Cookbooks

Wheatberries are a nutty grain often used in salads and breads. Look for hard red winter wheatberries—summer wheatberries become too soft after they’re cooked.

Piquant jalapeño chiles complement the earthy flavor of black-eyed peas in this fiber-rich side salad; they also add crunch, along with the diced red onion.

This slaw can be made up to 1 day ahead and refrigerated. Refrigerate the cooked bacon separately, wrapped in paper towels, in a resealable plastic bag; reheat it on a baking sheet in a 325°F oven until it’s warm and crisp.

Mâche, or lamb’s lettuce, is a tender, nutty green. If it’s unavailable, try watercress as a delicious substitute.

For a complete meal, serve this salad with pita bread, feta cheese, and hummus. If you are on a low-sodium diet, substitute a less salty cheese for the feta.

This salad tastes best up to 1 hour after making it. To make ahead store the salad components separately (up to 3 hours), and toss before serving.

We recommend serving this juicy salad as a first course, either alone or accompanied by mixed greens. We used beefsteak tomatoes, but any fresh, ripe tomatoes would be equally delicious.

If you can find it, use Zephyr squash, which is yellow with a pale-green tip. You can also use a mix of young green and yellow squashes.