Fry

As any southerner will tell you, eating black-eyed peas at New Year's will ensure good luck. For a simpler (and meatless) version of this hors d'oeuvre, omit the pork and serve these tender little cakes topped with just the red pepper mayo.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

If you can't get the whole trout boned, buy four fillets. Steamed baby potatoes and sautéed matchstick size strips of carrot and zucchini are appropriate side dishes; lemon tartlets and tea finish the menu nicely.

You may have had pappadams — light, crisp wafers made of lentil flour — at Indian restaurants. Here we use them as a stand-in for croutons.

"Thai is my favorite Asian cuisine, and the Thai noodles at Q, A Thai Bistro, here in Forest Hills just may be my favorite dish," writes Loren Kliegerman of Forest Hills, New York. "Any idea how it is prepared?"

Try this as part of a barbecue buffet.

The bright green of the fried asparagus with the yellow egg sauce and the orange salmon roe topping makes a colorful display.

You can serve these with bacon for breakfast, but they're also a nice side dish with steak or other meats.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

These get a lift from allspice, too.

A spicier version of that old Southern favorite. From Mother Africa's Table, National Council of Negro Women, Washington, D.C.

There is a historical reason why most Hanukkah menus offer foods that have been fried in oil. In the second century B.C., a one-day supply of oil inexplicably burned for eight days and eight nights after Judah Maccabee and his followers recaptured Jerusalem's Holy Temple from their Syrian oppressors. Hanukkah is the celebration of that miracle, and fried foods are served to commemorate the oil. In this country, the Eastern European potato latke is usually featured. These fritters are a Sephardic contribution to that tradition.

A blintz is simply a filled crepe. If making crepes is new to you, you'll be glad to know that there is plenty of batter to try a few practice ones. The completed blintzes can be frozen for up to a month.

The secret to crisp latkes is the removal of as much liquid as possible from the ground potatoes. Serve these plain (they're a fine accompaniment to a roast with gravy), or with sour cream or applesauce. See how to dice potatoes.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.