Bean and Legume

In this main-course riff on salade niçoise, the olives make a splash in the dressing while peppery arugula stands in for lettuce, grilled salmon for oil-packed tuna. Yet the beautiful contrasts of the original are still front and center: potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, and hard-boiled eggs.

The inspiration for test kitchen director Ruth Cousineau’s velvety chilled bean soup comes from Mediterranean-cooking authority Claudia Roden's recipe for bissara, an Egyptian bean-and-herb purée. The beans here are lima and green, simmered in chicken broth (you can use vegetable broth if you want to go vegetarian) and then puréed until silky. The herbs—parsley, cilantro, dill, and mint—are blended with olive oil so that you can finish the soup with a verdant drizzle, but don’t think of the herb oil as merely a garnish: Its bright flavor brings everything together.

In this remarkably tasty side-dish vegetable, instant stock powder provides a long-cooked depth of flavor in minutes. The rich creaminess of the white beans transforms frozen spinach into a healthful and delicious version of creamed spinach. It's not just a side dish though: Use leftover "creamed" spinach as a sauce for pasta or grains (season a bit more heavily) or thin it with enough vegetable stotck to turn it into a soup.

Here's a tasty way to add excitement to your lunch bag. Stuff this flavor-packed mixture into pita with thinly sliced tomato and some lettuce or sprouts, and—if you're willing to offer tastes—be prepared for lunch-matets to ask for the recipe. Try to make this the night before, as it is even tastier after a sojourn in the refrigerator.

Most people seem to have a particular way they like their gravy. This one is of the thick, southern-style kinds that you serve on the side and is great for dipping your biscuit or potatoes in. Since everything is pureed, don't be too particular about how you chop the ingredients up. The thyme leaves don't have to be meticulously pulled from the stems; so long as the stems are tender enough to chop them up, too—that way everything comes together fast. An immersion blender comes in really handy here, but if you don't have one, a blender is just fine, too.

This fun assortment of flavorful nibbles is ideal for summer entertaining. End the meal with frozen yogurt or a fruit salad of halved fresh cherries and pieces of watermelon.

Farro is a nutty-flavored grain that's popular in Tuscany. It's not as heavy as some other whole grains, but it's still packed with protein, fiber, magnesium, and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Here, it's the base for a satisfying summer salad.

Fresh, in-shell black-eyed peas have a nutty flavor and cook quickly. You'll find them at farmers' markets in late summer. You can also buy shelled ones in the produce section of many supermarkets and from melissas.com. Flat green beans known as Romano (or Roma) beans are also found at farmers' markets. If you can't get them, string beans are a fine substitute.

If you live near a Chinese market, pick up barbecued or smoked duck there. Otherwise, smoked chicken or turkey from the supermarket (or leftover roast chicken) would be terrific tossed with the noodles. To make it a meal, add a platter of chilled silken tofu. Drizzle the tofu with soy sauce and chili sauce, then top with chopped green onions. Coconut ice cream with fresh berries and lychees would make a nice dessert.

A chunky pistou with full pistachio flavor adds depth to this fresh salmon dish. Want even more vegetables? Slice lemon cucumbers (a wonderful farmers' market variety that looks somewhat like a yellow tomato) and add a squeeze of lemon juice and a pinch of dill to make the perfect starter.

Chef Jimmy Shaw cooks up tacos that stars can enjoy without guilt. Authentic Mexican dishes like this one are flavorful and naturally lowfat, he says.

The many components of this big salad—served side by side on a platter—all have quite different flavors and textures and go together brilliantly.

In another case of less is more, at-their-peak green beans—an old favorite—are paired with a quick vinaigrette that sparkles with a generous amount of minced sweet onion.

These colorful tartlets are quite simple to put together. One easy custard recipe is the basis for a trio of very different fillings (the ingredients can be doubled or tripled if one is a real favorite).

This one-pot meal—lobster, corn, and green beans—conjures summer in New England. The simple sesame mayonnaise is outstanding for dunking and slathering.

Tofu is frequently paired with Asian flavors, but here it is a delicate canvas for a robust, creamy French-inspired dressing that also gussies up the seasonal side salad. Dipping the tofu in egg before it hits the skillet seals its custardy texture inside a lovely golden crust.

The term shell bean generally refers to any bean that has to be removed from the pod before eating.

An all-new version of franks and beans: The dogs are topped with lentils and an innovative take on raita, India's ubiquitous yogurt-based condiment. If you’d like to use naan (tandoor-baked flatbread) instead of hot dog buns, look for it at Trader Joe's stores—in both the bakery and the frozen foods aisle—or at Indian markets.

If you've got some fresh-caught trout, we know just what to do with it. This incredible main-plus-side requires very few ingredients and is easy enough to make at your campsite or cabin. (And you can use store-bought, too: In that case, you should ask your fishmonger to bone and butterfly the whole trout for you.)