Rice & Grains

This clever combination of tastes and textures features hominy, cilantro, jicama, jalapeños, lime juice and cumin.

Serve this quick treat with heavy cream or vanilla ice cream.

Skillet cakes make from grains are popular at reatautants across the country. This recipe has a great do-ahead hint - the cakes can be prepared hours before they're cooked. And they are a good way to use leftover risotto.

Some soups genuinely do inspire a devotion akin to love, and this is one of them. In the cold of winter, when Gourmet editors ponder the matter of what soup to cook up in a steamy Saturday morning kitchen to provide comfort all weekend long, they decide with remarkable frequency to make the following one. Those in the know also add about a pound of smoked sausage; even the best can be made better.

Here's a beautiful pie with a sweet-tart filling and a sensational crust.

Arugula adds zip to this creamy risotto.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe was created to accompany Crown Roast of Lamb . Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

The frozen berries aren't thawed before you use them, so this dessert is super fast.

I think you'll understand why I love rice dishes so much when you taste this one—the robust, complex red-chile flavor is infused into plump rice grains (you definitely get the best texture from medium-grain rice), which are nestled around perfectly cooked shrimp. Not only could I eat this dish day after day, but it's one that always comes to mind as an easily likable one-pot main dish for casual entertaining. Add a salad and you've got all you need. To serve Red Chile Rice on a buffet, you may want to choose small shrimp and peel them completely (taking off the final joint and tail) for the convenience of your guests. Don't forget to mix everything well before serving, since bits of salsa and green onions rise to the top during baking.

P> The secret to properly cooked Chinese-style rice, whether white or brown, is to first rinse the rice and then to avoid cooking it in too much water. For fried rice, the rice should be cooked until just tender to the bite.

It seems that we're always agreeing to bring a big salad to an informal dinner party only to discover, too late, that there's no time to make a last-minute salad. No one would guess that this wonderfully fresh salad started its journey to dinner two days earlier — in fact, it requires that extra time to mellow its flavors. It's a very portable salad that can sit for hours at room temperature with no ill effects.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 30 min