Bean and Legume

What a plum deal: Certain molecules in purple produce may help fend off Parkinson's disease by preventing the production of disease-causing toxins.

Make this salad as tart or as creamy as you like with the addition of more vinegar or mayonnaise.

These brined green beans get their snappy flavor from fermentation. Use them to make the Dilly Bean Potato Salad, serve with charcuterie, or use as a Bloody Mary garnish.

This soup is equally delicious served hot or chilled.

Wheat Free Yep, green burgers. This recipe makes a lot, but they freeze well, so you can have green burgers all week long!

“The Valley” is what we, in Texas, call the Rio Grande Valley. It’s located on the southernmost tip of the state, bordering Mexico, and it’s where Sandy grew up. The Valley is a melting pot of American and Mexican cultures, and is known for its festivals, architecture, and cuisine. So when Sandy talks about comfort food, she thinks of dishes that are often heavily influenced by traditional Mexican flavors. Arroz con Pollo (rice with chicken) is one of her favorites. Many Spanish-speaking countries claim this dish, so there are many different ways to prepare it. This particular recipe is served up Valley style and is uniquely Texan.

You can find sumac, a lemony spice, at Middle Eastern markets, specialty foods stores, and wholespice.com

First, tenderize the octopus by simmering it at a low boil for about an hour (ignore the myths about adding vinegar or a cork from a bottle of wine). Then char it on the grill to crisp the skin.

Smoky paella is perfect for a crowd. This recipe for six is designed for cooking on a charcoal grill—though a gas grill works in a pinch.

Adas Polo
This is a delicious, nutritious dish that can be served as a vegetarian meal or accompanied by lamb, chicken or Miniature meatballs. In Shiraz, in southern Iran, it is traditionally cooked without raisins and dates, especially when accompanied by chicken or meat. However, the combination of green lentils, raisins and dates creates a very good vegetarian dish. It is a useful recipe as the ingredients are available all year round. It is not time-consuming to prepare and cook and the result is very rewarding.

A 4-ounce fillet of mild-tasting tilapia has only 108 calories.

Summer colds? Not you! Each serving of this dish delivers all the immunity-boosting vitamin C you need per day.

You can sub in fresh favas or edamame for the peas.

A Venetian specialty of creamy rice and peas, this springtime classic should be the consistency of risotto.

Whole wheat couscous, a newcomer to supermarket shelves, gives this dish a nutty flavor—though standard couscous works just as well. Serve it with Slow-Baked Salmon or Miso-Glazed Salmon Steaks .

I have to admit that making a vegetarian dinner is liberating. When I don’t include meat, I feel entitled to splurge on other riches, in this case avocado and pumpkin seeds. Nonetheless, these veggie-packed tacos are proof that something can be hearty and healthful at the same time.

I love a good corn muffin, and nobody makes one better than Loic Feillet of Panorama Baking in Alexandria, Virginia. The muffin is so good, in fact—moist and studded with chewy little bits of corn—that as soon as I tasted it, I knew I’d incorporate it into an egg dish. The muffin reminded me of an artisanal English muffin, and I just happened to be working on a Mexican variation of eggs Benedict. How perfect! The corn muffin would replace the traditional corn tortilla in huevos rancheros, and I’d poach instead of fry the eggs. Immediately, I had a dish worthy of the muffin, but best of all, even a lesser muffin tastes great when capped off with these ingredients.

I first sampled a version of this light and lively salad as a meal at chef Yves Camdeborde's Le Comptoir in Paris's 6th arrondissement. Yves and I participated in the New York marathon in 2006, and I am sure that the strength gained from this protein-rich salad helped me make it to the finish line! This dish has it all: color (the red bits are lobster roe), crunch, and a light touch imparted by a dressing of yogurt and mustard.

Editor's note: Chef, nutritionist, and cooking teacher Lourdes Castro shared this recipe from her cookbook, Latin Grilling. It's part of a festive Cuban party menu she created for Epicurious. This dish gets its name from the wars between the dark-skinned Moors (moros) and the lightskinned Spaniards (cristianos) that occurred during the eighth century in Spain. It's a very popular Cuban dish, and it's perfect for outdoor entertaining, as it can be made well in advance and be served at room temperature.