Vegetable

This is a great basic recipe that allows for interchangeable veggies. You can use any combination of root veggies, including rutabagas, turnips, or different potatoes. The cream adds a nice richness and velvety texture, but you can get a similar effect without the cream if you use a rich, creamy potato like a yellow finn or German butterball. And when it’s available, spring green garlic is a great substitute for the regular garlic for an added burst of flavor.

This dish is one of the first things I make once the Pacific salmon season has opened. It is the first sign that summer is near. Later in the summer, I make a similar dish with corn, zucchini, and tomatoes with fresh basil. Any combo of fresh, perfectly sweet, just-picked veggies will be a great complement to the fish. It’s especially important to buy wild salmon—even self-proclaimed “sustainable” salmon farms are dangerous because of the parasitic lice that thrive on farmed salmon; when the infested fish escape (a frequent occurrence), the lice threaten the wild salmon population. If wild salmon isn’t in season, use any sustainable fillet or steak that is of similar thickness. If available, use 1/4 cup chopped green garlic instead of the garlic cloves. And if you can find them, rainbow carrots are beautiful here.

This is one of my favorite ways to showcase the fresh and delicate flavors of spring: sweet peas, tender green garlic, and mint. Serve with crostini or fresh spring veggies as a dip (pictured), or spread it on sandwiches. You can also use fava beans in place of the peas, or use a combination. Truffle pecorino would also work well in this recipe.

Heirloom carrots, with their deep varied hues of orange, yellow, and purple, are ideal for this salad, but you can use regular carrots and it will be just as delicious. Just make sure they’re organic and smaller in size to ensure the same tender, sweet results. You can use a vegetable peeler or a mandoline to make the ribbons. The vegetable peeler takes a little longer, but produces beautifully thin, delicate strips. A mandoline, on the other hand, is faster but makes thicker ribbons if you are not careful. If you go this route, let the ribbons sit for a few minutes after tossing with the dressing so they soften somewhat.

Every time I make this gratin I get the same response: “This is so good!” Honestly, though, when you combine potatoes and squash with cream, sage, and cheese, how could it not be amazing? This gratin is especially well suited for dinner parties or any other time you need a hearty, make-ahead side dish. It scales up easily (just increase the ingredients and baking dishes accordingly), and it reheats wonderfully.

This autumnal salad is a kaleidoscope of shapes and colors, thanks to the scalloped half-moons of squash, wispy leaves of baby arugula, and shiny red jewels of pomegranate seeds. It’s as visually pleasing as it is delicious. Boasting both tender greens and roasted potatoes, this dish is sort of a half salad, half starchy side dish. As such, you can serve it alone as an entrée or in smaller portions as an accompaniment. You can roast the potatoes and squash and make the dressing well ahead of time, then assemble at the last minute.

Letting the broccolini brown slightly in the pan gives it a boost of flavor. To accomplish this, the broccolini must be absolutely dry when it goes into the pan; otherwise, it’ll steam and won’t take on any color. A large cast-iron skillet is the ideal cooking vessel for this dish.

This simple but luscious soup has all the basic elements of minestrone: broth, beans, and veggies. If you can find it, erbette chard is my favorite variety to use. It’s sweet and nutty, with an incredible silky texture when cooked. Serve with grilled or toasted crusty bread, rubbed with the cut side of a halved garlic clove, and drizzle with olive oil.

Plain roasted veggies are fantastic as is, but tossing them with butter, capers, and lemon really takes them over the top.

This salad demonstrates how fresh winter can taste. The raw fennel is clean, aromatic, and crisp, the citrus sweet and a touch bitter, and the avocado rich and smooth. You can substitute other citrus with similar success or even use several types. To really take this salad over the top, I love to top it with fresh plucked Dungeness crab meat (another winter wonder); about 8 ounces is perfect for four servings.

This salad is inspired by the incredible version I had at New York City’s Il Buco restaurant. One bite will convince you that compared to romaine, kale is a better match for assertive Caesar dressing. You can omit the egg yolk if you want to play it safe, but don’t try this without anchovy; it makes the dish. This version is crouton-less; if you add them, make a bit more dressing.

