Gourmet

This recipe is an accompaniment for Individual Chocolate Raspberry Baked Alaskas . This recipe will yield more than you need for the baked Alaskas, but who would mind a little extra ice cream in the house?

Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 40 min

You can substitute skinless boneless chicken breasts for the veal cutlets. Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 35 min

We made an already simple recipe even easier by omitting brand names from the ingredient list. Almost any tequila will do — but after experimenting with several different beers, we found we prefer a lighter-style lager here. This recipe can be readily increased to serve a large crowd.

If you can't find matzo cake meal, grind batches of regular matzo meal in a clean electric coffee/spice grinder until it has the consistency of flour.

Using the freshest eggs possible is the key to great poached eggs. This dish makes a savory breakfast or, when paired with a salad, a satisfying brunch.

Though reminiscent of the warm soft pretzels you may have had at baseball games or on the street, these are even better because they're fresh. Serve with yellow mustard.

Don't assemble these hors d'oeuvres until the last minute, or the chips will get soggy. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 2 hr

The lamb top roast is one of the three "subprimal" cuts that can be cut from the leg of lamb. The equivalent of the beef top round roast, but smaller and more tender, it provides a succulent boneless lamb roast when you don't want to deal with a whole leg. Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 3 3/4 hr

We prefer wild salmon for this recipe because it has a milder flavor and is more environmentally friendly than farmed varieties. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 30 min

Named for a friend of my mother who was a wonderful cook, this recipe is very quick and easy and always elicits lots of requests for copies," Cindy Vogels of Littleton, Colorado. " I often serve this dish as a first course, leaving the shrimp whole, but here they are blended in a food processor to form a delicious spread." Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1 3/4 hr

To help this crisp live up to its name, we devised a little trick: Squeeze the topping by handfuls to compact it, then crumble chunks of it over the filling. The chunks rest on top of the fruit instead of sinking into it.

Using plum tomatoes for this recipe will yield an intensely flavored soup — good for the chilly fall months — while other tomatoes make for a refreshingly lighter, more delicately flavored soup that is perfect for warm weather. The soups are equally delicious. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 1 3/4 hr