Root Vegetable

These pizzas are inspired by a traditional dish served in Middle Eastern restaurants. They are an ideal way to introduce a new protein and flavor to your children, who are bound to eat them if you call them pizzas.

Dense, flavorful aged beef works best for this pan-roasted steak. If you use unaged beef, plan on shorter cooking times.

Braising the pork belly yields crisp-tender nuggets ready to mingle with caramelized sweet potatoes. "It's a very American profile, sweet potato and pork," says Jared Wentworth, the chef at Chicago's Longman & Eagle, who gave us this recipe.

Like most little kids, Dahlia loves macaroni and cheese, and I've made it for her in many guises, running the gamut of techniques. My aim is always the same—to make the dish quickly with a minimum of fuss, and to use a maximum of vegetables that she will tolerate and not pick out. This is one of both our favorites. It's comforting, crusty topped, soft centered, and very cheesy—but not at all sophisticated. Just simple, kid-friendly, homemade food with the added grown-up appeal of lots of healthful carrots tossed into the mix. I got the idea from a chef's recipe in a glossy food magazine. The chef called for cooking carrots in butter and orange juice, pureeing them, and using the puree as a sauce for mac and cheese. I tried the recipe as written and was disappointed. It was a lot of work, and I didn't like the sweetness of the citrus fruit interfering with my cheesy goodness. So I decided to come up with my own simplified and ultra-Cheddary version. It was a huge hit with the under-three crowd and their parents, too. It's a straightforward recipe that comes together without much fuss, other than having to grate some carrots. But to make up for that, I've eliminated the need to make a cheese sauce on the top of the stove. Instead, I toss the hot pasta with grated cheddar, butter, sour cream for creaminess, and eggs to hold it all together. The grated carrots get boiled along with the pasta, so cooking them isn't an extra step. And the tiny orange shreds look so much like the cheddar that your kids might not even notice they are there. Dahlia certainly hasn't, and while I've never lied to her about their inclusion, I might have left out the word carrot in the dish description—accidentally, of course.

Keep it simple by spooning this quick sauté over crushed boiled potatoes, tossing it in a skillet with pappardelle, or piling the mushrooms on thick slices of toasted country bread.

This herb-scented, brined bird packs more flavor than a basic roast chicken.

Lemon and oil is a magical marriage that stumps our companions whenever we serve it. "Sumac?" they guess. "Pickled plum? Verjus?" Beautiful in its simplicity, this vinaigrette is our most-oft served, as it is the one most likely to improve any salad it meets.

These skillet-fried biscuits are a little sturdier than many other biscuits in order to hold the fresh berries intact. The butter bumps up the flavor as well. When they are fried, they remind me of the blueberries we picked early one morning as Girl Scouts and made into pancakes—a culinary highlight of my childhood. But they are very special baked as well. Either way, they’re a winner.

For as long as I can remember, my mom has been cooking chicken in oven bags, those oven-safe plastic bags. So when I recently started roasting chicken in a brown paper bag, I felt sort of like I was going back to my roots. It works great because the paper bag traps just enough steam to make the chicken supermoist and tender, while at the same time letting enough steam escape to allow the skin to get golden brown. It always amazes me that the bag doesn’t catch on fire—so much so that I think of this as half recipe and half magic trick. Just make sure your broiler is turned off and the bag is not touching the top of the oven.

We've perfected Tanya's English grandmother's version of a succulent mainstay. Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave, and you can even prepare the casserole a day ahead and pop it in the oven for a stress-free weekend dinner with friends.

When it comes to nutrition, cherries don't bomb. They're rich in anthocyanins, which can jump-start your immune system and mop up free radicals.

If pizza crust seems daunting and time-consuming to make, try this easy spelt dough, which is moistened with ricotta cheese and aromatic linseed oil. This rustic dinner is stunning to behold — thinly sliced apples and fennel sit on a tangy sour cream layer and are topped with lightly crisped prosciutto. The crust is inspired by classic German dough with Quark, a delicious fresh cheese, which keeps baked goods fresh. While your dough rests, preheat the oven and prepare the toppings — voilà, dinner! Great also as a party appetizer in the early fall with a glass of rosé or dry white wine, or with a chilled lager in the summer. Use a mandoline to slice apples and fennel about 1/8 inch thick. If you don't have one, try to slice them as thinly as possible to get flavorful brown edges. If you don't own a pizza stone, preheat an inverted baking sheet for 30 minutes as described in step 3. Place the dough on a piece of parchment paper, carefully slide the paper with the dough right onto the baking sheet, and bake. While the crust will not be as crisp, it will still be delicious.

Make this salad as tart or as creamy as you like with the addition of more vinegar or mayonnaise.

Serve this terrine as an elegant starter to a summer meal.

Our lighter take on the Gilroy Garlic Fries at the San Francisco Giants' AT&T Park forgoes the deep fryer in favor of a hot oven.

Infuse lemony, garlicky chicken with even more flavor by basting it with rosemary branches dipped in olive oil.

For the best results, chill the produce first.

An aromatic broth of garlic, scallions, and ginger infuses the fish and helps keep it incredibly moist.