Herbs & Spices

Golden crisp on the outside yet tender on the inside, here is the ultimate in French toast. The additional egg yolks give extra richness, body, and color to this twist on the classic. This recipe is perfect for entertaining because it's made the day before. Simply fry and serve in the morning.

The glories of summer are captured in this pale green egg salad redolent of fresh basil, green onions, and crunchy cucumbers. Serve it surrounded by greens or tucked into pita loaves or slices of crusty bread for a satisfying lunch.

Editor's note: Chef, nutritionist, and cooking teacher Lourdes Castro shared this recipe from her cookbook, Latin Grilling. It's a classic Cuban dish and the centerpiece of a festive party menu she created for Epicurious. If you have leftover pork, Castro recommends making Grilled Cuban Sandwiches . Cubans love their pork. It's hard to find a Cuban or Cuban-American who doesn't have a memory of spending hours waiting for a lechon, a whole pig, to finish cooking in someone's backyard, and then sharing it with family and friends (I am certainly no exception). What sets Cuban-style pork apart is the use of mojo criollo, a highly seasoned marinade made up of tangy citrus juice, vast amounts of garlic, cumin, and oregano. And while roasting a whole pig is deliciously fun, smaller cuts are far more manageable and easier to work with.

I just ate a meal of some meltingly tender pork, butternut squash, and toasted walnuts. No, this isn't my food journal. I'm sharing this information with you because the above foods are supposed to reduce the incidence of many diseases that might come my way. Okay, maybe you're not interested in your arteries working at peak capacity; maybe what you want is to enjoy food to the maximum and not have to force it down your throat because it's good for you. That said, you'll love this dish, whether or not its health benefits ever cross your mind.

This easy dinner is special enough for company.

Before making this dish, call your fish market. Octopus is available at some markets, but it may need to be ordered several days ahead.

Serve the lamb with your favorite tzatziki (cucumber and yogurt sauce) and horta (sautéed greens tossed with red wine vinegar and honey).

The beauty of this basic recipe is that it can be tweaked in numerous ways. For a spicy version, add some sriracha sauce. Try swapping out the lemon juice for lime juice and use feta cheese instead of Parmesan and mix in some chopped fresh cilantro and chopped red onion or shallot. For a curried chickpea salad, leave out the Parmesan and add curry powder to taste, dried currants, sliced green onions, and shredded carrots.

These zucchini fritters are the perfect way to start the meal. Serve the keftedes, grape leaves , octopus , and feta and olives as mezedes (appetizers).

These large white beans (gigantes means "giant" in Greek) are a classic ingredient in Greek cooking. Timing note: The beans need to soak overnight, so plan accordingly.

This dish only looks indulgent: A serving has a mere 7 grams of saturated fat, and the pasta and peas help deliver 40 percent of your daily intake of folate, a nutrient that aids the body in forming red blood cells.

A hearty Italian bread salad serves up good-for-you omega-3 fatty acids (thank you, salmon!) along with vitamin C–rich green beans.

Bright yellow mango sweetens the deal and adds a dose of vitamin A, which helps keep your skin glowing and clear.

Fresh herbs abound here—as does niacin, an energizing B vitamin: One serving of salmon dishes up nearly 70 percent of your daily niacin needs.

Thai red curry paste, unsweetened coconut milk, and fish sauce are available in the Asian foods section of most supermarkets. Serve this curry over steamed jasmine rice.