Zucchini

Suitable sides for the vegetables and pasta are grilled pita bread and assorted olives. End with baklava and fresh apricots.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

In this rendition of a classic antipasto, fresh herbs infuse the olive oil marinades, which double as dressings.

This frittata is a marriage of ideas gleaned from two similar dishes tasted in the Piedmont: a delicious zucchini and herb "frittela" at the restaurant Guido in Costiglioli d'Asti and a spinach "frittatini" (both were miniature frittate) at the humble but superb Osteria dell'Unione in Treiso.

Serve this entrée with crusty bread to help catch all the juices, and pour a light Italian white wine, such as Pinot Grigio. For dessert, spoon minted fresh berries atop vanilla frozen yogurt.

Rather than frying many batches of small latkes on the stove, you can prepare two large ones that are browned in the oven, then cut into wedges. Offer the Three-Apple Applesauce alongside.

If you enjoy spicy food, pass some hot pepper sauce to sprinkle on top of this light, soufflé-like omelet.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Serve this with crusty bread to soak up the delicious olive oil.

Torquato Innocenti, who sells his just-harvested, still-prickly zucchini — with flowers attached, a sure sign of freshness — offered me simple advice for the vegetable. Roast them whole in a "puddle" of oil and serve with basil. I bought a bag of his smallest (cigar-size) zucchini, pan-roasted them until browned sprinkled them with chopped basil — and loved the results. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.