Food Processor

Gondi—the word is a bawdy Persian expression for a certain part of the male anatomy—is a favorite food in many Iranian Jewish homes. These light, cardamom-scented dumplings look like matzo balls, but instead of matzo meal, they're made from ground chicken or turkey and chickpea flour. To get a clear, unclouded soup broth, cook the gondi in a separate pot of chicken stock, and then add them to the soup broth when serving. For a more casual presentation, cook the gondi in the same pot with the other soup ingredients. You can make the gondi dough the day before, and store it in the refrigerator.

Use this smoky, chile-based sauce to add color and heat to blanched cauliflower, green beans, or broccoli.

Versatile mojo verde is especially nice with steamed artichokes or roasted red peppers.

Preserved lemon gives this mash intense pops of salty-citrusy flavor. Scoop out the flesh and pith from the lemon and use only the peel.

The pork for this Southern-inspired pasta sauce is studded with garlic, which infuses the meat while it roasts.

Fleishig Our Friday night chopped liver was not just the start of another memorable meal but was also part of the Sabbath celebration. My late mother gave the preparation as much importance or respect as the main course. She used a few saved and koshered chicken livers, carefully extended with a mound of sweet fried onions, cooked gently with a little schmaltz and a handful of homemade gribenes, and hard-boiled eggs. She'd grind it all together in an old-fashioned grinder, clamped to the Formica tabletop, apart from one egg that was left to be grated carefully over the served mounds of liver—yolk and white separate. Finally the mixture was combined and, on extra-special occasions, moistened with a little Kiddush wine already sitting next to the polished candles. The chopped liver was then served in generous mounds on small glass plates from Woolworths and decorated with the egg and circles of pickled cucumber.

Parve Todd: To me, gefilte fish out of a jar is an abomination, but my version, basically an interpretation of the French quenelles be brochet, is cheftastic. Choosing between the two is a no-brainer, in my opinion (see Gefilte Fish: Jarred or Fresh? below). I prefer to use rockfish, otherwise known as sea bass, for gefilte fish because it is indigenous to the Chesapeake region. I blend it with pike and flounder, but you could use any combination of the three. Any white, non-oily fish will do for that matter. I've even made them with salmon; the light pink color makes a nice change of pace. It's best to poach the fish balls a day ahead of time so they can rest in their cooking liquid for several hours. They can be eaten cold, but Ellen and I like to serve them warm—they make a great, non-meat brunch entrée.

If you love lemon candy that has some honest pucker to it, these are for you. There's nothing wimpy about them. For a more traditional take on marshmallows, see our recipe for Homemade Marshmallows . And see Make Your Own Marshmallows for additional recipes and tips.

Fans of candied grapefruit peel will love the chewy bits of candied zest in these marshmallows. For a more traditional take on marshmallows, see our recipe for Homemade Marshmallows . And see Make Your Own Marshmallows for additional recipes and tips.

Low-cal 'shrooms up the heartiness factor of these patties, for burgers that are backyard barbecue-worthy.

I wanted to include this Baron family recipe because it underscores how rooted in poverty Jewish cuisine is. This is a traditional spread to be served on crackers or toast, an easy and inexpensive canapé. It shows off the versatility of the egg, the power of schmaltz to enrich, the forcefulness of the gribenes to flavor, and the power of the onion. Onion and egg, that's it. In its plainest form—egg, sautéed onion, gribenes, schmaltz, salt and pepper—it's good but very plain. Arthur Schwartz's version, chopped by hand and mashed slightly with a fork, is even plainer-eggs, schmaltz, salt and pepper, enlivened with raw onion. That said, its greatness lies in this simplicity. Lois is going to get a little huffy, but I've fallen back on my habit of giving this a little sparkle with some minced shallot macerated in lemon, a kick with cayenne, a little more depth of flavor with fish sauce, and a nice crunch from some diced celery folded in-but it's up to you. No matter how you make it, it goes great on water crackers, matzo, thinly sliced toast, and would be a great garnish for a green, leafy salad. For a more fanciful canapé, combine it with chopped liver. This recipe can be doubled.

"Yogurt lightens this riff on hummus. It's fantastic with pita chips or crudités." —Chris Morocco, associate food editor

This braise gets its deep flavor and color from dried New Mexico chiles. Find them in the produce section.

A simple curry paste gives this northern Thai-inspired soup surprising depth of flavor.

Parchment paper is a lifesaver when making this rustic tart. Use it when rolling out the tender, delicate crust (it'll keep it from sticking), then use it to fold over the edges of the galette.

Using frozen berries in desserts is a clever way to add flavor and vibrant color in colder months. Choose a mild honey, such as clover or orange blossom, to let the fruits shine.

These are no ordinary corn dogs. The fragrant buttermilk-cornmeal batter is laced with a hint of honey, spices, and delicious crumbles of bacon.

This harkens to those beloved jam-filled cookies that have been favorites in cookie jars for generations. This savory twist embellishes the dough with Parmesan cheese, the jam in question made with tomato and tart cherries. The jam recipe makes more than is needed for this batch of cookies, but it's not practical to make in smaller quantities. Extra will keep well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Spread it on turkey or ham sandwiches, slather it on chicken breasts before baking, or serve as an accompaniment to cheese. You can use dried cranberries in place of the dried tart cherries, if you like. For a short-cut version, you could nix making the jam here and simply use prepared plum or fig jam, or another minimally sweet jam.

The lamb roasts on a bed of thyme to infuse the meat.