Starter

Outstanding in flavor and freshness, these marinated vegetables are unlike anything you'll find in a jar or deli case. But do make a trip to your local Italian delicatessen for sliced assorted cold cuts and crusty bread to go with the vegetables. It all adds up to an impressive no-hassle starter.

Paired with homemade salsa, these old-fashioned fried green tomatoes get a nineties update.

Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

The star of this dish is skordalia, a garlicky dip that is the Greek version of aioli.

Serve this appealing hors d'oeurve with cut-up fresh vegetables and breadsticks.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. A mild-tasting soup that's smooth and rich.

Eating your spinach (and radicchio) has never been more pleasant.

In this recipe we call for a 3- by 1 1/2-inch stainless-steel pastry ring. It is available at some specialty cookware shops.

These chicken wings need to marinate for at least 8 hours — we recommend putting them in the refrigerator before you go to bed so they'll be ready for roasting the next day. The deep, almost beeflike flavor of these wings comes from the red wine in the marinade; both the wings and the mayonnaise get a boost from the Spanish smoked paprika.

A lightened version of a first course that traditionally precedes choucroute garnie.

Prepared pesto is put to delicious use in this easy and elegant appetizer.

This recipe is from Cafe Annie in Houston, TX.

"My grandmother, who was a successful restaurateur from C″rdoba, Spain, hesitantly relinquished her gazpacho recipe to me," says Lawrence Saez of San Francisco, CA. This nourishing cold soup is ideal for a hot summer day and is best enjoyed with a glass of Manzanilla Sherry.

Peeled, split fava beans for this Egyptian falafel are available in most Italian or Middle Eastern grocery stores. Ta’miyya is served with tehina.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Whether you pick blossoms from your garden or buy them at the farmers market, choose male flowers. The males — which don't produce a vegetable but exist to pollinate the females — are recognizable by their long, straight stems and the unmistakably male-looking stamen in the center of each blossom. Females swell at the base of the blossom, where the squash forms, and four little shoots make up the pistil inside. Some chefs like to fry female blossoms when the baby zucchini is just emerging and still attached, but Mexican and Italian purists wouldn't hear of it. Other chefs like to remove the stamen of the male flowers, but it isn't necessary.