Tomato

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 40 min

This vegetarian version of the Spanish classic is perfect for spring. You will need a 12-inch-diameter skillet with 3-inch-high sides.

This dish is best eaten right away. You can make all the parts — except for the pasta — way ahead of time and just throw it together at the last minute. (The slow-roasted tomatoes are also great in other roles — as part of an antipasto in the summertime, as an omelet filling, or as a topping on grilled bread.)

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Active time: 1 1/2 hr Start to finish: 5 1/2 hr

"Many of the everyday dishes I made when I was raising my daughters are recipes I learned from my mother while I was growing up in the suburbs of Paris," writes Fanny Carroll of Eugene, Oregon. "She was quite a cook, and with a husband and seven kids to feed, everything had to be fast. She's the one who invented the recipe for the quick pizza. It's nice that the dishes I learned as a girl are enduring favorites in my own family. The quick pizza now spans three generations: My daughter Emily makes her own version of it today." France meets Italy in this clever dish that uses a ready-made crust.

Serve with: Mesclun salad with an herb vinaigrette and sliced semolina bread. Dessert: Vanilla ice cream sprinkled with crushed amaretti cookies (Italian macaroons) and drizzled with Kahlúa.

Jennifer Martin of Portland, Oregon, writes: "I am not formally trained in cooking but grew up working in food service, from chopping vegetables at food festivals to catering parties for a little extra income. Today I own Epicure Custom Cooking, a gourmet takeout shop and catering company with a few tables for dining. Our specials change weekly and are geared toward what I like to cook and eat. I simply love the business, even with my 12-hour days. At home when I'm not working, I'm usually cooking just for myself, and I don't have a lot of time. I love a good breakfast — when I have Saturday and Sunday mornings off — so that's why I came up with the frittata."

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 30 min

This is fantastic with coleslaw and warm biscuits. What to drink: A not-too-oaky domestic Chardonnay or a white Burgundy, such as one from France's St.-Véran region.

This is also terrific with yellow tomatoes. Garnish with thin cucumber slices and some chopped red onion, if desired.

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 45 min

This one-pot dish is delicious over couscous. What to drink: Wines with distinctive spice notes, such as Gewürztraminer or Syrah.

"My first real job was as a paralegal — but I hated it," writes Marcia Porch of Winter Park, Florida. "There were plenty of signs that my interests lay elsewhere; it just took me a while to recognize them. My co-workers caught on faster: They would tease me because there were always cookbooks on my desk. So I started moonlighting at a bakery on the weekends. Eventually this led to a culinary career that has included owning a catering business. These days, what I make at home has to have do-ahead steps and no complicated ingredients, and be healthful and simple to assemble. " If you have trouble finding plain bulgur (cracked wheat), use one cup of bulgur (but not the seasoning packets) from two boxes of wheat salad mix, found in the rice and pasta section of the supermarket.

Tracey Medeiros of Atlanta, Georgia, writes: "I'm a food stylist and recipe developer — and passionate about my job. It was a dream of mine to have a career in the culinary arts, but I didn't think that was possible. In college I was a political science major and considered going to law school. But soon after graduation I realized cooking was my true calling." Italian-inspired sandwiches hot off the grill.