Our customers are an incredibly diverse group of people, but there’s one thing that unites them: their love for our latkes. We used to make them only for Jewish holidays, but now they’re a staple in our deli for Jews and non-Jews alike. Our version includes butternut squash and fresh herbs, which give the latkes a freshness that most other kinds lack. This recipe employs a trick that we use extensively in our commercial kitchen: we brown the latkes on the stove top and finish the cooking in the oven. It not only minimizes the time you spend standing over a hot pan but also reduces the amount of oil needed and frees up the stove top for whatever else you might want to make. I love these as a first course or a light supper, especially when paired with smoked salmon or trout. Applesauce and sour cream are great, too.

This colorful and refreshing salad is one of the most eagerly anticipated items in our deli case. We don’t start making it until the tomatoes are really ripe and the corn is sweet and abundant. Because the ingredients are fairly sturdy, this salad holds up for quite a while after you make it. It’s a great candidate for bringing to a picnic or barbecue, and it’s the perfect side for a burger! It’s also nice as a salsa or spooned onto a grilled fish fillet.

Delfina is one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco, and it happens to be just two doors down from the Market! Although much of their menu changes daily, this spaghetti is always on offer, and I think it’s one of the best things they make. It’s a great example of how a few high-quality ingredients (most of them pantry items) can come together for a simple but nourishing meal. Chef-owner Craig Stoll was generous enough to share his recipe. Craig employs the classical Italian technique of par-cooking the pasta and then finishing the cooking with the sauce. This not only thickens the sauce but also lets the sauce cook into the pasta. He says, “The result should be juicy and shiny and full of flavor, but with no residual sauce. All of the sauce should be contained within the body of the spaghetti. The last bite of pasta should bring the last bit of sauce with it.”

This simple, filling one-dish meal is perfect for weeknights. The secret ingredient is the white beans; crushing them slightly helps them break down into a luxurious light sauce for the pasta. If fresh shelling beans happen to be in season, this is a great way to use them (you’ll need to cook them separately first). The beans nestle perfectly into the cup shape of the “little ear” pasta, so be sure to use orecchiette for this dish. Pancetta adds a boost of flavor, but you could also substitute a few tablespoons of olive oil to make this dish vegetarian. And for a spicy kick, you can also add a pinch of chile flakes when you sauté the onions.

This dish comes straight from my mom, who made it nearly every Friday during Lent. It’s hearty and savory, and the rice and lentils together make it a perfect vegetarian protein. The burnt onion garnish is key; it adds depth and richness to the overall effect. Mom often served this with a rustic tomato, cucumber, and red onion salsa seasoned with lemon and mint, which lend acidity, texture, and fresh flavors to the plate.

There are as many varieties of dal (the nourishing lentil soup) as there are towns and villages in India. Our recipe is inspired by the one served at Kasa Indian Eatery, just down the street from the Market. It gets a dose of butter, which makes the soup incredibly rich in flavor, and pureeing half gives it extra creaminess. This recipe can easily be doubled.

This silky, sophisticated soup is proof that beans can be so much more than humble peasant food. Serve it as a warming first course or main dish. You can use cannellini beans or white navy beans in this soup, but given the choice, I prefer the cannellinis. They’re larger and have comparatively less skin, so they produce a creamier soup.

Farro is an ancient grain that, despite its popularity in central Italy, was once impossible to find in the United States. With rising demand for it, more and more domestic growers are starting to cultivate it, including Eatwell Farm in Northern California and Bluebird Grain Farms in Oregon. This hearty fall salad works well as a vegan entrée or a side dish, or even warmed and served as a Thanksgiving stuffing. I like to add diced or pulled roasted turkey to turn this into an entrée salad. Small cubes of good-quality Pecorino Romano are also a nice addition and give the dish added richness and umami.

This flexible salad relies on pantry staples and long-lasting veggies, so it’s easy to keep the ingredients around for making on the fly. It’s also the perfect place to use infused olive oils, especially herby ones like tarragon oil.