5 Ingredients or Fewer

Merluza en Salsa Verde Steaks work best for this recipe, but you can substitute fillets with skin. Slowly cooking the fish over low heat while swirling the pot releases the gelatin in the skin and bones, which emulsifies the sauce.

Food Editor: Melissa Roberts-Matar
Father: Richard Roberts, Monsey, NY
Summer and my father's grilled lemon chicken are synonymous for me. Like the alphabet-shaped pancakes he cooked on weekend mornings, this is a signature creation, and one he perfected over time. The chicken picks up a bright citrus flavor in an unusual marinade made with lemon, oil, and egg. Dad likes to serve it with homemade potato salad and iced tea spiked with mint leaves.

The fig leaves are not really for eating. They keep the fish juicy while it cooks and make it smell like coconut. You can cook these in the oven or on a grill.

Vinaigrette is the French word for oil and vinegar dressing. At the restaurant they have an olive oil tasting every year to decide which kinds to buy, because each year's crop of olives tastes a little different. Olive oils come from Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Mexico, and California. The dark green "extra virgin" oils taste the most like olives. The cooks use extra virgin olive oil for salad dressing, not to cook with. The paler, yellow oils labled "pure olive oil" taste milder, and those get used for cooking.

Be sure to use fresh spring peas for this classic side dish. Save the frozen ones for something else.

Pasta with Pecorino and Black Pepper This is an old Roman recipe in the tradition of la cucina povera that has always been a favorite of poor and rich alike. (Cacio is a word for "cheese" in Southern Italy.) It is incredibly simple and quick to prepare, but depends on having good-quality Pecorino Romano and pasta, and fragrant peppercorns in your larder. Make it with long or short pasta, whichever you prefer. The arugula is our addition; it brings fresh flavor and color to the dish.

This simply elegant ice is inspired by the Bellini, a mix of peach nectar and Prosecco made famous at Harry's Bar in Venice. Scoop it into flutes and top with Prosecco for a lovely aperitif. The ice is good on its own, too, especially between courses.

Affogato is a typically Italian way to enjoy ice cream — it's literally "drowned" in espresso or another liquid topping. (Lemon sorbetto splashed with grappa is a refreshing summer example.)

Because the vinegar is simply drizzled over the radicchio at the end, try to find an artisan-quality balsamic, such as one labeled condimento, if not a premium balsamico tradizionale. Radicchio is also good when grilled on a barbecue or in a stovetop grill pan. Oil the grill or grill pan and cook until wilted and slightly charred, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes.

Fagiolini in Umido Many versions of this simple, fresh, and flavorful contorno (vegetable side dish) are served in Italy. Lightly braising the green beans cooks them to a pleasingly crisp yet tender texture.

The sweet sharpness of both the orange juice and the balsamic vinegar combines with the natural sugars in the onions to create a delicious snack that's perfect to serve with cocktails, as an addition to an antipasto assortment, or as an accompaniment to roasted meats.

You can also cut ravioli from the sheets of fresh pasta dough.

In Italian, saltimbocca means "to jump in the mouth." The flavors in this veal dish do just that. To save time, ask the butcher to pound the scaloppine for you.

Turbot or sole would also be delicious in this crispy fish dish.

This sauce, called caldillo de jitomate ("tomato broth"), has a consistency closer to a light tomato soup than an Italian marinara.