Meal Prep

Our food editors were evenly divided concerning which dipping sauce they preferred with the duck salad. Some liked the nuoc cham because of the depth of flavor imparted by the fish sauce; others leaned toward the sweetness and heat of the chile sauce. Make one or both, depending on your taste.

This is one of my favorite sauces: Its deep, purpley, cranberry color is reason enough for that designation, but then again so is the bright strawberry/kiwi/watermelon flavor, with its hints of the unbridled tropics. And the fact that you can tell your guests you're serving them cactus fruit (and that it is delicious) gives you a decidedly exotic edge. The puree is very watery, like watermelon juice, so in order to give the sauce some body but not take away all the fruit's freshness, I've directed you to rapidly boil down part of the puree with sugar, then cool it and add the remaining uncooked puree. This method works well with watermelon puree, too, should you not be able to find prickly pears. You will need about 3 cups seeded, pureed watermelon pulp.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This fresh chutney is an excellent condiment for beef, chicken, and fish.

Be sure to refrigerate the oil, and to use it within three weeks of the date it was made.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

(Provençal Basil Sauce) Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Use this stock to prepare Chicken with Parsley and Thyme Stuffing and Roasted Potatoes .

A homemade version of vanilla extract.

If you have a gas grill and want great smoky flavor, soak hickory-wood chips in water one hour. Drain well; place chips in a disposable aluminum pie pan directly over flames (or over lava rocks if they are part of the grill's design). Allow chips to begin smoking, then grill vegetables until tender. This recipe is an accompaniment for Spicy Barbecued Rib-Eye Steaks with Smoked Vegetable Salsa .

Though the cranberries look gorgeous, you wouldn't want to eat them—they're extremely tart when raw. The mint leaves, however, are positively delicious. Fresh raw cranberries yielded the most attractive garnish; thawed frozen berries may collapse and shrivel. Feel free to increase the amounts we've provided here if you'd like to make your decoration more elaborate.

This recipe is an accompaniment for Toasted Coconut Dacquoise with Orange Pineapple Ice Cream .

As a crisp topping for pasta or steamed vegetables (Garlic Baguette Crumbs) or as a crucial ingredient (in the Apple Prune Brown Betty), these are worlds apart from store-bought bread crumbs. Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr (includes cooling)