Lunch & Dinner

Enjoy this colorful and flavorful salad from Danielle Walker!

A terrific appetizer, this dish becomes a meal when served with a salad of shredded cabbage and pomegranate seeds. When purchasing the lamb ribs, ask your butcher to cut a couple racks of lamb for you, separating the bones from the top of the rack and the chops.

For a different take on hamburgers, try this recipe that adds Greek flavors to the mix.

A roast leg of lamb doesn’t have to be an all-day process. If you’re time pressed, ask your butcher for a boneless leg, which requires a shorter roasting time and allows you to work the seasoning more thoroughly throughout the roast. Serve with a green salad.

This spring salad can morph with the seasons: Use cubes of fresh melon or diced tomatoes in the summer, or cubes of roasted squash in the fall or winter. You can also add a cup of diced chicken, smoked ham, or shrimp.

A light and refreshing alternative to pasta, “noodles” made from zucchini — or turnips or other root vegetables — taste terrific topped with an herbed avocado sauce.

Seasoned with Middle Eastern spices, skewered and grilled grass-fed lamb, chicken, beef, or pork kabobs are terrific with a refreshing avocado mint sauce Serve with cauliflower “couscous.”

This flavorful grain salad works well as an entrée or a hearty side. For a vegetarian version, substitute some beans and extra veggies.

Roasted chicken and potatoes, fragrant with garlic and lemon . . . on a weeknight? Yes! The key is to butterfly the chicken so it can lie flat on the baking sheet, which helps it roast faster. The beauty of this recipe is that it only requires a few minutes of your attention.

Dry pasta is cooked right in the sauce, a timesaving and delicious trick Italian grandmothers use to infuse the pasta with lots of flavor. Choose a favorite variety (such as shells, penne, or fusilli) that cooks in about eight to 12 minutes. After the pasta has cooked, you may choose to fold in a spoonful of pesto, top the meal with a fried egg for added protein, or drizzle it with balsamic vinegar.

Once you soak the beans, this hearty stew comes together in roughly 30 minutes and is perfect for a winter day.

This soulful side dish is a nice accompaniment to a roasted chicken. For a vegetarian version, simply omit the ham and, if you like, add a teaspoon of smoked Spanish paprika.

Perfect as a light meal, dal is a traditional Indian dish made with lentils, beans, or peas.

Lamb shoulder can be a tough cut of meat, but pressure cooking can make it fall-off-the-bone tender. Serve this over a quinoa, rice, or millet pilaf.

Risotto intimidates many home cooks, but using a pressure cooker eliminates all that endless stirring. Try this recipe with your favorite veggies, herbs, and meat or seafood.

Mole is a traditional Mexican sauce that has many variations and usually takes hours to cook. This adaptation is quicker but still silky and flavorful.

Spicy and smoky chipotle pepper pairs well with dark chocolate.

Cocoa-infused cream pairs nicely with warming spices such as black pepper, cumin, and cinnamon, and it complements a variety of veggies, including carrots, sweet potatoes, and even green beans.

Change up this classic salad by trying other combinations: dandelion greens with a balsamic and dried-cherry vinaigrette, or arugula with a warm pancetta dressing and shaved Parmesan. For a heartier salad, add diced smoked turkey or chicken, or a crumble of cooked bacon.