Food Processor

A touch of spicy curry paste makes this sweet-potato soup sing. It is an obvious choice to serve with Asian food, but don’t overlook it for other meals as well. Try the soup with roasted turkey for Thanksgiving, serve it tonight with Pork Chops with Herb Rub (page 196), or warm up a fall picnic by sharing some of it from an insulated container.

Beautiful in color, this soup is creamy without using dairy products. The crunchy pumpkin seeds provide a nice texture contrast. Serve the soup hot in the winter and chilled in the summer.

Pair this smooth, cumin-rich soup with unsalted baked corn tortilla strips and a deep green salad for a simple, hearty meal.

Terrific all by itself, this lemon cream is even more delicious with a double dose of raspberries, plus gingersnaps and lemon zest.

Creamy texture, pretty green color, and assertive taste—this dip has it all!

Easy enough for weeknights and special enough for guests, this dessert pairs cool and creamy ricotta cheese with liqueur-soaked fruits. You can substitute two cups of almost any other fruit you like, and you may want to try other flavors of liqueur as well.

This spicy mixture is delicious on cucumber rounds or unsalted baked corn tortillas.

When the bananas on your counter start to freckle, it’s time to make sorbet!

This vibrant green dip is perfect for serving with fresh vegetables. You can make it up to three days in advance and refrigerate it in an airtight container—the lime juice keeps the avocado from turning dark.

This simple sauce has many applications: as a sauce for meat (page 54), as a pasta sauce, or as a soup base. Wood-roasting the peppers and onions adds great flavor. Returning them to the fire along with the wine and other ingredients adds a richness and depth to the sauce. use a red wine that has a lot of presence such as Zinfandel or Sangiovese. You can add other spices, such as a curry blend or chipotles in adobo, as you choose.

Many dense cakes such as pound cake can be grilled with great success. The grilling lightly toasts the cake and adds depth to the flavor. Here, Joanne Weir shares her favorite Mediterranean version, grilled polenta cake topped with seasonal berries tossed in a fruit sauce. Note: Make the cake a day in advance, and the berry compote several hours in advance so the flavors have time to blend.

This is one of my favorite desserts. Dried apricots, almonds, and honey are the key sweet flavors of the Mediterranean. With a nod to Provence, we top it all with Lavender Crème Anglaise.

This tart has a crunchy cornmeal crust filled with an earthy combination of wood-roasted mushrooms and chard paired with caramelized fennel and nutty cheese. If chanterelles or oyster mushrooms aren’t available, use all cremini mushrooms. The tart will still be sensational.

This is the perfect tart to celebrate summer. It showcases the ripest heirloom tomatoes, fresh corn, and basil. You can use any tomatoes, but I like to use a mixture of colors. The corn kernels add crunch and a burst of flavor. The tang of the goat cheese pulls all the tastes together.

This soup has a wonderful bright, fresh flavor from the greens and lots of herbs. My favorite way of cooking this soup is in a pot made of micaceous clay (see note). The clay adds flavor and the added earthiness of the favas makes it heavenly! This version is pureed, though you can leave it chunky if you wish. You can substitute fresh peas for the favas and fresh spinach for the escarole. Make sure you use a really flavorful extra-virgin olive oil for finishing.

This recipe from author and cooking teacher Linda Carucci is a family favorite that she and I adapted for the wood-fired environment. The smokiness imparted is a great match with the ham. Use the ham bone to make a batch of this thick, satisfying soup to eat for supper during the week.

This is a dish you can make with little preparation or cooking time. Anyone can be a successful shrimp griller. The key things to remember are: (1) brine the shrimp to assure moistness; (2) grill them with the shells on; (3) don’t overcook them. The brightly flavored vinaigrette can be served with any other grilled fish or even chicken.