Eggplant

Broiling the eggplant gives it a delicious deep roasted flavor.

Great served with grilled lamb, steak or any Mediterranean-style menu.

Top toast points with this for an appetizer, or serve it as an accompaniment to grilled lamb, fish or chicken.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

For his pizza, Geoffrey Selling broils the eggplant instead of frying it in a lot of oil to lower the fat. But he coats the eggplant with commercial olive-oil spray, and we are reluctant users. How much different is spraying from lightly brushing with oil? To find out, we tested this two ways, spraying the eggplant one time and brushing it the other, and did not find a difference in oiliness. But after tasting the spray, right from the can, and then the bottled oil, we prefer the old-fashioned way.

There will be about 3/4 cup of parsley pesto left over after making this lasagne.

Fay Felicitas, San Jose, Calif.
If you don't have margarine, 2 to 3 additional tablespoons of olive oil will do, as the sausages release some fat. Two ounces of cheese is a small amount, but that's all you'll need to tie the dish together.

This delicious rustic omelet's flavors, when it's served at room temperature, are in full flower.

If you're using whole-milk plain yogurt instead of lebneh, you'll have to allow extra time (at least 8 hours) for draining. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 50 min

"While visiting Long Beach, California, we dined at a bit of elegant, imported Italy called L'Opera," writes Shirley Harris of Sun Lakes, Arizona. "The service was excellent, each dish divine, but the veal scaloppine was what my husband begged me to try to re-create. It would be great to surprise him with this dish at home." If you can't find porcini powder in the spice aisle of your supermarket, grind 1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms in a spice mill; that will be enough for one tablespoon.

Warm pita bread would make a delicious accompaniment to this dish.

This dish has wonderful smoky flavors and just a touch of sweetness. Using oven-ready lasagna noodles simplifies the preparation.