Corn

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be made in 45 minutes or less.

I cook millet about once a week — it fits into my macrobiotic diet and tastes great. I often make this recipe for friends as it pleases just about everyone. Millet is a small round golden grain that has a high vitamin and mineral content. Although millet is unfamiliar to most people in this country, it is a staple throughout Africa, India, and Asia.

Great with tortilla chips as a dip. Or try it as a vegetarian filling for burritos adding grated Monterey Jack cheese, too.

These messy but irresistible ears of corn coated with cheese are a popular street snack in Mexico. For our recipe we used cotija, a crumbly, pungent, aged-curd cheese that can range in consistency from soft to very hard, depending on the brand. (We made ours with Los Fortales, a hard variety available at cheese shops and some specialty foods shops.) You can, however, substitute feta, which is more widely available. This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Serve with: Warmed tortillas and steamed, buttered summer squash. Dessert: Key lime pie from the bakery.

"I run my own salon, and I’m an instructor at a cooking school," writes Sandy Ercolano of Ridgewood, New Jersey. "It seems that I’m always in the kitchen. At home I cook meals and come up with recipes for my classes. My son Andrew appears to have inherited my culinary interest. He likes to lend a hand with the cooking, especially with desserts. Unfortunately, he’s not as interested in helping with the cleanup."

If you can't find pancetta, you can substitute regular bacon.

This recipe has a nice balance of sweet and spicy flavors, and a drizzle of lime juice provides tang. Serve the corn and the Hearts of Romaine and Roquefort Salad with the burgers, and check out the box on the next page for potato salad suggestions.

If you can't find fresh lobsters, frozen lobster meat can be used.

This golden curry cooks quickly, so the vegetables are just tender. A flourish of mint adds the final spark.

Stone-ground cornmeal has more texture and corn flavor than steel-ground.