Parmesan

Served with a salad, this dish is a complete dinner. Though the procedure for trimming artichokes may look involved, it's really quite easy.

Though these bruschetta are a terrific first course for almost any meal. They'd actually make a great lunch as well—just think of them as open-faced sandwiches.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This risotto has the classic creamy yet al dente texture and features a combination of Parmesan cheese and seafood. Contrary to popular belief, Italians do partner cheese with seafood in some dishes; we recommend it here without reservation.

This quick, casual recipe endows beef burgers with the flavors of a great pizza.

Arborio is a short-grain Italian rice that is one of four varieties typically used for risotto in Italy-the other three are Baldo, Carnaroli and Vialone Nano. Arborio can be found at Italian markets here, and is becoming increasingly available at supermarkets.

In this recipe we call for a 10 1/2- by 7 1/2- by 1-inch rectangular tart pan. The tart could also be made using a baking sheet or a jelly-roll pan, as the filling is dense enough to hold its shape on its own.

This earthy pasta dish is delicious made with the wide, long noodles called pappardelle, or with the thinner and more readily available fettuccine.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Makes use of the microwave oven.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

In doubling or tripling this recipe, you can put all the ingredients for the dressing into a blender (cutting the amount of garlic in half) for a quick whirl. Store the dressing in a screw-cap jar until the salad is ready to be tossed. The flavor is the same, but the texture of the dressing is creamy and looks less attractive on the romaine.