Bell Pepper

Warm garlic toast and an arugula salad with balsamic vinaigrette are good partners with the pasta. A purchased lemon tart is a fitting dessert.

Serve polenta alongside this dish, which is also nice spooned over pasta or onto French rolls to make hero sandwiches.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This versatile salad can also be made with leftover beef, lamb or chicken.

Sliced avocado and purchased salsa are great additions to this Tex-Mex entrée. Let guests assemble their own tacos.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Pick up some roasted or steamed vegetables from a deli or salad bar and some corn bread to serve alongside. Vanilla ice cream topped with sliced peaches and toasted pecans would be a nice ending. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Rajas is the word for a traditional Mexican mixture of sautéed peppers and onions. Green onions work well in this version.

A great-tasting hash that gets its kick from the combination of Maytag blue cheese, spicy sausage, red bell pepper and beets.

(From Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby, License to Grill, Morrow, 1997) Tommy who? Chris and John explain: "This classic Latin American dish is that rare bird, a completely healthful vegetarian meal that appeals to the taste buds of teenagers. Or at least it appeals to the buds of Tommy, a teenager who lives in the apartment above one of us and is the nephew of the other one. Tommy prefers his rice and beans cooked separately, rather than together, and likes lots of garlic and only a few bell peppers in the mix; so that's how we make it here. For some reason, it has almost as high an appeal rating as pizza and chips, those quintessential meatless teenage favorites."

As any southerner will tell you, eating black-eyed peas at New Year's will ensure good luck. For a simpler (and meatless) version of this hors d'oeuvre, omit the pork and serve these tender little cakes topped with just the red pepper mayo.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. To go with the chicken, toss some greens with lemon vinaigrette, mix fresh chopped parsley into rice pilaf and cut a crusty load of bread into thick slices. Cantaloupe doused with sweet Marsala is a great finish.

Serve this as a side dish, or add some cooked shrimp or chicken for a main course. Look for the sesame oil in the Asian foods section of the supermarket.

At the end of the century, vegetarian cooking gained wide acceptance-and became sophisticated. Wraps (basically burritos) were a hot fast food; everything from Thai chicken to ahi tuna got "wrapped" in flour tortillas or flatbread. The two trends pair up in this terrific dish. To make these even more like burritos, add one 15- to 16-ounce can of drained black beans to the filling.

In many instances, boneless skinless chicken breasts are sold with "tenders" (the small fillet strip containing the white tendon on the underside of each breast half) still attached. If that is the case, simply put each chicken breast—skinned side down—on a work surface, pull off the tenders, and reserve them for other use.