it with a side salad; or make it in smaller portions for kids and serve with veggie sticks or even French fries.

If you love caprese salad but want a meal, this will make you very happy. The hot pasta melts the cheese slightly and makes the garlic and basil smell amazing. I can tell you that in my experience most kids love this.

This is a perfect dish for parents and kids to make together. Let the little ones roll the meat mixture into tiny balls while you sauté each batch and do the knife work. At the end everyone can help stir the pasta, meatballs, and cheese and tomatoes together.

I usually make this in one big log because it is so impressive when it comes out of the oven and you cut it into slices, but if the kids are helping put this together, why not make it as four individual rolls? That way everyone can stuff and roll his or her own selections. Let an adult cut the hot rolls, because the yummy molten cheese retains a lot of heat.

Calzones are more popular in Italy than in this country, but they are great kid food and are a little easier to eat than a conventional pizza slice. Each one is a little surprise package; stuff whatever you like inside. Let the kids fill, roll, and seal the calzones before you pop them in the oven.

Even kids who are not big fish-eaters tend to like salmon—and they’ll like it even better when it’s baked in a cheesy crumb coating. Let them do the dipping and crumb coating to speed the work along. The fish sticks can also be dipped in ketchup, marinara sauce, pesto, ranch dressing, or vinaigrette if you prefer.

A lot of steps go into putting this cake together but since it starts with a boxed cake mix, none of them is very difficult. All the effort goes into the creamy-crunchy filling, made from hazelnut brittle that is a delicious candy all on its own. It makes for a spectacular birthday cake.

Essentially a berry bread pudding, the ricotta and eggs in this dessert make it substantial and rich enough to serve for brunch. Serve with a side of maple syrup for breakfast, or a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream for dessert.

Pound cakes are perennially popular because they are such good keepers; this one will keep in the freezer for up to six months if it’s tightly wrapped. Pull it out and dress it up or dress it down; it’s great either way.

More cakey than crispy, these ladylike little tea cakes puff up as they bake, almost like little muffin tops. The lemon glaze on top adds a tart, crunchy layer.

Comfort food meets the espresso bar in these cute little cups of sweetness. Not quite a pudding, the mixture is frothy and thick, like the crema that tops a good cup of cappuccino.

If you’re intimidated by the prospect of making a mousse, this recipe is pretty cool. Once you’ve warmed up the milk, just combine everything in the blender, then pop it in the fridge to chill. Desserts don’t get any easier than that. Top individual servings with any kind of flavored cream you like; I like orange with chocolate, but a cinnamon cream would be nice, too.

I love the flavor of granitas but the texture is usually quite granular and icy; the mascarpone smoothes this version out so it is more like a sherbet. Don’t scrape it until just before you serve it, as it will melt and look less appetizing

I first had oil-poached fish in Napa Valley and loved the way this cooking method kept the fish so moist; you can’t really dry it out. You could prepare halibut or just about any other mild white fish this way. Be sure to use a mix of olive and vegetable oils to poach the fish; if you use 100 percent olive oil it will become too bitter. This is another really good-looking dish, with lots of pretty colors.

Ground lamb is now very widely available, and it makes a nice change from the usual beef ragù once in a while. This is thick enough to serve in shallow bowls over rice or simply with some nice bread, but you could also increase the amount of marinara sauce to four cups and serve it over pasta.