Asparagus

The bright green of the fried asparagus with the yellow egg sauce and the orange salmon roe topping makes a colorful display.

Can be prepare in 45 minutes or less.

Serve this newfangled main-course salad with a crisp flatbread, such as lavash, and white wine or rosé spritzers.

Risotto de Bulgour aux Pois et Asperges At the restaurant, this is made with spelt, a chewy grain that requires much longer cooking than does the more readily available bulgur called for here.

Chervil's delicate anise flavor enhances the season's baby vegetables. If you don't have chervil, substitute fresh dill.

Start this meatless meal with artichokes filled with a lemon mayonnaise for dipping, and serve the risotto with a mixed green and cherry tomato salad and a basket of toasted herb bread. To polish things off, set out a purchased raspberry tart.

The pasta and sauce cook simultaneously (so two cooks can divide and conquer), for a total of about ten minutes, start to finish. Serve with your best bottle of bubbly.

Great with just about any main dish.

Fontina cheese is available at cheese shops and some supermarkets.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. We found this pasta just as delicious without the salmon.

Here's a delicious recipe from chef Edwin Goto at The Lodge at Koele on the island of Lanai in Hawaii. In an homage to spring, the rich-tasting risotto is served on a bed of oven-roasted asparagus.

(BRANZINO ARROSTO CON SALSA DI ASPARAGI) Salmon, flounder or snapper fillets can also be used for this attractive, colorful entrée.

Open a bottle of fruity Chardonnay to serve with this enlightened take on a classic.

This lively Asian-style salad is terrific on its own or teamed with roast chicken, roast lamb or broiled shrimp.

Bibb and Boston are both types of butter lettuce; you can use either in this recipe. What to drink: An Australian Sémillon, or a California Chardonnay or Chenin Blanc will stand up to the rich flavors in this meal.