Nut Free

This two-part cooking technique adds layers of texture – a creamy inside and a crisp outside.

This is equally good drizzled over hard-boiled eggs or with crudité for dipping.

If puffing the quinoa feels like too much, swap in some chopped toasted nuts to get a similar crunchy texture.

To check if your meringue is stiff, lift the beaters out of the bowl and upend them: The peaks should stick straight up.

Make this once with measuring spoons and cups; the next time, just eyeball it, adjusting any or all of the ingredients to suit your palate. Then you can call it your classic.

This "put an egg on it" dream dish is a must-order menu item at Sqirl. If using kale, you may want to add more lemon juice to mimic sorrel's tart sharpness.

Find hot-smoked salmon, a Pacific Northwest delicacy, at specialty grocers. Erickson's favorite brand is available at lokifish.com.

Weighing down the salmon fillet with heavy cans as it cures will press excess liquid out of the flesh to ensure a firm texture.

Both the salmon and the artichokes are poached in spice-and herb-infused liquids, adding layers of subtle aromatic flavor.

No doubt about it, six tablespoons of cayenne is a lot, but that's what Hattie B's considers "medium." For a milder heat, decrease to two tablespoons.

Crème fraîche delivers tang along with creamy butterfat to this deconstructed salad; Greek yogurt can be substituted if you wish.

We'd serve this dressed-down chicken salad for brunch, pack it for lunch, or make it as a light dinner on a hot summer night.

With a texture somewhere between a latke and a pancake, these vegetarian fritters are also gluten-free. (Thanks, chickpea flour!)

Radishes make a crunchy salsa for these–or any other taco you're serving this summer.

Cooking the shrimp with their shells on helps them retain flavor; scoring them along the back lets you remove the vein and makes peeling easier. Win-win.

Adding the veggies in phases, from longest cooking first to fastest last, guarantees the ideal texture for each.