Root Vegetable

Toss and broil: Charred peppers and red onion bring color and sweetness to workaday chicken breasts.

In this luxurious dish, the marrow from slow-simmered beef shanks combines with pan juices and aromatic vegetables, creating a silky gravy perfect for serving with potatoes. Tender roasted garlic adds a deep, caramelized background note.

This soup was inspired by a meal at the Copenhagen microbrewery Nørrebro Bryghus. (Who knew breweries could be fine-dining destinations?) Lager lends a malty richness to the velvety broth, thick with mussels; cold chopped avocado and tomato mingle with the heat, bringing the whole spectrum of flavors into sharper focus.

Though Denmark travel guides characterize smørrebrød as an open-face sandwich, food editors Melissa Roberts and Maggie Ruggiero found that this national favorite is somewhere between that and an oversize canapé, with a few carefully chosen ingredients arranged generously on top (often to the point where the bread is no longer even visible). Here, whittled down to bite-size, it's an elegant hors d'oeuvre that retains the Danish spirit; caraway butter complements the classic rye base, and lightly fried beets and sweet onion are an alluring counterpoint to the smoked salmon.

The cabbage and carrots in this dish supply 126 percent of your daily vitamin A, key to maintaining healthy eyes.

If four people eat a mix of light and dark skinless meat, you'll have enough leftovers for two more meals. Bonus: Your oven does all but 10 minutes of the work.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Simple Chinese Cooking by Kylie Kwong. Because pork is rather rich, I like to add a touch of hoisin sauce—the pork can stand up to it. The malt vinegar balances out the flavors, cutting through the richness and sweetness.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from The Shun Lee Cookbook by Michael Tong. This Sichuan dish features a regional sauce, sometimes called "fish-fragrant flavor," that combines hot chili paste, garlic, ginger, scallions, vinegar, sugar, and soy sauce—but no fish!

This recipe was created by chef Ryan Hardy of the Little Nell in Aspen, Colorado. It's part of a special menu he created for Epicurious's Wine.Dine.Donate program.

This recipe makes more than enough pesto for Chef Ryan Hardy's Artichoke and green garlic soup . Leftovers, which freeze wonderfully, are great with pasta.

This recipe was created by chef Ryan Hardy of the Little Nell in Aspen, Colorado. It's part of a special menu he created for Epicurious's Wine.Dine.Donate program.

Pea tendrils or shoots are available at Asian markets. Or substitute baby bok choy cut into thin strips.

Serve as a side dish for roast chicken.

Great with orange or Romanesco cauliflower. Serve with a green salad.

This recipe originally accompanied shrimp and scallop posole .

Dinner rolls work well as buns for these mini burgers. Allow three burgers per person and top with tomato, red onion, and cucumber slices.