Root Vegetable

A beautiful bright orange, this soup has the sweetness of carrots and the aromatic nuttiness of caraway.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Seduced by Bacon. To read more about the book, click here. These salmon fillets are a great main course when you want something special and don't have a lot of time. They are super-easy and quick to make as well as delicious. . . . There are some fine ready-made sauces, called Chinese barbecue sauce, in Asian markets and even on supermarket shelves.

You can serve this soup hot or cold, says Carl Schroeder, chef at Arterra in San Diego. It's loaded with beta-carotene and is wonderfully rich.

Instead of pairing shrimp with sausage, we've taken this spicy gumbo in a more sophisticated direction by adding duck meat.

Sweet and spicy, these carrots are the perfect accompaniment to simple roast chicken, turkey, or pork loin.

Cider made from fresh apples creates a full-bodied glaze for these tender chops.

Earthy mushrooms are the base for a soup that also benefits from the saltwater essence of plump oysters.

The tangy honey-vinegar sauce that tops this crisp-skinned chicken is also great on pork, duck, or even a meaty fish.

Dried chipotle chiles become smoky-hot packages for a filling made from subtly sweet ripe plantains. Don'erestimate the heat of dried chiles—it's important to wear rubber gloves when working with them, since they can be just as potent as fresh ones.

This savory soup is thickened with masa harina, a flour made from dried corn cured in limewater. Dried ancho chiles give the vegetable broth a stunning brick-red color, and epazote (a pungent wild herb native to Mexico) contributes authentic flavor. Cubed potatoes and hefty chunks of fresh corn on the cob make the soup hearty enough to serve as a main course.

As with tomatoes, the profusion of heirloom varieties of potatoes at farmers' markets has helped us rediscover them as a seasonal ingredient in a rainbow of flavors, colors, and textures. This recipe is the perfect vehicle for trying any number of them. Nutty, creamy La Ratte fingerlings are a favorite of French chefs. German Butterballs, as their name suggests, are soft and buttery. For even cooking, choose potatoes that are about the same size.