Summer

Exotic ginger-poached peaches are served with light, delicate meringues and softly whipped cream in a dessert that's great for summer entertaining (the peaches and meringues can be made a day ahead). A serrated vegetable peeler makes quick work of peeling the peaches.

Fresh, in-shell black-eyed peas have a nutty flavor and cook quickly. You'll find them at farmers' markets in late summer. You can also buy shelled ones in the produce section of many supermarkets and from melissas.com. Flat green beans known as Romano (or Roma) beans are also found at farmers' markets. If you can't get them, string beans are a fine substitute.

The salsa has a perfect sweet-spicy balance, and it's an easy way to turn simple grilled chicken breasts into a dish that's dinner-party special.

Make a batch of this versatile sauce, then serve it all week. You can spoon it over grilled fish, chicken, or pork—or use it to fill quesadillas.

Here's a terrific new version of the classic melon-and prosciutto-pairing. For added color, use a mix of different melons.

Akashah's tasty citrus torte is both gluten-free and a source of healthy unsaturated fat.

Chef Jimmy Shaw cooks up tacos that stars can enjoy without guilt. Authentic Mexican dishes like this one are flavorful and naturally lowfat, he says.

A simple, delicious summer dessert with nectarines.

The many components of this big salad—served side by side on a platter—all have quite different flavors and textures and go together brilliantly.

In July, the abundance of ripe tomatoes means making your own tomato juice is a breeze, and fresh juice, in turn, means a truly superb Bloody Mary. With a range in the amounts of horseradish, Tabasco, and lemon juice, you can customize the drinks to your liking. The final flourish, rimming the glasses with sea salt and black pepper, adds a slight tingle to each sip.

By its very nature, a Pavlova is a little wild—as proved by these three tiers of airy meringue, which crack and crumble to reveal marshmallowy interiors while the berries' juices puddle all over drifts of whipped cream. And that playful mix of textures and flavors sure tastes delicious. Meringues aren't usually made with moist brown sugar, but here it adds a deeper kind of sweetness. Baking them in cake pans, another unusual technique, helps these meringues crisp up.

Any kind of mild honey will work beautifully here. It will cook into a rich caramel, which coats the peaches and deepens their sweetness.

Summer corn and vine-ripened tomatoes are already close to perfection, and they taste best when prepared simply. Here, the corn is sautéed with scallions in butter, the tomatoes are lightly dressed with oil and cider vinegar, and then the two components are tossed together so that their flavors and juices mix into something new.

By this point in the summer, the mint in most gardens has grown knee-high and is threatening to take over. Don't panic—harvest a few armloads and turn the bounty into a refreshing drink. Plan on making a couple of batches, both with and without alcohol: Adults will swoon over the smooth, bourbon-laced juleps; kids will enjoy the lightly sweetened herbal tea all on its own.

Not in the mood for bread? No problem. This no-mayo lobster mixture would also make an ideal centerpiece in a summer salad.

These colorful tartlets are quite simple to put together. One easy custard recipe is the basis for a trio of very different fillings (the ingredients can be doubled or tripled if one is a real favorite).