Root Vegetable

Using a fresh bay leaf brings the perfume of the herb garden to agrodolce onions that beg to be popped in the mouth whole.

Garlic Herb Bread When buttering the bread, gently spread the slices without pulling them apart.

The French term amuse bouche (which means "amuse the mouth") describes tiny appetizers that are served with drinks to awaken the palate. One such complimentary amuse bouche that we serve out Chanterelle clients as they sip their aperitifs and look over the menu is these little fritters, which come with a slightly exotic Tamarind Dipping Sauce. The restaurant staff likes them, too: After a long, late shift, when we often have snacks before we clean up and go home, we can't resist indulging in the fritters, although we usually dip them in hot sauce since there's rarely any Tamarind Dipping Sauce left in the kitchen. Sweet Vidalia onions are harvested in the spring and are best at that time, when they're freshest. They can be found the rest of the year for as long as the supply lasts. If you can't find Vidalias, try another sweet onion like Maui (Hawaii) or Walla Walla (Washington). At other times of year you could use Spanish onions as a substitute.

The faint sweetness and low acidity of balsamic vinegar is a perfect foil for the earthy taste of beets. For the recipe, there's no need to invest in an expensive real balsamic vinegar (labeled "tradizionale"); a decent mass-produced commercial brand works just fine. Baking, rather than boiling, the beets brings out their robust flavor. Vividly colored beets "bleed," so to keep the juices in while they cook, leave on the skins, the "tails" or rootlike wisps on the bottom, and at least an inch of the green stems. After they're cooked, peel the beets over a bowl or a thick layer of paper towels, since beet juice stains are nearly impossible to remove from wood or plastic surfaces. Karen loves beets and is happy to make a meal of this dish, with the main course there "just as an excuse." Two of the good "excuses" to serve alongside are David's Famous Fried Chicken or Herbed Pinwheel Pork Loin.

Serve with crusty bread.

Serve alongside short ribs .

Mix this relish into tuna or chicken salad, or serve with burgers or hot dogs.

Serve warm with fillets of salmon, in scrambled eggs or pasta, or on crostini with goat cheese.

You might expect to find smoked duck breast in a sultry, sensual main-course salad like this one, but here we use smoked turkey, which makes it a lot more affordable and a little bit more robust. Both good things.

This smooth puréed soup manages the near—impossible feat of being velvety and creamy without any cream. Ribbons of zucchini add a final soupçon of elegance.

If you've got the grill going anyway, toss your ears on before you butter them to get a quick char and even deeper flavor.

Honest isn't a word that comes up much when side dishes are being discussed, but that's exactly how these smashed potatoes and peas strike us. Serve them alongside the cornflake fried chicken for a southern-inspired supper for one.

Chunks of chorizo balance the sweetness of spring onions, beans, and peas. A Sherry vinaigrette lends a slight Iberian edge.

Fennel and tomatoes go silky when poached in olive oil, and when halibut follows suit, it picks up hints of the vegetables' flavor and becomes succulent and delicately nuanced.

In this side dish, the vegetables are dressed in a classic red wine vinaigrette. Chiles add smoky heat.

This versatile condiment is also great with bread or crudités.