Carrot

Offer this main course with plenty of crusty bread to soak up the delicious saffron broth. A crisp Sauvignon Blanc is good here, too.

This soup can be pureed by pressing it through a strainer or a food mill. It can also be pureed in a blender and then strained.

The homey and hearty dishes of Louis Szathmáry—a splendidly mustached man who was the chef-owner of Chicago's well-known Hungarian restaurant The Bakery—are the inspiration for this dinner. Of course, chef Louis cooked using lots of butter and cream, but with just a touch of fat we've retained many of the same earthy flavors that he loved. Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1‚ hr

This is a refined version of classic split pea soup. It has a thinner consistency than other recipes (though it's still very hearty), and the addition of frozen peas brightens up the flavor.

Talk about simple stews! You don't have to brown the meat — and the stew cooks in an easy hour.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Make the slaw and chill it up to two hours before serving. It is best cold.

This recipe was created to accompany other canapés: Shrimp Canapés , Pickled Herring Canapés and Cheese Canapés .

Grilled Matambre Matambre (literally, "kill the hunger") is a classic South American meat dish. Every family has its own favorite combination of ingredients for the filling — some use vegetables, eggs, and nuts; others use ground pork, calves' brains, and spinach. We kept it simple and went with spinach and carrots. Traditionally, this dish is poached, but we decided to grill ours. After testing this recipe on both gas and charcoal grills, we found that we prefer the flavor that charcoal imparts to the dish. We used a 22 1/2-inch kettle grill, a large chimney starter, and a 10-pound bag of hardwood charcoal.* Active time: 2 1/2 hr Start to finish: 3 hr

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.