Fusilli

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Freshly picked greens and herbs are essential to cooking in the Apulia region of Italy. Their assertive, often bitter flavor enriches many a modest dish. Here, a just-cooked tomato sauce is enlivened with the peppery taste of arugula.

This feisty sauce gets its name from one of its ingredients, dried crushed red pepper (arrabbiata is Italian for "angry"). Use extra red pepper for an even spicier result. Serve with: Deli antipasti such as olives, roasted red peppers, and provolone atop a bed of arugula, and seeded semolina bread. Dessert: Purchased tiramisù.

Here's a summer salad with robust flavors.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Since the tomatoes in the sauce are cooked just briefly, this dish is a breeze to make.

For extra eye appeal, use tricolor pasta in this fresh-from-the-garden salad.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Don’t skip the first step of salting the eggplant slices; it draws out excess moisture so that the eggplant will absorb less oil and stay firm when cooked.

There are two ways to get tender squid: a very quick sauté or a very long simmer. This simple yet impressive recipe uses the former method. We call for a Thai or serrano chile because they're easier to find here — try your local supermarket — than the small, thin Italian hot chiles. Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1 hr

Good as an entrée or served in smaller portions alongside chicken or beef.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

The same parsley butter (which can be prepared three days ahead) seasons the pasta and the broccoli rabe served alongside.

One piece of gemelli consists of two strands of pasta-both about an inch long-twisted around each other to resemble a braid. These noodles are great for catching the juices in this garlicky entrée. If you can't find gemelli, use fusilli; it will work just as well.

The term panéed means "panfried" in the New Orleans culinary lexicon. This recipe is from that city's Gabrielle Restaurant.