Keto

Serve this zesty salad alongside grilled chili-rubbed chicken or steak, or grilled fish tacos.

A long cooking time for collard greens is a southern tradition. We sliver ours, then sauté them only for 1 minute, which renders them crisp-tender but allows the greens to keep their color and full flavor.

The tuna sauce for this salad is based on the Northern Italian tonnato— a summer sauce served over chilled veal roast. You could use light tuna, but white tuna makes the sauce a more attractive color.

Peppery arugula, sweet, ripe strawberries, and buttery hazelnuts create layers of contrasting flavor in this simple salad.

Brush thick slices of country bread with olive oil to grill alongside the vegetables. To begin, dice some cucumber into chilled vichyssoise (either from a can or from restaurant takeout); offer watermelon and bakery brownies for dessert.

Steve Silverman of South Burlington, Vermont, writes: "In my cooking I tend to be very quick and health-conscious. During the summer, my wife, Mary, and I usually grill chicken or fish and make salads. I'll use whatever fresh vegetables and ingredients I have on hand and come up with a wonderful meal for the two of us." To make this a substantial main course, add 1 1/4 pounds cooked shrimp.

Start with a very high oven temperature to seal in the meat juices. (This is equivalent to browning meat before roasting.) When the meat comes out of the oven, let it rest before carving, or the juices will run out.

Once the mustard butter is prepared and the chicken is marinated, this quick sauté comes together in just minutes. Any leftover fennel-mustard butter makes an instant sauce dolloped onto grilled fish.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 15 min

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 20 min

A whole mackerel or bluefish is about 2 feet long, so you will just be able to fit it on an angle in a large rectangular gas grill or a wide oven; see cooks' notes, below. You might want to measure your grill (or oven) before choosing a fish to make sure you'll have enough room. Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1 hr

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 30 min

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

If you prefer, use honeydew melon for an equally good salsa. Offer buttered new potatoes and sautéed spinach with the fish. Afterward, serve slices of pound cake with rum-soaked raisins and store-bought caramel sauce. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This pretty, easy-to-make first-course soup is flavorful and creamy, yet is extremely low fat-it has only one tablespoon of butter and no cream at all (except for an optional sour cream garnish). Pour your favorite beer or a fruity white wine throughout the evening.